1.1.1 Purpose and objectives of service strategy

The purpose of the service strategy stage of the service life cycle is to define the perspective, position, plans and patterns that a service provider needs to be able to execute to meet an organization’s business outcomes.

The objectives of service strategy include providing:

•   An understanding of what strategy is 

•  A clear identification of the definition of services and the customers who use them 

•  The ability to define how value is created and delivered 

•  A means to identify opportunities to provide services and how to exploit them 

•  A clear service provision model, that articulates how services will be delivered and funded, and to whom they will be delivered and for what purpose 

•  The means to understand the organizational capability required to deliver the strategy 

•  Documentation and coordination of how service assets are used to deliver services, and how to optimize their performance

•   Processes that define the strategy of the organization, which services will achieve the strategy, what level of investment will be required, at what levels of demand, and the means to ensure a working relationship exists between the customer and service provider.

 The reader should be able to understand the most important practices related to defining and executing a service strategy within a service provider organization.
 
1.1.2 Scope

ITIL Service Strategy starts by defining and discussing the generic principles and processes of service management, and these generic principles are then applied consistently to the management of IT services.

This publication is intended for use by both internal and external service providers, and includes guidance for organizations which are required to offer IT services as a profitable business, as well as those which are required to offer IT services to other business units within the same organization – at no profit.

Two aspects of strategy are covered in ITIL Service Strategy:

•  Defining a strategy whereby a service provider will deliver services to meet a customer’s business outcomes 

• Defining a strategy for how to manage those services.