Solved by a verified expert:This assignment specifically
addresses four of the learning objectives of the course:

LO1:
demonstrate a critical awareness of the importance of IT service
management and the need for organisations to ensure that effective
processes are in place to manage the significant investment in IT
infrastructure
LO2:
demonstrate an awareness of the nature and contribution of the IT
Infrastructure Library (ITIL) and ISO/IEC 20000 in providing good practice
frameworks for IT service management
LO3:
demonstrate the capacity to comprehend and evaluate the objectives,
activities and associated roles and responsibilities to enable effective
planning, management and improvement of IT service processes.
LO4:
apply the international standard for IT service management to case studies
including the IT service strategy, service design, service transition,
service operation and continual service improvement.

Students are encouraged to work in teams
to complete the assignment as teamwork is an important skill required by
industry. You may choose to work alone. If you opt to work as a team,
the same marks will be awarded to both students. No team can exceed more
than two students. It is up to you to find a team-mate and this can usually
be achieved through a request on the Study Desk.
Submit only one assignment if you elect to work as a team to complete this assignment.
Note that marks will be awarded on the basis of the student name(s) and student
number(s) that appear in the file name and in the report introduction.
Requirements
Read the North Sydney Institute
(NSI) Case Study.
Assume the role of consultant(s) who
have been hired by the NSW Department of Education and Training (DET) to
contribute to a review IT Service Management at NSI. You will prepare a report
for Ms Pam Christie, Managing Director of TAFE NSW and Deputy Director-General,
TAFE and Community Education.
Refer to the marking criteria for
details of mark allocations.
Note: the word count does not
include letter of transmittal, executive summary, references or appendices.
USQ has a licence for Turnitin
software. This online software enables students to check their assignment prior
to submission. Details on accessing Turnitin including user identification and
passwords will be provided on the Study Desk for the course. I encourage all
students to use this facility to avoid allegations of academic misconduct from
unintentional plagiarism from internet sources.
Referencing requirements for assignment 3
References are required and the
Harvard AGPS standard of referencing must be used. This standard is detailed in
the Faculty of Business Communications skills handbook, available
electronically on UConnect Library Site, and available in most academic
libraries. Plagiarism, collusion and cheating will be severely penalised. Refer
to the Faculty of Business and Law Policy for further details about plagiarism,
collusion and cheating.
Ensure that your reports are fully
referenced, including any reference to the text book. AVOID PLAGIARISM– YOUR ASSIGNMENT WILL BE AWARDED ZERO MARKS if it does not
have in-text references AND a List of References at the end.
AVOID COLLUSION AND CHEATING– THE PENALTIES ARE SEVERE.
Another useful link on
referencing is from USQ’s Library site:

Do not repeat verbatim large slabs
of information from other sources such as the text– you must put the ideas/information in your own words.

Activity A: Journal (maximum 500 words) 10%
Prepare a journal which records
your activities and progress related to completing this assignment.
In date order, clearly list the
following:

Date of research
activity/discussion
Web sites visited to collect
information; other references accessed
Time duration of the
activity.

Submit this journal as an appendix
to activity B. Any references to web pages and
online documents, such as white papers, should be listed at the end of the
journal.

Activity B: Case study (maximum 3,500 words) 90%
Structure, presentation and
introduction 10%
Your report should include a
letter of transmittal, executive summary and introduction to the report.
State the name(s) of student(s).
Part 1. Importance of ITSM at NSI
20%
Explain why is it important for
NSI to have effective processes in place to manage IT services.
Part 2. Service Design 30%
In the current design model of IT
service provision at NSI, the service desk function is provided in-house by
TAFE employees. Consider the option of outsourcing the service desk. Discuss
the roles and responsibilities associated with IT support and the advantages
and disadvantages of outsourcing the service desk.
Part 3. ISO/IEC 20000
Certification 20%
NSI is certified to ISO 9001 and
ISO 14001 and is now considering ISO/IEC 20000 certification. Ms Christie has
asked you to advise on the decision. Provide a brief of why NSI should or
should not seek certification for ISO/IEC 20000. Identify the benefits and
drawbacks of certification.
Part 4. Conclusions and
Recommendations to Managing Director 10%
Provide a summary of your findings
and make recommendations to the MD.
The assignment must be
electronically submitted through UConnect CIS3008 Study Desk.

