Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL)
In the current digital age, consumer and business activities operate by using IP-addressable devices that minimize external customer-facing situations. As such, improving its management of the various technical and business facets would greatly raise the level of any business nowadays. According to Fisher (2006), implementing the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) practices would help in achieving this goal. This set of practices enable businesses, especially those involved in the manufacture and development of IP-addressable devices, in troubleshooting problems and optimizing processes and performances; while at the same time, cutting and avoiding costs from incurring. The contact center, which may either be internal or external facing, acts as a critical beacon where the ITIL is applied to render service level and profit improvements, as this center comes in closest contact with the consumers. Internationally accepted standards such as the ITIL may promote interoperability and standardization of processes, people and technologies. Combining ITIL with contact centers and teleworkers would be a very powerful combination for customer satisfaction, while of course, reducing costs of usage and support.
Utilization of the ITIL would do greatly for my company as its principles enable better process discipline, automation and coordination. Moreover, aligning processes with ITIL helps in managing product configurations and contact center agents’ effectiveness. Outbound and inbound marketing efforts, as well as customer operations, can also benefit from it. Perhaps the most critical benefit from ITIL is that it can cut and avoid costs while improving the quality and performance of service. It does so by decreasing errors and research redundancies, and improving asset availability, reliability, security and continuity, among others. It gives direction to the IT services the company uses, specifically the customer contact centers, to align themselves with the needs of the business. I believe the use of ITIL best practices would further the goals of the company and put it in line with the other major industries that have also adapted ITIL. Indeed, proper investing on contact center improvement will make the company better in terms of customer support. These set of practices might look intimidating at first, but once adapted, they can change the course of customer support.
On a personal level, the ITIL is indeed something that makes everything appear clear. With these sets of practices in motion, I would not worry about the company failing from customer dissatisfaction as these are addressed accordingly by the ITIL. Moreover, it keeps everyone inside the company in-check. Indeed, the ITIL is not only for infrastructure, but also the development of the business as a whole. This article clarifies and reiterates some points about the ITIL and has assured me that ITIL is something that would make my business better. However, like any other thing, the ITIL is not perfect. It can only gain its utility when combined with proper staffing, planning, and organization. This responsibility lies to me as the CIO of the company, but it is also the responsibility of the subordinates.
