Enterprise Service Managment Office, Service Request Management Standards
This document is for all university organizations operating or managing IT services and defines the minimum standard for managing Service Requests at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Purpose
This document is for all university organizations operating or managing IT services and defines the minimum standard for managing Service Requests at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Goal of Service Request Management
The goal of Service Request Management is to efficiently fulfill predefined, user-initiated service requests in a consistent and user friendly manner. Timely and predictable request fulfillment supports the university’s core operations including teaching, learning, research, and essential administrative functions by enabling access to services, information, and resources required for day-to-day work.
Service Request Management Standards
All campus IT units must adhere to the following Service Request Management standards. These requirements ensure consistent intake, fulfillment, documentation, and reporting of service requests across the University.
Submission and Intake
- A service request record must be recorded in the University-approved IT Service Management (ITSM) system, regardless of submission channel (e.g., portal, email, phone, walk-in).
- Requests must be reviewed at intake to confirm they meet the campus definition of a Service Request and are not Incidents, Problems, or Changes.
- Requests must be accurately categorized and associated with the correct service offering in the Enterprise IT Service Catalog.
- Each request must include all required information and any supporting documentation before fulfillment begins.
- Requests must be assigned an initial priority or fulfillment order to support workload management and timely delivery.
- Intake must identify whether approvals are required and route requests through the appropriate workflow.
- Duplicate requests may be linked or consolidated according to documented procedures.
- If a submission contains multiple distinct requests, separate request records must be created.
Fulfillment and Documentation
- All fulfillment activities, including work performed, approvals, and escalations, must be documented in the ITSM system.
- Common request types must have documented fulfillment workflows (service request models).
- A responsible group or individual must be accountable for progressing the request.
- Request status must be updated as fulfillment progresses.
- Documentation must be reviewed and updated when workflows or ownership changes.
- If a request cannot be fulfilled as submitted, it must be reclassified or routed.
Escalations and Approvals
- Escalation and approval requirements must be defined in workflows and enforced through the ITSM system.
- Escalation procedures must identify when a request requires higher-level intervention.
- Requests requiring approval must be routed to designated approvers in ITSM.
- Approval and escalation actions must be documented.
- Workflows must include delegation paths for unavailable approvers.
Communication and Notifications
- Users must receive confirmation that requests are submitted and recorded.
- Requesters must be informed of significant updates, delays, or changes.
- Communications must be clear and relevant.
- Closure notifications must summarize fulfillment.
- Alternative communication methods must be documented if automation is unavailable.
Service Level Agreements
- Defined delivery timeframes or service level targets must be documented and linked to service offerings.
- Performance against SLA targets must be tracked and reported.
- Service Level Management (SLM) is a related practice and may be defined separately.
Enterprise IT Service Catalog Alignment
- All service request types must be linked to an active service offering.
- The Enterprise IT Service Catalog serves as the authoritative source for requestable services.
- Catalog entries must be reviewed and updated as services evolve.
Service Request Record Requirements
The following information must be recorded for every Service Request, regardless of submission method or level of automation.
Time and Lifecycle Tracking
| Data Point | Definition |
|---|---|
| Request ID | Unique identifier for the request |
| Submitted Date/Time | Timestamp indicating when the request was submitted |
| Closed Date/Time | Timestamp when the request was formally completed |
| Initial Response Time | Time between submission and first action |
| Request Status | Current lifecycle state (e.g., Open, In Progress, Closed) |
Roles and People
| Data Point | Definition |
|---|---|
| Requester | The individual submitting the request |
| User Contact Information | Name, NetID, email, phone, or identifiers |
| Responsible Group/Fulfiller | The unit accountable for fulfillment |
| Approval Status | Status of required approvals |
Context and Description
| Data Point | Definition |
|---|---|
| Title | Short description of request |
| User Provided Information | Requester details |
| Fulfillment Actions Taken | Summary of work performed |
| Associated Service Offering | Linked service |
Measurement and Reporting
The following metrics are required for reporting and are measured monthly.
Metrics
| Metric | Data | Reporting Requirement | Reporting Breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Request Volume | Count of service requests | Total count | By month, service offering, request type |
| Average Response Time | Submission to first response | Average | By month, service offering |
| Average Fulfillment Time | Submission to closure | Average | By month, service offering, request type |
| First Contact Fulfillment % | Resolved without escalation | Percentage | By month, service offering |
| SLA Compliance % | Met SLA targets | Percentage | By month, service offering, request type |
| Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) | Survey responses | Positive % | By month, service offering |
Terminology
- Service Request: A request that initiates a service action.
- Service Request Record: Record containing request details.
- Request Type: Category grouping similar requests.
- Service Request Model: Predefined workflow.
- User: Individual using IT services.
- ITSM System: Tool managing ITSM activities.
- Service Desk: First point of contact.
- Fulfillment Group: Team executing work.
- Intake: Receiving and assessing requests.
- Escalation: Transfer to higher support.
- Approval: Authorization to proceed.
- Request Priority: Relative importance.
- Request Status: Current state.
- SLA: Service level agreement.
- SLM: Managing service performance.
- Incident: Service disruption.
- Problem: Cause of incidents.
- Change: Modification affecting service.