10 considerations when choosing a new ITSM solution

Of Marina Kirkegaard
January 18, 2022
Reading time: 7 minutes

10 considerations you can make in connection with choosing a new ITSM solution

Regardless of whether you are choosing an IT Service Management system for the first time or it is the third time you are faced with a consideration of replacing your current system, it can seem unmanageable and difficult to form an overview. Today there is a sea of different ITSM solutions and suppliers, and we know it can be difficult to find the right solution that covers your specific needs. The right choice is a solution that you can use and grow with for many years to come, and which provides benefits in both the short and long term.

To help you on your way, we have collected 10 considerations that our experience shows you can take advantage of when choosing a new ITSM solution.

#1 Why are you considering a new ITSM tool?

A replacement of an ITSM solution can be due to many reasons, and perhaps it is because the current solution no longer matches your needs. A good idea is therefore to form an overview of what you e.g. want to keep from the current solution and what you lack in the current solution. In the long term, would you like to use the solution for several service departments (outside IT).

If you are faced with a new situation and are looking for your first ITSM system, it is often due to the lack of an overview of cases, poor knowledge sharing and a general lack of structure, which increases the pressure on the resources that solve cases. Try to specify your needs and think a little ahead (beyond the first 3-6 months) and thus it will be easier to assess the various solutions that exist within the ITSM market.

#2 How long is your current contract?

If you would like to replace your current ITSM system, check how long the current contract runs. It takes time to make a change of ITSM system - typically not because a new solution is more complex, but we often find that an ITSM system is well entangled in various processes and you underestimate the complexity of your business (and which the ITSM system thus supports ) We recommend that you examine the market at least one year before the contract expires, to ensure an efficient and smooth transition from the current solution to the new one. This means there is plenty of time to consider different solutions in relation to price and technical skills, and at the same time have enough time to make the actual switch from the older to the new solution. If your contract is in its last year, then contact us here.

#3 How many ITIL processes do you need?

For many years, suppliers focused on who could offer the most ITIL-processes in the solution. The focus has shifted and today organizations often have a good handle on the basic processes themselves. Therefore, it is good to investigate along the way how many and which processes you need.

For example, have you so far used the basic support ITIL processes such as: Incident Management, Request Fulfillment, and Change Management and are the current processes the only thing you want in the new ITSM system, so be aware of this from the start of your market research.

Solutions available on the ITSM market mostly contain several verified ITIL processes. It is therefore important to investigate whether in the long term you are interested in making use of more processes in the organization or perhaps expanding the use of the system to other areas in the organization such as e.g. Facility, HR, Security, etc.

#4 Are you interested in an ITSM tool that can support the entire organization in the long term?

This consideration is a continuation of the previous consideration. As the market is now, you have to ask yourself: "Are we looking for a solution that will replace the current solution, or are we interested in eventually expanding with more processes that can support more departments and thus improve cross-functional service in the organization?”

Today, digitization and automation have become essential for several service departments and the ITSM tool has grown out of the IT department's framework. It is possible to create an Enterprise Service Management solution that covers bringing together the various services across the organisation. The solution thus potentially supports a larger part of the organization, which we see today as an increasing desire.

You can use the reports from, for example, Gartner or Forrester to investigate the IT & Enterprise Service Management market.

#5 How much do you yourself want to be able to change and adapt in the new system?

When it comes to ITSM systems, it is important to consider whether you want to drive the development of the system yourself or whether you need consultancy assistance for it. Here you should already consider whether it should be an Out-of-the-box solution or whether the ITSM system should be configured for special needs.

There are great financial advantages to being able to configure yourself if you have the time and resources to allocate time for development. Therefore, think about whether the solution you are looking at gives you the opportunity to configure yourself, or whether it will always require development to get new functionality. If you do not want to develop the solution yourself, most ITSM suppliers have experienced consultants who are ready to help, but consider whether you want to limit yourself by only using external consultants for maintenance and development of your future system. If there is any doubt as to whether you can drive the development yourself or would benefit more from consultancy assistance, do not hesitate to contact us. Then we find the best solution for your organization and needs.