Criterion

HD

A

B

C

F

Max
Marks

Activity/Task

A: Journal

Journal

Compelling and well structured
account. Activities clearly described. Initiative clearly demonstrated.
Reference list provided and
correctly formatted

Good structure and comprehensive
account of activities
Referencing compliant with Harvard
AGPS referencing method with some minor lapses.

Adequate structure and account of
activities
Minor errors in referencing method

Adequate structure but limited
description of activities.
Limited references provided and/or
poorly formatted reference list.

Poor structure and/or inadequate
list of activities. Incoherent account.
Lack of reference list or poorly
formatted references.

10%

Activity/Task

B: Report

Presentation of report

Professional presentation of
material resulting in clarity of message and information.
Professional appearance of title
page and accurate table of contents.

Carefully and logically organised.
Title page and table of contents
clear and accurate.

Shows organisation and coherence.
Shows organisation and coherence.
Adequate title page and table of
contents.

Shows some attempt to organise in
a logical manner.
Some flaws in title page and/or
table of contents.

Disorganised/ incoherent.
Poor formatting, or missing title
page, table of contents.

5%

Appendices are clearly labelled
and referenced.

Appendices used to provide
appropriate supporting material

Adequate use of appendices to
improve report readability.

Appendices not clearly identified
or referenced.

Excellent clarity of expression.
Grammar and spelling accurate.
Referencing fully compliant with
Harvard AGPS referencing method
Wide range of appropriate sources
appropriately analysed, applied and discussed

Expression fluent. Grammar and
spelling accurate.
Referencing compliant with Harvard
AGPS referencing method with some minor lapses.
Variety of appropriate sources
appropriately analysed, applied and discussed.

Grammar and spelling mainly
accurate.
Most sources are referenced. Minor
errors in referencing method.
Clear evidence of research and
application of textbook concepts.

Grammar and/or spelling contains
errors.
Gaps in referencing and errors in
in-text references or reference list.
References are used in a purely
descriptive way indicating limitations of understanding.

Frequent mistakes in grammar
and/or spelling.Frequent mistakes in grammar and/or spelling.
Unsatisfactory referencing. Few or
no references or inconsistent reference method.
No evidence of research or
irrelevant sources cited.

Clear and concise letter of
transmittal, executive summary, suitable tone and style for MD.

Format suitable for MD with minor
lapses in audience focus.

At times language is unclear
and/or unsuitable for MD audience.

Language is poorly executed or
uses too much jargon.

Lacks letter of transmittal or
executive summary. Style not appropriate for MD.

Activity/Task

Introduction

Attention to purpose

Clearly introduces the company and
report.
Has addressed the purpose of the
assignment comprehensively.

Reasonable details of company and
report.
Has addressed the purpose of the
assignment coherently

Basic facts on company and report.

Lacks vital information about the
company and report.
Fails to address the purpose of
the assignment.

5%

Addressed the main purpose of the
assignment.

Some aims identified.

Activity/Task

B1: Importance of ITSM

Explain importance of ITSM and IT
services

Provides excellent description of
importance of ITSM and IT services at NSI.

Clearly describes importance of
ITSM and IT services at NSI.

Adequate description of importance
of ITSM and IT services at NSI.

Limited description of importance
of ITSM and IT services at NSI.

Incomplete or inappropriate
description of importance of ITSM and IT services at NSI.

20%

B2: IT Service Design– Service Desk

Discuss the roles and
responsibilities associated with IT support

Demonstrates sophisticated
understanding of IT support roles.

Comprehensive understanding of
ITIL V3 lifecycle stages.

Adequate understanding of ITIL V3
lifecycle stages.

Limited understanding of ITIL V3
lifecycle stages.

Inadequate understanding of ITIL
V3 lifecycle stages.

10%

Discuss advantages and
disadvantages of outsourcing the service desk

Demonstrates sophisticated evaluation
of ITSM sourcing models

Comprehensive evaluation of ITSM
sourcing models

Adequate evaluation of ITSM
sourcing models stages.

