ITIL v3 (Information Technology Infrastructure Library)/Service Strategy

Service Strategy is the center and origin point of the ITIL Service Lifecycle. It provides guidance on clarification and prioritization of service-provider investments in services. More generally, Service Strategy focuses on helping IT organizations improve and develop over the long term. In both cases, Service Strategy relies largely upon a market-driven approach.

This is a view of ITIL where IT and business align their visions. Its key topics covered include service value definition, business-case development, service assets, market analysis, and service provider types. List of covered processes:
 * Strategy Management
 * Service Portfolio Management
 * IT Financial Management
 * Demand Management
 * Business Relationship Management

Importance of this view is because this phase that is responsible to define service value. When defining a service is important to have in mind four Ps for strategy: Perspective, Position, Plan, Pattern.

Strategy activities are:
 * Define market
 * Develop strategic offer
 * Develop strategic assets
 * Prepare for execution

Principles
When defining a service, strategist must have in mind list of principles, as stated below:
 * Value creation
 * Service assets
 * Service provider types
 * Service structure

Stages
Stages for definition of strategy are:
 * 1) Define
 * 2) Analyze
 * 3) Approval
 * 4) Charter



Service provider types
There are three types of service providers, that may include service provided as well providers for the service:
 * 1) Internal service provider: exists within an organization and provides service solely for a unique business unit
 * 2) Shared service unit: exists within an organization, but provides service for more than one business unit
 * 3) External service provider: operates outside organization

Processes
Service strategy has two processes: Service Portfolio Management and IT Financial Management, as depicted below.

Service Portfolio Management
Owned by service portfolio manager, it is composed of four sub-processes:
 * Strategic service assessment: assesses current service in the market.
 * Service strategy definition: to define overall goals of the service, as well to define customer and customer segmentation.
 * Service portfolio update: adjusts services offered in portfolio based on strategy definition.
 * Strategic planning: defines, initiates and controls the program and projects required to execute Service Strategy.
 * Demand Management: Service Strategy.

IT Financial Management
Owned by financial manager, it is composed of four sub-processes:
 * Financial management support: defines necessary structure for management of financial planning data and costs.
 * Financial planning: determines required financial resources over next planning period.
 * Financial analysis and reporting: analysis of financial costs provisioning and service profitability.
 * Service invoicing: issues invoices for the provisioned service.