AUDIENCE:   The course is appropriate for both end user staff and IT staff who wish to improve, or need to formalise, their understanding of the principles of best practice. PREREQUISITES:   There are no formal pre-requisites for this course other than a general level of IT literacy. A background in IT or experience gained in the liaison between IT and the business itself would be useful. DURATION:   1 day. OBJECTIVES:   IT departments need to establish a professional "best practice" culture. The education process for this started at the top of the organisation as is quite normal. It is necessary to established the framework with senior management to gain their commitment to the process. This course is designed to present the concepts to management so that they may best assess how these disciplines can benefit their organisations. This course introduces the principles for the effective delivery of IT services by addressing the key areas from the operational standpoint. COURSE CONTENT:   Service Management Principles Purpose and role of the Help Desk Elements of Problem and Change Management Configuration Management Terminology Use of the Configuration Management Database The need for SLAs - benefits and difficulties, structure and objectives The need for and options of Continuity Planning Risk Analysis and Management. Continuity Plan Availability Management principles. Terminology - defined and discussed Elements of Capacity Planning Performance management overview Benefits and problems of Capacity Planning Objectives of costing and charging Costing and charging activities Use of the Definitive Software Library Release strategies defined. JS07/01