Limited evaluation of ITSM
sourcing models

Inadequate evaluation of ITSM
sourcing models

20%

Activity/Task

B3: ISO/IEC 20000

Understanding of ISO/IEC 20000

Demonstrates sophisticated ability
to reflect on the value of ISO/IEC 20000.

Provides a good evaluation of
ISO/IEC 20000.

Provides satisfactory evaluation
of ISO/IEC 20000.

Provides limited evaluation of
ISO/IEC 20000.

Inappropriate or missing
evaluation of ISO/IEC 20000.

20%

Activity/Task

B4: Conclusion and Recommendations

Conclusions and recommendations

Clear conclusions and
recommendations well grounded in material presented demonstrating insights
into ITSM concepts.

Good development shown in
conclusions and recommendations.

Adequate development shown in
conclusions and recommendations.

Limited conclusions and
recommendations do not build on analysis.

Conclusions and recommendations
not drawn from material.

10%

Total

100%

Case Study: Northern Sydney Institute
Presented by Paul Paterson TAFE NSW
at itSMF Tasmania Branch Seminar 2009 (used with permission of author)
Executive Summary
This case study examines customer
self service within the NSW, Northern Sydney Region, TAFE Institute. As a
Service Desk with no inbound phone number, the only means for customers to log
a call is via a web based self-service form. How this was
achieved, what were the drivers and has it succeeded?
Background
The NSW Department of Education and
Training (DET) delivers high quality education and training services from early
childhood education through to post-compulsory education and training to meet
the needs of more than 1.25 million students. DET issues over 140,000 group
certificates annually to a workforce of predominately teachers, public servants
and ancillary staff. This equates to 95,000 full-time equivalent employees. DET
is the largest single organisation, public or private, in Australia. With a
recurrent budget of around $10 billion and an asset base of about $17 billion,
DET is responsible for almost one quarter of the State’s total recurrent budget.
DET is made up of ten regions which
divide the state into self managed networks. The regions are supported by a
shared corporate service which includes Finance & Administration, Human
Resources, Infrastructure & Assets, and Information & Communications
Technology.
TAFE NSW is an entity within DET which
delivers vocational education and training (VET) to around 500,000 students
throughout some 131 colleges organised into the regions. TAFE NSW has a
recurrent budget of around $1.5 billion and an asset base of some $2.6 billion.

One of the ten regions“Northern Sydney” is typically made up of a TAFE Institute and Schools.
Northern Sydney schools service over 80,000 students who attend 170 schools in
the area extending from Sydney Harbour in the south to the Hawkesbury in the
north; from the Pacific Ocean in the east to Meadowbank, Castle Hill, Dural,
Annangrove and Kenthurst in the west and north-west.
Northern Sydney Institute of TAFE
(NSI) is a Quality Endorsed Training Organisation certified under ISO 9001:2000
international standards. In 2003 NSI became only the second TAFE institute in
Australia to achieve ISO 14001 (Environmental Management Systems)
certification.
NSI represents around 12% of the
total effort for TAFE NSW. The Institute offers over 1,000 courses to more than
50,000 local and international students annually. These courses are delivered
at colleges based at Bradfield, Crows Nest, Hornsby, Meadowbank, North Sydney,
Northern Beaches and Ryde. Off-shore operations include partner colleges in
Bangkok, Shanghai, Schenzhen and Songjiang. In all, 2,700 full-time and
part-time staff deliver close to 13 million student hours per year. The
Institute has an annual budget of more than $130 million and an asset base of
around $370 million.
NSI has over 130 specialist and
standard IT classrooms which have a minimum of 16 desktops in each. In addition
there are as many non-standard classrooms or speciality facilities such as
libraries. NSI facilities are in use from 8:00am to 10:00pm weekdays and most
weekends. To allow 24 x 7 portal access most systems are kept up 99.9%. In all,
over 4,200 desktops/laptops with over 100 servers and countless printers and
peripheral devices make up the IT fleet in NSI. 1,500 of the desktops/laptops
are designated to teaching and admin staff which are also heavily utilised.
Case Study
So how does NSI provide Service Desk
support for such a large, highly demanding, organisation? Simple, it does not
have one! At least not in a traditional sense of a phone number for clients to
call. NSI is the ONLY institute in NSW which DOES NOT HAVE
a help desk, in that there are no people on the end of a phone to vet,
diagnose, log, resolve where possible and assign incidents. Yes, NSI relies
solely on the client logging their own incidents via a web interface to the
service desk application. The astounding thing is that this“no phone” policy has been in place for several years. The culture of
self service is entrenched.
The scenarios that created this
environment were vexed, the most critical were:-

