Foster-Melliar`s IT Service Level Management (SLM) Practitioners course has received official international certification by the Information Systems Examination Board (ISEB) in the UK. The Certified SLM Practitioners course now provides an internationally recognised certification for IT professionals whose day-to-day activities include designing, planning, negotiating and implementing service level management. Training on the certified course has already started.
Based on the `Best Practice` guidance found in the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL), the course focuses on providing practical guidance on the design and implementation of an end-to-end service level management process. Certified SLM Practitioners is designed to emphasise how SLM interfaces with business and other IT disciplines, why it is essential in an organisation, its scope and basic concepts. It also focuses on how to optimise service capability within the IT organisation and how to define, measure and manage services for customer focus.
According to Madeleine Barnard, of Foster-Melliar, the Certified SLM Practitioners course is a powerful tool not simply in the development of Service Level Agreements (SLA`s), but more importantly how to manage service levels to the benefit of both the service provider and customer. "All too often SLA`s are focused on purely the contractual aspect of service management - who should do what and when. They are used as a `whipping tool` between customers and service providers rather than a guide to understanding what services need to be applied and how to manage service levels to the greatest benefit of all parties," says Madeleine.
"A service level agreement is only one aspect of the entire service management process. Foster-Melliar adopts a more holistic approach to service management and the Certified SLM Practitioners course is a guide on how to approach and handle IT services for a customers internal and external audiences rather than simply how to create an SLA," adds Madeleine.
The course is broken up into theory and practical modules to allow for maximum knowledge absorption. Certified SLM Practitioners will benefit all IT staff with responsibilities in the following areas:
* Planning and implementing Service Level Management
* Implementing and maintaining Service Level Agreements
* Day-to-day management of the Service Level Management process
* Customer liaison and managing customer expectations.
The course is aimed at IT Practitioners who have obtained the Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management, have a minimum of one years working experience in the field of service level management and are responsible for the implementation and management of the SLM process within their organisation.
For more details on the next course in February, contact Foster-Melliar on (011) 785 9900.
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Foster-Melliar is the leading local provider and pioneer of ITIL and IT Service Management in South Africa. Driven towards optimising IT services within organisations, Foster-Melliar offers a host of solutions to assist companies capitalise on their IT investments. Foster-Melliar focuses on an end-to-end service management solution in the form of assessments, training and mentoring. FM Software, a division of Foster-Melliar, boasts a broad range of software products that assists organisations to manage and control their infrastructure and in doing so, dramatically improves the efficiencies and effectiveness of their IT Services whilst proactively managing their costs.
For more information on Foster-Melliar visit www.foster-melliar.co.za.
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