Gold or Worthless Paper--It's Up to You

 

Don't underestimate what is feasible. But, as the movie Cast Away taught us, the exception could save someone's life.

The service level agreement is simply a document that clarifies services that ITS will provide, and how long it will take to provide them. If we know there will be exceptions, why document them at all? Because the value of the SLA is achieved through raised awareness.

If the clients don't know how long it takes to build a PC, for example, they may get angry when it takes longer than they thought. Likewise, if the service providers don't know how long they have to complete the build, clients could be left waiting longer than they should. The SLA is not intended to be a stick for service providers and customers to beat each other up with. Make that clear during negotiations.

Negotiations
If you are creating a new SLA , consider how broad the customer base should be. Should there be one for each department, division or the entire organization? Are the services you provide the same for every customer, or are they very different for one group than another? The …

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