Session 15 - Service Level Agreements and third party support

What is a Service Level Agreement?

A service level agreement (SLA) is a contract between a service provider (either internal or external) and the end user that defines the level of service expected from the service provider. SLAs are output-based in that their purpose is specifically to define what the customer will receive. SLAs do not define how the service itself is provided or delivered.

The level of service definitions should be specific and measureable in each area. This allows the quality of service to be benchmarked and, if stipulated by the agreement, rewarded or penalized accordingly. An SLA will commonly use technical definitions that quantify the level of service such as mean time between failures (MTBF) or mean time to recovery, response, or resolution (MTTR), which specifies a “target” (average) or “minimum” value for service level performance.
https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/resources/learning-center/what-is-a-service-level-agreement-sla.html

Read the article Service-Level Agreements 101: An Executive Guide to Service-Level Agreements (SLAs)

http://www.cio.com.au/article/268177/service-level_agreements_101_an_executive_guide_service-level_agreements_slas_/

ASSESSMENT TASK 2

Activity 1

Find an example of a Service Level Agreement within the IT industry

• What are the terms?
• What level of support does it provide for?
• Is there a specific process?

Activity 2

Mysty River Regional Library Service has 3 branches located in rural Victoria. It has a small IT support team that provides basic software and hardware support to the branches, including the 30 staff computers and 120 other computers that are used by library patrons at the various branches. The IT support team's role is to provide basic support and to determine which third party organisation, if any, a job needs to be escalated to if they cannot resolve it in house.

The IT Support team provides the following services:

• Basic instruction on hardware and standard software, including the library's LMS, to staff and patrons
• Basic hardware and software support including remote desktop
• Replacement of small items - keyboard/mouse/cables

As well as the in house service, Mysty River also has Service Agreements with some outside organisations.

1. Printers - All printers are under a service agreement with the manufacturer, who provides all consumables, maintenance and repairs for an agreed fee plus an amount based on print quantities. They guarantee a 48 hour turnaround on calls outside of their weekly maintenance visit.

2. Hardware - All computers and monitors are covered under the Manufacturer's warranty. The Manufacturer's warranty is a guaranteed replacement for 12 months from purchase. Computers that are outside of the standard warranty are covered under an extended Manufacturer's warranty that guarantees repair and/or replacement at their discretion. Turnaround is 5 working days.

3. Other Hardware and Equipment - covered by Manufacturer's warranty only and any replacement is at MRRLS's discretion and must be justified to the IT support manager.

4. Software LMS - covered under a SLA with software provider. 24 hour maximum turnaround.

5. Other Software - MS Office 2013, Adobe Creative Suite 6, Microsoft Windows 8. Covered under Manufacturer warranty only.

6. Phones and Internet services provided by Telstra.

Your Task:
You are to design a procedures or flowcharts that can be used to deal with each of the following issues:

• A staff member reports that their monitor is blank
• A staff member reports that some keys on the keyboard are missing. 
• A staff member reports that the printer is broken as it won't print

Activity 3

MRRLS is located in the shires of South Gippsland, Baw Baw and LaTrobe City. Find out the details of the e-waste disposal/recycling programs in one of these shires.

You may work in pairs or small groups of up to 4 members.

Role Play 

To get in the mood for doing the assessment task, I thought we could do a couple of Role Play activities.

I might not work a help desk any more, but I do provide all levels of support to students working on assessment tasks, often while I am cooking dinner or some other activity that means that I am not near a computer. I try and visualise the screen and what the student may be doing, then take a logical process that often involves eliminating the obvious.

Use what you know about the equipment and/or software. Sometimes a "hardware" problem is just that the person doesn't know what they are doing or they've missed a step, or just not looking properly. You need to be able to determine whether it is a hardware problem, software problem or user problem to decide whether you can direct the person on the phone and fix it on the spot or where it needs to be referred on to.

Role Play Scenario

• A patron tells you that they just created their resume and saved it, but went to load it again and it is missing. They are adamant that they saved it, and desperately need it for a job closing tomorrow.