IT Service Management ITSM

The structure of the ITSM system in a business environment

The principle of building the management of the information service in order to provide high-quality services and ensure the effective solution of the company's business tasks. ITSM is a fairly young IT management system. The main goal of ITSM is to become an IT department a full-fledged participant in the business, acting as a service provider for business units, and the relationship between them should be characterized as a "service provider-consumer of services" relationship. IT departments support and develop the company's information infrastructure in accordance with the requested service and the specified quality. The business unit puts forward its requirements for the required type of services and their quality.

ITSM functions

Functions of the ITSM system

• Capacity management - power management. Due to the lack of infrastructure capacity, there are complaints about a decrease in the speed of work, or the inability to continue working. On the other hand, using extra power is wasted money. In this regard, the purpose of this process is to find a logical compromise between costs and needs.
• Configuration management - configuration management. The purpose of this process is to create and maintain a logical infrastructure model.
• IT service continuity management. The purpose of the process is to guarantee the restoration of the infrastructure that is necessary for the further development of business operations in the event of an emergency: power outages, fires, etc.
• Problem management. The purpose of this process is to reduce the number of incidents. This can be achieved by identifying and eliminating their causes.
• Change management - change management. Any change is quite dangerous for the infrastructure, although it is made out of good intentions, therefore the purpose of the process is to allow only reasonable changes, as well as to agree on the implementation of changes.
• Release management - release management. The essence of the process is to maintain the capacity of the production environment in the process of changes.
• Service level management. Quite often, the consumer of the IT service and the supplier have different ideas about what operations and how quickly should be carried out. The purpose of the process is to determine the necessary composition and level of the service, monitor its achievements, and, if necessary, activate actions to eliminate poor-quality service.
• Incident management. The purpose of the process is to eliminate incidents as quickly and efficiently as possible, i.e. any events that require a response: failures, requests for consultations, etc.
• Financial management for IT services - financial management. The purpose of this process is to guarantee a reliable financial base for all other processes.
• Availability management. Availability is one of the most commonly used service level indicators. This process is designed to solve all tasks related to accessibility.

Introduction

Developing formalized IT processes is a key requirement in the ITSM implementation process. The concept of ITSM is reflected in methodologies and approaches such as:

• ITIL Information Technology Infrastructure Library (The Information Technology Infrastructure Library);
• Technical guide for supporting and managing solutions and services of production systems based on Microsoft products and technologies - MOF (Microsoft Operations Framework);
• Software Maintenance Maturity Model - S3M;
• The standard in the field of information technology control is CobiT (Control Objects for Information and Related Technology);
• The service application library is ASL (Application Services Library) and many others.

With the improvement of the economic climate, in 2010 the number of ITSM projects on the Russian market increased. The level of maturity of projects is increasing. There were requests for a more complete and integrated set of processes: the requirements of customers for these processes clearly demonstrate a deeper understanding of what the company needs.

An important trend in Russia is interest in IT asset management (ITAM), market analysts say. Because IT assets are a core part of the entire IT budget, organizations seek to find the basis for approving IT projects in this area. As ITAM is closely linked and overlaps with ITIL Information Technology Infrastructure Library and ITSM, an increasing number of companies are using ITAM as a starting point for organizational change and improvement.

Another trend is that organizations do not limit Service Management to the IT department. Companies understand that the principles of Service Management apply not only to IT, but to any other department that provides services. The Operation and human resources department Service is the most typical example, but Marketing, Legal and Finance are also covered by Service Management. Any activity related to the processing of requests from customers must be a structured process, and the principles of Service Management can be applied. Expanding the application of ITSM principles and approaching the business contribute to gaining business support for the ITSM project.

Understanding business

One of the main tasks of ITSM is to turn IT into a service unit that is widely involved in the company's business processes. What does company management need to understand the usefulness of ITSM?

Three main factors are important for the manager: increasing turnover, reducing costs and reducing risks. Understanding this, it is important to present to management the need for IT to participate in these three business-critical components:

• It is necessary to demonstrate clearly how IT budget costs can be reduced. The most clearly shown return on investment (ROI) is the example of asset management. Another advantage is a more efficient use of IT staff: reduce the number of employees or clearly explain that ensuring development and growth is possible with less effort.

• IT can show how ITSM can reduce costs for the business itself through change control and management standards.

• It is very important to show businesses how risks can be minimized and significant potential losses prevented. There are examples when companies lost millions of dollars and their shares fell sharply in price solely due to the lack of correctly structured processes. In such cases, the ITSM budget was allocated immediately. But, of course, it is better to use a more active approach: pre-identify business risks, assess potential losses and use this data before critical situations arise.

There are other options.

Advantages

The positive effects of ITSM include:

• IT services fully meet the current and future needs of customers and businesses;
• The quality of the services provided is systematically improved;
• Strengthening control and ensuring transparency of the IT department;
• Reduce long-term IT service costs;
• Increase the proactivity of the IT department;
• Meets legislative and other regulatory requirements.

