ITIL and Business Relationship Management: Show Us Some Love. Thom Salo's presentation at Service Management Fusion 14 (presented by itSMF USA and HDI).

1. ITIL and Business Relationship
Management: Show Us Some Love
Thom Salo

2. Today’s Objective – Key Take Aways
– “Policy of Joint Agreement”
– The “Love Bank”
– Find an ITSM super-hero - select the right BRM
– Invest in BRM

3. What We’ll Cover
• Secret to Relationship Success
• Why Business Relationship Management (BRM)
• BRM Nuts and Bolts and How-to(s)
• BRM’s Relatives – “We are Family”
• A BRM’s Powers – Making an ITSM Superhero
• Caution Ahead - What’s in a Process
• A Process if you Must
• Pulling it all together – Key Take Aways
• Questions

4. A business relationship
is a relationship between people, right?

5. Give and Take: The Secret to Marital Compatibility
William F. Harley, Jr. Harley
“Policy of Joint Agreement”
“Love Bank”

6. What is Business Relationship
Management?
Integrating and improving communication with
the business
Business relationship management (BRM) is
central to achieving this goal
BRM was added to ITIL 2011
Purpose “to provide the link between the
service provider and customers at the strategic
and tactical levels.”
ITIL® and the Swirl logo™ are registered trademarks of AXELOS Limited.

7. Don’t do anything without
enthusiastic agreement
between you and your
partner
“Policy of
Joint
Agreement”
• BRM process, along with its partner process Service
Level Management (SLM) ensures:
• that we understand the requirements of the
business
• that we are aware of our ability to meet those
requirements;
• and then come to a mutual (read - joint)
agreement to meet those requirements
The BRM helps bridge the divide in understanding
between the business and the IT organization.

8. Love Bank: Keeping IT Services In the
Black
Deposit: Fulfill a need or do something
your partner appreciates - hit, or better
yet, exceed a Service Level Agreement
(SLA)
Positive balance = a happy relationship
Know your balance in the love bank
Withdrawal: Do something negative
– miss an SLA requirement
Negative balance = a deteriorating relationship,
perhaps even a split-up or divorce.

9. Show the business some love …
if you’re not communicating with the
business, it may feel neglected.
The BRM allows the business an outlet
and a place to raise concerns or to just
‘talk.’
The feeling of neglect can spell
doom in any relationship
IT may be making withdrawals
from the business “Love Bank”
without even realizing it.
The business wants to know that
somebody cares about its concerns
and is interested in its needs

10. All in the Family
Strategic Tactical Operational
Business Relationship Manager Service Level Manager
current and planned services
delivered according to
agreed targets – SLAs
point of contact for all
operational or SLA-related
issues
establish and maintain
relationships with the
business
Identify and understand
customer needs
ensure the IT service provider is
able to meet these needs

11. But what’s really important…
Understand the Business
Know IT
Expert at Relationships
Interpersonal
Skills

12. BRM Process Design
PROCESS
AHEAD
“A process has only one customer: the
person who receives the final result. A process
is rule-bound and tightly regulated. The
quality of a process’s output can be judged by
the customer at the end of the line.
A service, on the other hand, is at its core
a relationship between server and served.
Service is work performed in support of another
person. … the measure of success is not a
product but the satisfaction, delight, or
disappointment of the customer”
The Connected Company, Dave Gray

13. But if you must …

17. Pulling it all together – examples &
thought provokers
Advocate for
Customer
within IT
Partner with a
Customer
Representative
Represent IT to
Customer
Regular State of
Relationship
Meetings
Know IT
Know the
Business

18. Pulling it all together – key take aways
• To develop a strong relationship with the
business, we need to:
– adhere to a Policy of Joint Agreement
– maintain a positive balance in our “Love Bank”
– Institute a BRM “process” will help us achieve
these objectives
– Select the right BRM

19. Commit to being a better partner with
the business - Show the business some
love
Establish Business Relationship
Management

20. Resources
Complimentary IT Service Level Agreement Template
Thom Salo
Executive Consultant at G2G3 Americas
Email: tsalo@g2g3.com
Twitter: @TheITColonel
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/thomsalo
http://info.g2g3.com/sample-it-service-level-agreement-template

21. Thank you for attending this session.
Don’t forget to complete an
evaluation form!