ITIL Demand Management Tips for Business Strategy

This article was originally posted on Smartsheet.com by Elisabeth Thomas in October 2016

The Service Strategy Publication

ITIL Service Strategy determines the types of services that should be offered by the IT organization in order to meet the needs of its customers. This publication covers the Service Portfolio Management, IT Financial Management, Demand Management, Business Relationship Management, and IT Strategy Management processes. In order to delineate responsibilities, there are several Service Strategy Roles, including  (but not limited to) the Business Relationship Manager who is responsible for building and maintaining a quality relationship with customers, the Demand Manager who is the owner of the Demand Management process, the Financial Manager who is responsible for finances and budgets, the IT Steering Group who sets the IT service strategy, and the Service Portfolio Manager who manages and develops the service portfolio.

ITIL Demand Management Defined

In order for your IT organization to effectively deliver services to customers, it is important to understand what services are needed and when they are needed. This is commonly referred to as Pattern of Business Activity (PBA). Demand Management is the ability to understand your customer’s patterns, anticipate their changing needs, and influence behaviors related to their demand for services. Keep in mind that demand is not stagnant; rather, it is constantly changing based on a variety of influencers, including your industry, usage patterns determined by time of year, weather, a new product launch, and many other factors.

The Importance of ITIL Demand Management

The examples above demonstrate how Demand Management can be utilized to effectively deliver services to customers. When properly utilized, the Demand Management process can positively impact overall business operations.

According to John Custy (@ITSMNinja), award winning service management educator, “Everyone should have Demand Management. To ensure that your services are designed correctly, and operations can manage them, the demand for each service needs to be understood. One challenge however, is that typically only more mature organizations understand the value of Demand Management.”

Ray McKenzie (@RayMc209), Founder of Red Beach Advisors, a management and business consultancy specializing in strategy, process, systems, and operations agrees.

“Demand Management is important for organizations who are following the ITIL framework, and those who are not,” he says. “Demand Management is essential in the planning, execution, and support of any company’s products/services. A thorough understanding of product or service demand can help a company avoid future challenges, including customer satisfaction issues and confusion surrounding service expectations.”

This article was originally posted on Smartsheet.com by Elisabeth Thomas in October 2016