Service Level Management Lifecycle

The following process is recommended for configuring Self Service and the Service CatalogHow customers order products and services from your organization. One or more IT systems enabling a business process.. Use the service owner or administrator role.

Create a serviceA generally defined framework for actions or items that are provided to an end user. Specific actions, items, response times, and other details are not part of a service definition; those details are defined in service level packages, request offerings, and service level agreements. Instead, a service provides the basis for those detailed definitions. An example of a service is email. After a service is defined, end users do not see or request the service itself. Instead, they use the Service Catalog to view and submit request items, which are features that are based on the service and that you (as a service owner) define and make available to them. Multiple request offerings can be based on the same service.. Specify characteristics that define a service. These characteristics are inherited by all service level packages and offerings that are linked to the service. See Creating a Service.

Create request offerings and form offerings and assign each to a category. After a service is defined, end users do not see or request the service itself. Instead, they select from lists of offerings made available to them through the Service Catalog. See Working with Request Offerings.

A request offeringA service item offered by a provider that an end user can request through the Service Catalog. For example, "Request for a new mailbox," and "Quarantine" are request offerings under the Email service. configures a service requestA request to IT for an activity that has a well-defined IT procedure., including cost, delivery schedule, fulfillment method, and so on. Service Catalog end users request predefined services through the request offering forms that you design. When the end user submits the request, a service request record is created.
A form offering configures a more general form used by Service Catalog end users to submit requests that do not have a predefined cost or delivery schedule (for example, to submit an incident). When you create a form offering, you specify which business object is used when a form offering record is created (unlike with request offerings, in which the service request object is automatically used). Form appearance is based on the business object layout that you select.

Define service level packageThe level of service provided to a customer. A defined level of utility and warranty for a particular service package. Each service level package is designed to meet the needs of a particular pattern of business activity.s. Specify additional characteristics that define how a service is offered to subscribers. A service level package is based on one service, from which it inherits general characteristics such as owner, provider, and so on. See Service Level Packages.

A service can have multiple service level packages. For example, you could define service level packages named "Gold," "Silver," and "Bronze" for a service, each with a different price, response time, hours of operation, and so on.

The promises offered by a service level package are dependent on a number of factors: promises made by other groups within the organization (captured in a service level agreement) and promises made by outside vendors (captured in an underpinning contract). See Service Level Agreements and Underpinning Contracts.

The degree of compliance an organization can provide (and therefore can be offered to a customer), is defined as a service level target, and can also affect the service level package. Operational level agreements, underpinning contract, and service level agreements all have defined targets. See Service Level Targets.

Link request offerings to a service level package. After you define a service level package, you must link it to one or more request offerings. When a link is established, the request offering is included in the service level package. See Request Offering Link.

Publish service level packages. A service level package must be published to make it available for subscription. See Working with Request Offerings.

Subscribe to service level packages and create service level agreements. Request offerings are available to end users after you create a service level agreement by subscribing to a service level package. See Working with Request Offerings.