IT service management to your overall IT operations and business. The business has become virtual and technology has become the servicing oil. IT has become the base need and servicing as an approach for existence. Thus, for every organization, IT service is like the breathing needs of human beings. Till they are functioning well, end-users never realize or appreciate the contribution and the importance Vs any odd situation for a fraction of second, the discomfort starts growing at galloping speed. That is the criticality of IT Service management. In an interaction, Ashok Asawale, Vice President IT Process Excellence, Mahindra and Mahindra, speak on some of the best practices in service management. Edited excerpts. Â
How has SM in your organization had evolved over the years? Tell us about some major milestones.
The industrial trends have moved, from core product/purpose focus to a service orientation. It is the hard reality of the industrial life, the organization that refused are wiped out in this digital world. Thus, IT aspects of the industrial usage and the serving of IT has now become service-oriented.
The awareness, knowledge architecture, team capability building, end-user awareness, and customer-centricity are the major pillars for building the transformation. Design Thinking as an approach and focus change management has helped all of us to build this change. We have devised a unique method to take care of the Indian mindset and dynamics and can be discussed at the individual level based on individual needs. This communication is focusing on building the direction.
What key challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?
It is a top-down push for dealing with change management. For building the service orientation and making the IT adaptation effective or IT servicing consistent, the following guidelines are being used.
Understanding the end-user and the pain area the one is taking, needs one is exploring versus Discovering the total space and the type of data contents and the responsibility matrix of the business dynamics w r t the total value chain in the business. Drawing the Big Picture from all such small signals to discover the hidden challenges and arriving at the change management
Design thinking, awareness building, piloting, investments, and backup are the standard aspects, putting them on board and arriving at simplification is a primary focus. For making the service road map effective the focus is, whether the path is consistent in all situation and the quality is kept at the same level with minimum deviations to settle the odds. This is the approach being used.
As an analogy, breathing frequency of human being so consistent on the whole universe that there are never failures. The simplification needs at this level of benchmark.
Piloting and rolling across all organization is the change management, where one needs to be aware of RACI matrix. (For every line of servicing, someone is Responsible Vs some there at Sr level is AÂ One needs the Consultancy in case of crises and periodic Information sharing. Responsibility + Accountability + Consulting + Information formalization makes the change management effective.)
Further, every end results of servicing are also chemistry of Decision making + Influencing + Destiny, the DID. RACI and DID are two powerful dimensions if discovered clearly, the change management is guaranteed. Otherwise, we experience failures and excuses.
Advertisement
Brief us on how your IT service management ops touch and impacts your last-mile customers.
We all exist because of the end customer is acknowledging our contribution. The organizations who could not handle the evolving needs of end customers are wiped out in history. Hence the focus is moved from product orientation to services management.
The effective adoption of AI + IoT + RPA are today’s IT needs of BIG conglomerates vs smart human touch and cost-effective tools adoptions are the approach being used in the small organization. The IT Service Management with the above background is either specialized skills and technology-driven, or multiskilling and SMART focus driven based on the economical health and adopting capability. All are getting adjusted or aligning to satisfy the last mile customer in the total value chain.
As an analogy UBER is an example, mobility is an approach, the end customer may be knowable or not. But adoption is a real experience.
How has your ITSM operations embraced digital transformation?
The Information Technology Service Management is a generic term to define the ITSM. Faster resolutions and qualitative consistent support are the base needs. The service catalogue, service desk, incident management, problem management, change management supported by policies and procedures get very well structured when ‘Digital’ road map gets build.
All these functions are not new but exist since ages. Only we have not seen with those eyes and direction. Kindly relook at our breathing servicing function of human beings from the birth till date or east to west or male to female. One will get excellent objective meaning in understanding this subject.
Do you think disruption in technology or process can impact service management operations? If so, how?
Yes and No are the two dimensions.
YES: Today’s truth, knowledge, the capability was totally different than yesterday. Only those who adopted the change are in existence today. Same will be true to tomorrow. The branding, marketing, pushing are common methods will be always used to do needed sell. But the truth gets discovered and new normal gets set.
NO: The base fundamental never changes. Discover that fundamental and you can be always winners. How to discover the base fundamental can be discussed in a separate note.
Has your SM been restricted to IT or have you been able to offer streamlined SM across the enterprise?
SM is now across a complete value chain of the organization. That has moved the manufacturing or agricultural organizations into servicing organization. The once upon the platform organizations are now servicing organizations. As an analogy, the In BHAGAWAT GITA, Lord Krishna has given the same message, be service focus and be detached. Never get attached to end results.
How does your ITSM interact with other functions of IT such as operations, security, and more?
The organizational operations, the information security, the people capability is being driven by RACI and DID formalization. All need to be in synchronization with each other and rule is together we WIN or individually all are at loss is the rule.
What are the metrics you value the most in your IT support operations? As a CIO, what do you track every day/ most often?
- The average time of servicing with focus on
- Is it consistent?
- Is it measurable?
- Are there any leakages, where the issues got reported very late?
- Are the issues once reported getting into preventive modes for not coming again?
- The cost of handling the servicing
- What is the cost per resource or tool or day based on the type of service?
- Is the cost is getting trimmed down and getting eliminated?
- Are there alternatives being available to forecast the probability?
Is ITIL still relevant? How do you think it has helped operations at your operations?
As indicated above, the new norm or name will take this subject again. It was there yesterday, It is being in existence today and it will be their tomorrow. The ‘ASTANG YOGA’ methodology as an approach will make this subject much more relevant is my next communication.
How do you think Indian enterprises can leverage AI in their service management operations?
AI is a new name of alternative thinking in arriving at type algorithms, platforms and the applicability to make business predictive, consistent, and in existence for future in this. It is a new face being trademark by technology providers to earn revenue. Be part of it and but learn to understand principles and do not get carried away by the branding of the same.