The central element of the SVS is the service value chain, an operating model which outlines the key activities required to respond to demand and facilitate value realization through the creation and management of products and services. The ITIL service value chain includes six value chain activities which lead to the creation of products and services and, in turn, value.
The six value chain activities are:
- Plan
- Improve
- Engage
- Design and transition
- Obtain/build
- Deliver and support.
These activities represent the steps an organization takes in the creation of value. Each activity transforms inputs into outputs. These inputs can be demand from outside the value chain or outputs of other activities. All the activities are interconnected, with each activity receiving and providing triggers for further action. To convert inputs into outputs, the value chain activities use different combinations of ITIL practices, drawing on internal or third-party resources, processes, skills, and competencies as required. For example, the engage activity might draw on supplier management, service desk management, relationship management, and service request management to respond to new demands for products and services, or information from various stakeholders.
Regardless of which practices are deployed, there are some common rules when using the service value chain:
- All incoming and outgoing interactions with parties external to the value chain are performed via engage
- All new resources are obtained through obtain/build
- Planning at all levels is performed via plan
- Improvements at all levels are initiated and managed via improve.
To carry out a certain task or respond to a particular situation, organizations create service value streams. These are specific combinations of activities and practices, and each one is designed for a particular scenario. Once designed, value streams should be subject to continual improvement.
Plan
The purpose of the plan value chain activity is to ensure a shared understanding of the vision, current status, and improvement direction for all four dimensions and all products and services across the organization.
The key inputs to this activity are:
- Policies, requirements, and constraints provided by the organization’s governing body
- Consolidated demands and opportunities provided by engage
- Value chain performance information, improvement status reports, and improvement initiatives from improve
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services from design and transition, and obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from engage.
The key outputs of this activity are:
- Strategic, tactical, and operational plans
- Portfolio decisions for design and transition
- Architectures and policies for design and transition
- Improvement opportunities for improve
- A product and service portfolio for engage
- Contract and agreement requirements for engage.
Improve
The purpose of the improve value chain activity is to ensure continual improvement of products, services, and practices across all value chain activities and the four dimensions of service management.
The key inputs to this value chain activity are:
- Product and service performance information provided by deliver and support stakeholders’ feedback provided by engage
- Performance information and improvement opportunities provided by all value chain activities
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services from design and transition, and obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from engage.
The key outputs of this value chain activity are:
- Improvement initiatives for all value chain activities
- Value chain performance information for plan and the governing body
- Improvement status reports for all value chain activities
- Contract and agreement requirements for engage
- Service performance information for design and transition.
Engage
The purpose of the engage value chain activity is to provide a good understanding of stakeholder needs, transparency, and continual engagement and good relationships with all stakeholders.
The key inputs to this value chain activity are:
- A product and service portfolio provided by plan high-level demand for services and products provided by internal and external customers
- Detailed requirements for services and products provided by customers requests and feedback from customers incidents, service requests, and feedback from users
- Information on the completion of user support tasks from deliver and support marketing opportunities from current and potential customers and users
- Cooperation opportunities and feedback provided by partners and suppliers contract and agreement requirements from all value chain activities
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services from design and transition, and obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from suppliers and partners
- Product and service performance information from deliver and support
- Improvement initiatives from improve
- Improvement status reports from improve.
The key outputs of this value chain activity are:
- Consolidated demands and opportunities for plan product and service requirements for design and transition
- User support tasks for deliver and support
- Improvement opportunities and stakeholders’ feedback for improve
- Change or project initiation requests for obtain/build
- Contracts and agreements with external and internal suppliers and partners for design and transition, and obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components for all value chain activities
- Service performance reports for customers.
- Design and transition
The purpose of the design and transition value chain activity is to ensure that products and services continually meet stakeholder expectations for quality, costs, and time to market.
The key inputs to this activity are:
- Portfolio decisions provided by plan
- Architectures and policies provided by plan
- Product and service requirements provided by engage
- Improvement initiatives provided by improve
- Improvement status reports from improve
- Service performance information provided by deliver and support, and improve
- Service components from obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from engage
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services from obtain/build
- contracts and agreements with external and internal suppliers and partners provided by engage.
The key outputs of this activity are:
- Requirements and specifications for obtain/build
- Contract and agreement requirements for engage
- New and changed products and services for deliver and support
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services to all value chain activities
- Performance information and improvement opportunities for improve.
Obtain/build
The purpose of the obtain/build value chain activity is to ensure that service components are available when and where they are needed, and meet agreed specifications.
- Architectures and policies provided by plan
- Contracts and agreements with external and internal suppliers and partners provided by engage
- Goods and services provided by external and internal suppliers and partners
- Requirements and specifications provided by design and transition
- Improvement initiatives provided by improve
- Improvement status reports from improve
- Change or project initiation requests provided by engage
- Change requests provided by deliver and support
- Knowledge and information about new and changed products and services from design and transition
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from engage.
The key outputs of this activity are:
- Service components for deliver and support
- Service components for design and transition
- Knowledge and information about new and changed service components to all value chain activities
- Contract and agreement requirements for engage performance information and improvement opportunities for improve.
Deliver and support
The purpose of the deliver and support value chain activity is to ensure that services are delivered and supported according to agreed specifications and stakeholders’ expectations.
- New and changed products and services provided by design and transition
- Service components provided by obtain/build
- Improvement initiatives provided by improve
- Improvement status reports from improve
- User support tasks provided by engage
- Knowledge and information about new and changed service components and services from design and transition, and obtain/build
- Knowledge and information about third-party service components from engage.
The key outputs of this activity are:
- Services delivered to customers and users
- Information on the completion of user support tasks for engage product and service performance information for engage and improve
- Improvement opportunities for improve contract and agreement requirements for engage change requests for obtain/build service performance information for design and transition.