Our clients, mainly teachers, are on deck for many
hours a day, way beyond the capacity to staff a help desk phone line for
14 hours a day.
Access to networked PCs and therefore the web are
plentiful (if yours is broken the one next door is probably OK)
ICT Support staff are disbursed across the seven
colleges. Management at the time believed it was a negative to reduce
their“hands on” capacity in order to take phone calls.
The clients’ IT skills were deemed to be“mature” therefore peer support was encouraged.
Internal restructures had forced cuts to ICT support
staff therefore providing drivers for this rationalisation.
Support organisations today face many similar business
challenges as they strive to effectively service their internal and
external customers, regardless of their size or industry. In the face of
these challenges, customer service managers may find themselves searching
for new technology to address their customer service initiatives.

Business Challenge for NSI
The Service Desk was/is under
constant pressure to reduce costs and improve service delivered to end users.
Many of the calls to the service desk were not critical in nature, but requests
such as password re¬sets and account access, limited our support staff’s ability to focus on critical incidents and restore vital
services to the business.
Business Need

Provide end users self-service for more
than just service desk incidents
Reduce the time and cost associated with phone support
Empower end users to enter and check all types of
requests
Enable end users to resolve incidents on their own.

Our Solution
An“in-house” help desk application built using‘Cold Fusion’ software was implemented about 10 years ago. End users
could submit, track and re-open incidents. End users can access frequently
asked questions (FAQs) to resolve issues on their own, albeit on a separate web
page to the help desk.
Key Features & Benefits

Reduces the cost of support by offering self-service
capabilities to end users
Improves end user experience
Improves the value of support staff by freeing up their
time to pursue strategic initiatives
Reduces call volume by extending knowledge management
to end users

