The Service Level Agreement
A service level agreement is a document which defines the relationship between two parties: the provider and the recipient.
This is clearly an extremely important item of documentation for both parties. If used properly it should:
• Identify and define the customer’s needs
• Provide a framework for understanding
• Simplify complex issues
• Reduce areas of conflict
• Encourage dialog in the event of disputes
• Eliminate unrealistic expectations
Specifically it should embrace a wide range of issues. Amongst these are usually the following:
Services to be delivered
This is the most critical section of the Agreement as it describes the services and the manner in which those services are to be delivered. Standard services are often separated from customized services but this distinction is not critical.
Performance, Tracking and Reporting
A key part of a Service Level Agreement deals with monitoring and measuring service level performance. Essentially, every service must be capable of being measured and the results analysed and reported. The benchmarks, targets and metrics to be utilised must be specified in the agreement itself.
Problem Management
The purpose of problem management is to minimise the adverse impact of incidents and problems. This usually specifies that there must be an adequate process to handle and resolve unplanned incidents and that there must also be preventative activity to reduce occurrence of unplanned incidents.
Customer Duties and Responsibilities
It is important for the customer to understand that it also has responsibilities to support the service delivery process. The SLA defines the 'relationship' which of course is a two way entity.
Security
Security is a particularly critical feature of any SLA.
The customer must provide controlled physical and logical access to its premises and information. Equally, the supplier must respect and comply with the Client’s security policies and procedures.
Termination
This section of the SLA agreement typically covers the following key topics:
Termination at end of initial term
Termination for convenience
Termination for cause
Payments on termination
A service level agreement is a document which defines the relationship between two parties: the provider and the recipient.
This is clearly an extremely important item of documentation for both parties. If used properly it should:
• Identify and define the customer’s needs
• Provide a framework for understanding
• Simplify complex issues
• Reduce areas of conflict
• Encourage dialog in the event of disputes
• Eliminate unrealistic expectations
Specifically it should embrace a wide range of issues. Amongst these are usually the following:
Services to be delivered
This is the most critical section of the Agreement as it describes the services and the manner in which those services are to be delivered. Standard services are often separated from customized services but this distinction is not critical.
Performance, Tracking and Reporting
A key part of a Service Level Agreement deals with monitoring and measuring service level performance. Essentially, every service must be capable of being measured and the results analysed and reported. The benchmarks, targets and metrics to be utilised must be specified in the agreement itself.
Problem Management
The purpose of problem management is to minimise the adverse impact of incidents and problems. This usually specifies that there must be an adequate process to handle and resolve unplanned incidents and that there must also be preventative activity to reduce occurrence of unplanned incidents.
Customer Duties and Responsibilities
It is important for the customer to understand that it also has responsibilities to support the service delivery process. The SLA defines the 'relationship' which of course is a two way entity.
Security
Security is a particularly critical feature of any SLA.
The customer must provide controlled physical and logical access to its premises and information. Equally, the supplier must respect and comply with the Client’s security policies and procedures.
Termination
This section of the SLA agreement typically covers the following key topics:
Termination at end of initial term
Termination for convenience
Termination for cause
Payments on termination