OPERATIONAL LEVEL AGREEMENT

XYZ Company Operational Level Agreement Between XYZ and ZYD

Pink Elephant Inc.

This template accompanies the book Defining IT Success Through The Service Catalog: A Practical Guide, second edition. ISBN: 978-0-9810811-0-6

Care has been taken to ensure that the original template is accurate and complete, however, the publisher, author and distributor can accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions or for changes to the details given: for example any bespoking of the templates by individuals or organizations. These templates are not intended as a substitute for project specific legal advice which should always be sought where required.

DEFINING IT SUCCESS THROUGH THE SERVICE CATALOG

Introduction
Operational Level Agreements (OLA) are required to document the relationship and expectations between the different teams that comprise Service and Systems Delivery Departments. This document will provide you with the background information on how to set up and maintain an Operational Level Agreement.

What is an Operational Level Agreement?

An Operational Level Agreement is part of the Service Level Management process. Service Level Management is a tactical process consisting of a number of activities aimed at translating business requirements of IT services into tangible, manageable and measurable solutions. ITs position in the organization, therefore, should reflect the tactical nature of the process, which includes relationships with strategic processes such as business-IT alignment, customer liaison, planning and control and quality audit. In order to ensure that the levels of service delivery stipulated within any Service Level Agreements (SLAs) can be supported and consistently achieved, it is important to coordinate the activities of functions within IT. This document is used to identify the boundaries and shared responsibilities between IT Service Delivery Partners. For example, since business applications are provided as a service to the business, the network must be available in order to gain access to those applications. The workstations provided must also be configured properly as well. The management of each of these three separate IT components resides with different IT departments. In an effort to coordinate the consistent delivery of standard levels of service, an Operational Level Agreement is created between the IT departments involved in service delivery. This agreement in turn brings clarity and understanding within IT regarding the functions of each group. With respect to the provision of support for each line of service described in the IT Service Catalog, OLAs need to be established between IT functions. The goal is to ultimately create an SLA and OLA scenario, where the OLA translates the service requirements from the business into operational requirements and commitments within IT to meet those service objectives.

Operational Level Agreements Activities

Creating and using operational level agreements is an iterative process. Business requirements and technology are constantly changing which may alter any IT capabilities. For these reasons, the process is built around the premise of continuously matching IT capabilities to changing business requirements. This process requires the periodic revisiting of existing operational level agreements. The frequency of the revision is something that requires consensus between the IT departments, as there is no right or wrong answer. The long-term target is for annual reviews, or after significant changes within the infrastructure. It is understood that either partner may request a review at any time should events warrant. There are three main stages when setting up an Operational Level Agreement:

Defining
Specific services that each IT department provides Where in the IT cluster are Operational Level agreements needed? What expectations and needs are there between the different support teams?

Executing
Negotiating and agreeing on specific levels of service Monitoring for compliance and exceptions Reporting on achievements Reviewing agreements

OPERATIONAL LEVEL AGREEMENT

Controlling
Verifying integrity of the documents and process Taking action on areas for improvement Periodically revisiting existing Operational Level Agreements (for example every six months).

Operational Level Agreement Overview

The purpose of this Operational Level Agreement template is to identify and clarify the relationships within the XYZ. The goal of using the template is to guarantee that described services and escalations within the Service Specification Sheets and Service Catalog are in place and functioning at expected levels.

Using this Service Specification Sheet

User
Service Manager SLM Manager

Use
For overall executive accountability for the process and all associated documentation. For review of the service specification to ensure requirements are all met. Act as source of information for customer relationship liaison. Facilitation and assistance when needed in preparing/negotiating OLAs. For final content of Operational Level Agreements and sign off/approval of said content and associated responsibilities, metrics and service level commitments attributed to each service offering. For documenting service offerings (in detail) using the Service Specification Sheet template. For assisting with verification of service level commitments and associated reporting of metrics and performance indicators. For participating in the negotiation and sign off of the operational level agreements. For review of metrics and capabilities from a technical perspective/requirements.

Departmental Manager (Service Owner) Service Owner Representative

IT Contact

1. Use the Service Specification Documents to identify service partners. 2. Negotiate mutually agreeable responsibilities and needs. 3. Input in plain English, a response. 4. Sign Off.

