Intro to ITOM & How it Impacts Cost Optimization | EasyVista

Loïc Besnard | May 24, 2022

Intro to ITOM & How it Impacts Cost Optimization | EasyVista

No matter how wonderful your company's CIO is, there's a good chance they're feeling the pressure to optimize and lower costs. With that pressure, they might start thinking about processes and functions to cut - however, you might want to consider introducing more robust IT Operations Management (ITOM) processes as a method to work hand-in-hand with IT Service Management.

What is IT Operations Management?

I know what you're thinking.

"Wait wait wait. Hold up. You are NOT going to convince me that we need ANOTHER set of processes. Especially when you're talking about our CIO wanting to create value for the business. Try again, you lying faceless blogger."

Okay, maybe you're not thinking that last part. But if we didn't hit the nail on the head with the beginning part then we will buy you a drink.

We'll break down the reason you'll eat your words by starting with the definition of ITOM and its relationship to ITSM.

IT Operations Management, ITOM, is defined by Axelosas:

"The function within an IT service provider that performs the daily activities needed to manage IT services and the supporting IT infrastructure. IT operations management includes IT operations control and facilities management."

In other words, IT operations management is a set of administrative procedures that manage all the components of your organization's IT infrastructure. ITOM can be integrated into an ITSM platform, and can include any of the processes covered in the Technical Management Practices in ITIL 4.

A few functions of ITOM include:

• Network Infrastructure Management
• Server and Device Management
• Computer Operations/Help Desk

This differs from ITSM in a few key ways:

• ITSMis more customer-centric.
• ITSM is a subset of ITOM and is part of the ITIL service lifecycle.
• ITOM is focused more on the tools, technical environment, and processes for the services delivered by ITSM.
• Both have elements of event management.

In other words, ITOM is like a car or a road while ITSM is the map and the rules to drive.

Finally, it's prudent to note that ITOM includes access to systems that allow for remote entry.

Benefits of ITOM

This last section of the post either confused you or made you question why to consider the entire concept of ITOM as a practice. If you fall into the camp of feeling confused, check out this page to learn even more about ITOM.

There are some major benefits when it comes to integrating ITOM and ITSM. These include:

• 24% increase in agent productivity through the use of ITOM, ITSM, and AIOps together
• 50% reduction in IT costs (when used in conjunction with other practices)
• 20% fewer IT-related incidents and problems
• Enhanced IT visiblity and observability
• Better analysis of IT services
• Creation of automated resolutions

All in, this helps the IT service desk shift from being a cost-center to a value center. When all IT services, from endpoint management to simple ticketing and knowledge management, are streamlined and organized well, you can increase agent productivity and satisfaction of both employees and customers. This all works together to optimize costs.

ITOM Cost Benefit Analysis

If you still need convincing, there's an analysis you can complete.

To start, businesses can look at the average cost-per-ticket, number of reduced tickets or deflected tickets, unplanned downtime vs. predicted downtime, and productivity increase to calculate a cost benefit analysis for your ITSM solution.

Then, taking the cost of the ITOM and ITSM solution together, consider the average cost-per-ticket and impact of unplanned downtime. Unplanned downtime doesn't just factor in the cost of the employees who are sitting unable to work. It also includes all impacted customers and their perception of the company after dealing with a lengthy outage. For example, think about the impact to customers who are trying to access Netflix during a system outage. Not only are employees at the help desk being flooded with customer request to solve the problem, ultimately blocking their normal workflow and creating a backlog, but the customers will decide not to use the app at all. This can impact them in the future and encourage those on the fence about canceling their accounts to take the leap, and it can damage the reputation of the business in the long run.

With that example in mind, it seems simple to understand the cost vs. benefit analysis and which factors to take into account. If you're still not sure how to calculate the potential ROI of an ITOM and ITSM solution and the cost-benefit analysis for your business, chat with one of our team members today.

Automation and ITOM

We know, your head is probably spinning at the moment. We've been there. But we would be remiss if we didn't mention the role of AI and automation in ITOM. AIOps can help you gain visibility into your entire IT infrastructure to reduce unplanned downtime. Taking it a step further, AI and Machine Learning (ML) working to properly route tickets and create sentiment analysis on certain actions can create a more streamlined experience for the entire IT department as well.

To learn more about ITOM and how it can be put to work to lower your costs, get a demo today.