Discussion
So what does all this mean? Has NSI
got it right? Can others learn from NSI’s lessons and mistakes?
Self-service is emerging as a tool of choice for consumers and
organisations alike. Increasing numbers of people are now selecting self-service
options, such as Interactive Voice Response (IVR), e-mail, Web, and chat, as
their primary means of contact with organisations providing services, and a
greater number of forward-thinking organisations are increasing the emphasis
they place on self-service and adopting additional customer
contact channels. Organisations that are not at the forefront of self-service
processes and technologies are, at best, missing opportunities for greater cost
savings and improved customer satisfaction. So why did NSI choose to reduce
their channels of communication by removing the phone?
The number of Internet users has
grown to 700 million and still expanding at a phenomenal rate. The demand of self-service
portals is also increasing, more and more users want interactive self-service
websites to reduce the time and effort of consuming a service. This case study
highlights the emergence of a customer self-service portal, its
benefits, pitfalls and more.
The service desk is where ITIL
can really shine. In ITIL, the service desk function performs a number of
critical tasks. To say it is simply the traditional help desk renamed does not
do the service desk justice. In many respects, the service desk’s role as the single
point of contact is one of the most important facets because the service
desk personnel are customer facing. In other words, the professionalism,
communication skills and overall attitudes of service desk personnel will
reflect upon the entire IT organisation and serve as the measure by which all
of IT will be judged. In terms of benefits the service desk brings, this case
study explores its role as the single point of contact between ICT and its
customers.
For the purposes of this case study,
let’s
label the people contacting the service desk as“clients” for simplicity whereas ITIL differentiates between the
users of services and the customers who actually pay for the services.
Having explained that nuance,
clients should not be forced to try and contact various numbers, email
addresses and/or websites for assistance. First off, with incidents they are
already frustrated because they can’t do their jobs and calling all over again, in vain, will
only make matters worse.
Second, we, as an organisation,
wanted these people working, not wasting time trying to get help because any
time spent on efforts other than helping the organisation attain its goals is
time irrevocably lost.
Instead, by consolidating the point
of contact to one website, the ambiguity over whom to contact when some event
happens, or need arises, is removed. By having one point of contact, callers
can immediately reach a representative, answer the necessary questions to
populate the incident or service request and then go back to work.
This is very important because we
need them to be productive in their roles so they can move the organization
towards its goals in order for ICT to have a reason to exist.
This isn’t a one-sided benefit. For ICT, there are very real benefits
as well. For example, ICT personnel are no longer haphazardly interrupted by
callers needing help or ambushed while walking down the corridor. Anytime
someone is working and interrupted, there are switching costs associated with
them changing trains of thought from one task, to the new task and then
attempting to get back into the“groove” of the old task.
If ICT can’t account for activity and reflect the value it adds to the
organisation relative to its costs, then ICT risks being outsourced or
downsized. Many business people do not realize that by skipping the service
desk, they are ultimately causing long-term harm to the organisation. In
addition to the accounting costs, there are economic opportunity costs.
The ICT resource that takes a call or assists a caller will likely need to stop
doing their assigned work in order to help. As a result, planned work stops.
Again, it is much better to have the client self-service the
incident, the system then follows the established rules on selecting the
correct ICT resource to use.
A risk with the old fashioned way of
receiving phone calls was in the accounting and economic cost impacts in that a
caller may leave voicemails and emails to many ICT personnel resulting in
redundant responses from ICT that waste resources. From an accounting cost
perspective, clients may be using ICT’s most expensive resources vs. using designated personnel
because of relationships, simply going down the ICT phone list looking at
titles, etc. When the users need help, unless there is a coordinating
influence, they will call whomever they think can help. Instead, if they
self-service the incident can then be properly routed based on skills required,
resource availability, defined service level agreements, etc.
ICT must understand its costs and
value-add to the organisation at all times. If callers are bypassing the formal
recording mechanisms and going straight to their favourite resources, or
resources at random, unrecorded and untracked activity takes place.
Traditionally by using a service
desk to log and filter calls, matching can be performed to see if the incident
record is already in the system, what the status of the incident is and so on.
Once the initial call is logged,
clients often want status updates and then may begin a new flurry of calls
further interrupting personnel. Instead of this, the service desk can keep the
customer and/or user informed both proactively and reactively.
A proactive approach, whether by
phone or email, by the ICT Service desk can reap rewards as well. Clients just
want to know that their needs are being addressed.
From a reactive perspective, clients
wanting status updates should look up the service desk. The intent, as with
other issues brought up previously, is to shield the rest of ICT from the
interruptions and to place the ownership of ensuring the caller is taken care
on the service desk.
The case for a phone line
Moreover, the service desk personnel
must be professionals who are skilled empathetic communicators, which are
capabilities that not all ICT people have. Again, people will judge all of ICT
by the experiences they have when talking to the individuals who help them.
Choose your service desk people with care.
Lastly, by routing clients through
the service desk, the service desk can track all open unresolved service
request and incidents, determine if they are being resolved on a timely basis,
escalating if needed and so on.
No longer does a call“fall through the cracks” because a desktop services technician is out sick, on
vacation, too buried with other work and so on. Because the incident or service
request is being actively monitored by the service desk, there is an assurance
to the client and management that agreed upon service levels will be met.
In summary, there are many benefits
both to this business and ICT by focusing all user contact, both incoming and
outbound, through the service desk. By doing so, the proper resources can be
used to make sure that needs are met on a timely, effective, efficient and
economical basis.
Acknowledgements
HDAA:

UTS self service desk:
The self service desk Uni of Lechester UK:
NSW Department of Health:
The Techrepublic:
BMC Service Desk Express Client Services:
Dell:“The
Benefits of a Single Point of Contact” August 10, 2006 by George Spafford:
ITIL® is a registered trademark of the Cabinet Office.