For internal service providers SLA’s provide a means of comparing internal levels of service provision with those available from external providers and to deal pragmatically with the threat of outsourcing.

For those groups receiving services SLA's provide a means of bench marking internal service provision so as to compare with that available from external parties, and so provide a framework for making considered outsourcing decisions. Where services have already been outsourced, SLAs provide these groups with a reliable mechanism for defining and measuring the services provided.

Not only do SLA's provide the basis for measuring service provision but also they are a powerful management and communications tool for both the service provider and the customer – resulting in the mutual benefit of both.
Course Objectives:

On completion of the course participants will:
• understand the nature of service provision and the intrinsic difficulties associated with providing good service
• understand how to create a service framework within an organisation using Service Level Agreements
• understand the benefits of Service Level Agreements to both the customer and the service provider
• understand how Service Level Agreements can be used to measure both internal and external service provision
• understand the structure of a Service Level Agreement
• understand the process to be followed to create a Service Level Agreement, and for the maintenance and upkeep of the Service Level Agreement over time
• understand document and change control principles as they apply to Service Level Agreements
• appreciate some of the methods used to measure IT service provision and which methods may be most relevant to their own organisations

Audience
• Managers or supervisors responsible for service delivery within an organisation
• Managers or supervisors responsible for outsourcing decisions
• Managers or supervisors responsible for managing external service providers
• Service provider organisations responding to outsourcing tenders
• Service provider organisations with existing service contracts in place

Course Outline:

• Background to SLA's
• Defining ‘Service’ and the inherent problems associated with it
• What is a Service Level Agreement
• Benefits of creating Service Level Agreements
• Relevance of Service Level Agreements for IT and non IT related services
• Service Level Measurement-when will an SLA be appropriate, what other service measurement options are there?
• Some guidelines for measuring IT based services
• The structure of a Service Level Agreement-including a blank SLA pro forma
• The process for creating a Service Level Agreement
• Creating the Service Catalogue
• Selecting services appropriate for SLA's
• Change Management of SLA's Documentation standards for SLA's