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Develop an IT Infrastructure Services Playbook
Automation, SDI, and DevOps – build a cheat sheet to manage a changing Infrastructure & Operations environment.
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Contributors
- Joe Bajek, Director, Centura Health
- Chuck Nicholson, Director & ESO, Ultimate Software Group
- Parshuram Limaye, Senior Manager, Ultimate Software Group
- Mike Babin, Director, IITS at Concordia University
- One anonymous contributor
Your Challenge
- Infrastructure and operations teams are managing deployments on- and off-premises, and across multiple infrastructure services providers.
- Though automation tools speed up the delivery process, documentation is always pushed off so the team can meet urgent deadlines.
- Without documented delivery processes, wait times are longer, controls are adequate but ad hoc, builds are non-standard, and errors are more likely to be introduced in production.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Prioritize in-demand services to add to the playbook. Pilot a few services to get value from the project quickly.
- Do not get lost in automation or tooling. You do not need a complex tool or back-end automation to get value from this project.
- Learn, then iterate. With a few completed service processes, it is much easier to identify opportunities for service automation.
Impact and Result
- Prioritize in-demand services for documentation and standardization.
- Build service workflows and document service requirements in the services playbook.
- Create a costing model and track costs to deliver defined services.
- Leverage data on costs and service requirements to improve service delivery.
Start here – read the Executive Brief
Read this Executive Brief to find out why you should create an infrastructure services playbook, review Info-Tech’s methodology, and understand the four ways we can support you in completing this project.
1. Define and prioritize infrastructure services
Produce a prioritized list of high-demand infrastructure services.
2. Build workflows and an infrastructure services playbook
Design workflows and create the first draft of the infrastructure services playbook.
3. Identify costs and mature service delivery capabilities
Build a service rate sheet to track costs and develop better service capabilities.
Guided Implementations
This guided implementation is a five call advisory process.
Guided Implementation #1 - Prioritize services
Call #1 - Review your goals. Identify services and the methodology for building a playbook.
Call #2 - Consolidate and prioritize services for documentation.
Guided Implementation #2 - Create service workflows
Call #1 - Create service workflows in Visio.
Guided Implementation #3 - Build the Playbook and Rate Sheet
Call #1 - Build the Infrastructure Services Playbook.
Call #2 - Build the Infrastructure Service Rate Sheet.
Book Your Workshop
Onsite workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost onsite delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Define and Prioritize Infrastructure Services
The Purpose
Define and prioritize infrastructure services.
Key Benefits Achieved
Identify candidate services for the Playbook.
Activities
Outputs
Define the services you own.
- Affinity map of infrastructure services
Prioritize infrastructure services.
- Service pain points and root causes
- A list of high-demand infrastructure services
Module 2: Build the Infrastructure Services Playbook
The Purpose
Build workflows and an infrastructure services playbook.
Key Benefits Achieved
Produce a draft infrastructure services playbook.
Activities
Outputs
Design workflow for service delivery.
- Documented service workflows
Add steps and requirements to the Services Playbook.
- Infrastructure Services Playbook
Module 3: Identify Costs and Mature Service Delivery Capabilities
The Purpose
- Identify costs and mature service delivery capabilities.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Build an infrastructure service rate sheet.
- Define next steps for infrastructure service capabilities.
Activities
Outputs
Optimize infrastructure cost estimates.
- Service Rate Sheet
Mature your I&O organization into a service broker.
- Master list of infrastructure services
- Action plan for Playbook implementation