For example:
This Operational Level Agreement (OLA) deals with the IT services to the Core Business Group XXXX provided jointly by Department 1 and Department 2. The objectives of this OLA are: Clarify responsibilities Define the escalation path Set up measurements of service performance Ensure quality IT services to the Core Business Group

Service Areas
Department 1 and Department 2 have a wide range of activities in providing IT support. This OLA only deals with those areas that need joint effort from both Department 1 and Department 2. These areas are: HW Requisition SW/Application Requisition SW/Application Installation, Maintenance and Support Service Catalog updating

DEFINING IT SUCCESS THROUGH THE SERVICE CATALOG

Appendix Template OLA Operational Level Agreement Between XYZ and DDD

Project: Product Name: Template Operational Level Agreement Version: 1.0 Stage: Draft Publication Date: Organization: Author(s):

OPERATIONAL LEVEL AGREEMENT

Service Name:
Hardware MACs

Service Function:
This service focuses on MACs of hardware for customers based on information obtained through the Service Desk.

Service Description/Definition:
This service provides customers with assistance for ad hoc moves, adds, and change requests concerning personal computers, and printers. This service is based on moves, adds, and changes of 5 personal computers or less. For move, adds, and changes of more personal computers, PC Fleet Coordinators must be advised in order to align a scheduled time within the Planning Cycle.

Service Hours:
Service Desk: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on business days. Deployment: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on business days.

Other Critical Times:

Service is not available during non-business hours.

Exceptions and Limitations:

The Service Items listed below that have been shaded can be reported upon using existing tools and procedures. All other items will need to have a process defined for them. This task will require commitments from the business, both in terms of development time and budget. If problems arise from the implementation of emergency user requests/enhancements any resultant failures attributable to this request within 24 hours will not be measured against this OLA.

DEFINING IT SUCCESS THROUGH THE SERVICE CATALOG

SERVICE BREAKDOWN BY ITEM FOR:

Service Item
Support Procedures Responsibilities of Service Desk

Item Definition

Target

Measurement Criteria

Measurement Frequency

Support based on initial call to Service Desk and escalated as required. Service Desk will receive and acquire forms for moves, adds, and changes and append them to the Remedy ticket generated. Service Desk is responsible for obtaining the following customer information: 1. Name 2. Location 3. Extension 4. Contact/backup number 5. Cost center 6. Incident information, which includes Summary field-short description, and/ or Detail field-long description in the Remedy ticket, is filled out accordingly. Note that the Summary field in the ticket will contain sufficient detail to enable quick analysis of the work required, not See attached notation. Or to receive a completed authorized form (found on the Intranet) filled out by the customer and faxed or emailed to Service Desk who will in turn ensure the accuracy of the form with any follow up with the customer, before escalating to Deployment. Service Desk will also attempt to resolve incident in a reasonable time, then escalate to Deployment if unable to resolve. Metrics based on incident reports generated by Service Desk. Check Remedy 95% of time, tickets on a Remedy ticket regular basis filled out correctly. 90% Resolution of all incidents that fall within their technical ability. 90% Resolution of all incidents within the stated target recovery times of the severity chart (from point of incident receipt to closure of ticket). Random Check

Responsibilities of Deployment

Deployment is responsible for dealing with any escalated incidents as per severity. Any direct calls made to them will be logged in Remedy with all the pertinent information. Deployment will liaise with Service Desk to convey necessary information and close the ticket. 1. 2. 3. 4. Service Desk John Doe Serious Susan Alan Accountable

Turnaround time is 3 days for MACs

Escalation

Known Constraints

Product availability, i.e.: the underpinning contract with the supplier states policies for deployment and the minimum standards for the delivery of the product Insufficient documentation from branch coordinator, i.e. the movement planner that coordinates the deployment is incomplete Purchase orders not being generated in a timely manner Staffing and specialized skills may have an impact on timely delivery of product Ad hoc requests must go through the branch coordinator, which means the movement planner must be updated If MAC request form is incomplete Project/job priorities, i.e. other staff commitments or priorities may impact the deployment Contact is made through Service Desk.

Contacts

Escalation Procedure:
1. Service Desk Phone: 2. John Doe Phone, pager: 3. Serious Susan phone: 4. Alan Accountable phone:

Signatories:

Other Notes/Comments:
OLA to be reviewed every 12 months and changes to be agreed by above signatories.