How to ensure that people attend training for the ITSM Tool
By ITIL from Experience ©
To ensure people attend the ITSM tool training, have a policy that no one is given access to the production/live environment until they have completed the training.
This policy applies equally during the initial implementation as after the tool has been in production and new users are added due to staff turnover.
It is important that Senior Management endorses this policy as it will likely generate friction. Some line managers will object to this policy as it will negatively impact their operation. They may argue that they will not be able to meet their operational commitments if all of their people need to attend training. Moreover, they will claim that they will not meet their SLA because their team will not be able to access the new tool and that it increases unnecessarily the ramp-up time of new employees. Thus, Senior Management needs to remind these line managers that these are all good reasons to ensure that staff is trained as soon as possible to minimize these impacts.
The need for Senior Management support and even perhaps the CIO should not be underestimated since “major new software initiatives frequently end up with only half of the training activity that is really needed if they are to be used effectively. Not only is this false economy, but it is also a root cause of failure for many change initiatives, although it is rarely recognized as such."1 "
As it is often the case with new policies, processes need to be adjusted for compliance. In this case the Request Fulfillment process for granting access to the ITSM tool needs to be modified to ensure that access to the production environment is only provided when individuals complete their training.
During the initial deployment of the ITSM tool, all accounts can be bulk-loaded in the training environment/system while accounts in the production environment can be loaded and disabled. Upon completion of a course the trainer can either activate accounts in the production environment for individuals who completed their training, or can email a list to the system administrator(s) for activation. Once the tool is in production, this process can be used to activate accounts on a case-by-case basis for people who have completed their training.
When training and access are administered by different groups, a workflow can be created to manage access for new users. Here is a simple example of tasks for this workflow:
- The system administrator creates an account in the training system
- The trainer receives a task to schedule a training session with the new employee
- Once the training is complete, the system administrator creates the account in the production system
- Finally, the workflow emails the employee to notify them that they now have access to the ITSM tool.
The workflow helps prevent people from breaking the rule that “All users must receive training before accessing the tool.” In addition, we have seen organizations extend this policy and process to other systems since training significantly reduces support costs.
Related:
- Do people need training if the ITSM tool is easy to learn
- Why are people not making ITIL a priority
- How to dedicate people when we’re struggling to manage our workload
- How to increase attendance to the CAB meetings
Category:
Implementation > People
Implementation > Technology (ITSM Tools)
Copyright 2013 - ITIL from Experience - D.Matte