The positive aspects of ITSM for users are:

• Improving the quality of service;
• Reduce downtime associated with IT;
• The ability to contact the centralized support service for any issues;
• Control over the execution of their requests;
• Ensure that requests are executed according to the established service level.

Self-Service and Knowledge Bases

In November 2017, Ivanti and the Service Desk Institute (SDI) published a two-part study on the role of self-service in IT and its meaning within organizations, which analyzes problems that impede the development of self-service services.

An analysis of responses from 25,000 technical support professionals in the UK showed that in conditions of limited time, the need to improve the work of users leads to an increase in the number of calls to knowledge bases and self-service services. Against the background of slower end-user service due to the preferred way of interaction through "personal contact," respondents noted several important advantages of the self-service service: "Better user experience," "Less calls," "24/7 support" and, "Better perception of the support service."

The main conclusions of the study:

• 74% of technical support specialists use a self-service service (an increase of 10% since 2013) and 58% offer users to use the knowledge base
• The main motivator for the implementation of self-service service and the use of the knowledge base is "Improving end-user service" (90%)
• User service is slow, as 83% of users prefer to create a technical support request instead of self-service, and 88% prefer to call immediately without accessing the knowledge base
• Respondents overwhelmingly argued that this was due to a preference for "personal contact" (72% for self-service and 88% for knowledge base use), but the reason may also be a lack of understanding of the marketing of these services by technical support (i.e. specialists face difficulties in understanding the essence and value of these tools)
• The biggest barrier to implementing both self-service (50%) and knowledge bases practices (53%) in organizations is implementation time, closely linked to lack of end-user and business interest (43% - knowledge base use and 40% - self-service)

that drive the organisation to improve self-service services vary considerably. However, this report highlights a very important point: the customer (and what they want) should be at the center of any strategy, "said Kevin J Smith, senior vice president of Ivanti. "That is why meeting the needs of businesses and users is our priority when developing service management technology. Modern service delivery requires that stakeholders inside and outside the IT infrastructure interact continuously. With document automation and cloud or local deployment options, our IT professional can quickly set up a world-class solution that actively improves customer satisfaction

The overall purpose of the study was to highlight the problem of self-care and the use of knowledge bases by analyzing the motivations of organizations implementing these tools, as well as the obstacles they face and the benefits they receive as a result. The study also helped understand the ambitions of organizations that are just about to implement these services and analyze the factors that prevent their implementation. The results were evaluated and, where possible, compared to the results of a previous study conducted by SDI in 2013.

Market estimates

2024: The global ITSM solutions market grew 13% over the year to $12 billion

At the end of 2024, the costs of the global service management market IT(IT Service Management, ITSM) reached $11.91 billion. For comparison, a year earlier, expenses were estimated at $10.51 billion. Growth was recorded at 13%, as stated in the Fortune Business Insights survey published on March 20, 2025.

ITSM is an approach to providing IT services in which performers, processes and technologies are used in an optimal combination. This helps to improve business efficiency and the quality of services. The ITSM approach is based on ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) practices that are successfully applied worldwide. In general, the ITSM model is focused on meeting the needs of the business. Unlike the more traditional technology approach, ITSM involves focusing on the client and the services provided to the user, rather than the technologies themselves.

One of the drivers of the industry is continued digitalization. The ITSM approach addresses a wide range of challenges, including providing quick access to IT services, tracking the lifecycle of IT assets, budget management (procurement, write-off, valuation), and claims and incident management. Analysts point to increased market competition: along with established players such as ServiceNow, BMC Software, Open Text Corporation and IBM, the business is actively developing new members, including Freshworks and Ivanti. This can lead to price wars.

Artificial intelligence technologies have a significant impact on the market. AI algorithms are able to quickly analyze huge amounts of information, which allows you to automate tasks, reduce errors and speed up problem solving. In addition, AI helps to significantly reduce application processing time and thereby increase customer satisfaction, as well as reduce their outflow. As a result, companies are able to raise revenue. AI also makes it possible to predict potential problems and improve decision-making.

The report said that the pandemic had a stimulating effect on the industry. COVID-19 Organizations around the world have had to quickly change their IT service management processes to support remote teams and ensure business continuity.

According to the deployment model, the industry is segmented into cloud and local solutions. Type 1 systems hold the largest share due to cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and scalability. Companies can quickly build resources in line with changing demand without investing in additional equipment. In turn, local solutions are in demand among those organizations that need to perform deep customization in accordance with unique needs. Geographically, North America leads, which in 2024 accounted for $5.14 billion in revenue against $4.58 billion in 2023. The region is experiencing rapid adoption of AI, machine learning and automation technologies in the field of IT service management. In the global market, significant players are:

• ServiceNow;
• Efecte;
• Freshworks;
• Flexera Software;
• BMC Software;
• Open Text Corporation;
• IBM;
• Ivanti;
• Atlassian;
• Zendesk;
• Sys Aid;
• HaloITSM;
• TeamDynamics;
• IFS;
• TOPdesk;
• Aisera;
• Alemba.

Fortune Business Insights analysts believe that the CAGR in the ITSM market will grow at a CAGR of 15.3% in the future. By 2023, spending could rise to $36.78 billion.^[1]

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