#6 How about price?

You should consider how you relate to price as more than just the good offer from the nice seller at the start of a collaboration. In fact, it is most often the total costs that surprise customers and that result in a situation that is many times more expensive than expected (or a worse result because it is too expensive to reach the goal completely). Many vendors have made a virtue of offering highly individual license structures. Danger signals can be if the license structure is opaque and you cannot see through or get answers to the future costs when and if you want to expand or change the use of the tool.

One thing to keep an eye on is the license model (i.e. how is your use of a given ITSM solution measured) and there is a big difference if a nsubmitted vs. concurrent users license model. Named users can be an easy way to count the number of licenses you need. This also automatically increases costs and you pay for all potential users and not according to actual consumption. Concurrent users instead requires an overview of how many people are simultaneously working with case processing. This provides greater flexibility and often lower license costs when you choose an ITSM tool based on concurrent users. Should you grow with 5 employees in e.g. IT department, then it might only require 1 extra license.

Set requirements for your future supplier so that all prices are made visible. Please clarify what happens if you grow in the number of employees, expand with more processes or functions and possibly expands with more modules to other departments in the organization.

#7 What should come out of the supplier collaboration?

Price and total costs are important factors within the ITSM market, which means that choosing a business partner is often overlooked when looking. We find that suppliers can have a short-term time horizon and only focus on getting new customers on board and thus give a sharp price in the first year. It often happens that costs increase in the long term and during the collaboration and the whole thing becomes more expensive than expected.

Make demands when choosing a supplier and for the supplier agreement, so that you do not misunderstand each other and it ends up being a failed collaboration. A good tip is references (not just those recommended by the supplier) and possibly getting created dialogue with other customers to investigate how the supplier treats its customers. The collaboration can be really good if both parties have the same expectations for the time horizon and the type of collaboration. Therefore, it is important to ensure that a given supplier is willing to help you achieve your goals and vision.

#8 How long before winning?

As previously mentioned, you can and must make demands on your future ITSM supplier. Get them to help you form an estimate of what results your investment will give and when you can expect these. Get any prepares a Proof of Concept (POC) and a calculation of investment in relation to expected gains - Return on Investment (ROI), so you can clarify how good an investment your new ITSM tool will be. You will thus find out when the investment has paid off if you choose to replace the current solution. Smaller people can of course also do it - but try to positively challenge them and ask for input on how a future business partner can contribute to your organisation.

#9 How many years will the contract run?

Most suppliers have special requirements for contracts and contract extensions. As a general rule, you can say that the longer the contract, the greater annual savings you can often achieve. But you should be sure that you know the development of expenses after the first and perhaps second contract period. If you wish to spread the solution to several departments. The longer you know your expenses for the future, the greater chance you have for a long-term good investment and a basis for getting more optimal value out of the new ITSM tool.

#10 Get an insight into the suppliers' roadmap

Some suppliers do not tell their potential customers about new initiatives or changes. Therefore, you must be sure that you choose a supplier who has intentions to develop their current tool and service. Therefore, you should investigate what future plans the potential supplier has for its solution. In this way, you can better ensure that the ITSM tool always creates value for you, your organization and customers, and that you yourself will not incur costs for new functionality etc.

Clever Choice works with few and selected suppliers from the top shelf in the ITSM market. This means that we have taken pains to select solutions that all have a number of clear characteristics and these are:

Transparent and predictable licensing model
Value for money
Solutions that match customers' different needs
Solutions for both IT Service Management and Enterprise Service Management

Let us help you

We are experts in IT & Enterprise Service Management, and we meet our customers at eye level. We believe in a good relationship, where an open dialogue is the way forward to a successful collaboration.

Our focus is on top-shelf solutions, which we know have a good balance between diet and value.