How to anchor your IT service management during times of change

When it comes to times of change; whether new business, mergers & acquisitions or downsizing, maintaining customer focused Service Management can be a real challenge.  Typically an organisations' Service Desk will be the key player in providing seamless Service Management.  

In cases of growth, M&A or downsizing, it can often mean merging multiple and disparate IT service desks.  As Change has become a standard way of life for the financial service world, the need for seamless IT integration when changes happen is essential.  When changes hit, the first IT related question is often; "so how can we consolidate the service desk?" as it is essential that there is a central point of contact for all IT enquiries.

Preparation is key 

Knowledge Management can provide an excellent tool to bridge the learning gap between reorganised IT service teams. Most Service Desk consolidation projects will also involve new service functions for team members. A Service Desk analyst may need to move from being a single-department "jack of all trades" to a multi-departmental desktop software expert.

Developing a process and solution to capture the expertise from highly skilled service analysts is a big factor to consider when transitioning to a new service support model. There will need to be an IT Service Management process in place to make sure that all the key Knowledge Management information is integrated.

The type of information that needs to be integrated could range from the basic; for example contact information, to the more complex like best practice guidelines for specific company processes. The information needs to be quickly accessible for those that need to utilise it.

When consolidating two or more Service Desks there will be an increase in different types of "how to" questions. In most organisations, there is typically a broad range of applications. If the IT service desk can identify the top 20 applications, and the most common problems with those applications, they can prepare matching resolutions that can be captured and documented in the knowledge base.