Get a Grip on Service Reporting and KPIs

As businesses increasingly rely on technology to operate and grow, IT has become critical to ensuring the smooth running of operations, so it is understandable that at some point during your career as a Service Leader, either when heading up service for an MSP or internal IT team, you will need to get to grips with Service Reporting and metrics.

One of the most essential aspects of managing an IT service is Service Reporting, which involves measuring and analysing the performance of IT services and systems to identify opportunities for improvement.

Why Does Service Reporting Matter?

Service Reporting is an essential tool for you to track the performance of their services and systems. It allows you to identify trends, spot potential issues before they become major problems, and make data-driven decisions about improving the service quality. Service Reporting is also crucial for demonstrating the value of IT services to stakeholders, including senior management and customers.

Effective Service Reporting can help you to:

• Meet SLAs: Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are contracts between IT teams or MSPs and their clients that specify the level of service that will be provided. Service Reporting helps teams to monitor and meet SLAs by providing real-time visibility into service performance.

• Improve Service Quality: Service Reporting provides insights into how IT services are performing, enabling teams to identify areas for improvement and implement changes to enhance service quality.

• Increase Efficiency: Service Reporting enables teams to identify and eliminate inefficiencies, reducing the time and effort required to manage and maintain IT services.

• Reduce Downtime: By monitoring service performance, you can identify potential issues before they cause downtime, reducing the risk of service outages and the associated costs.

What is the Structure of a Service Report?

Overall, a Service Report should provide a comprehensive overview of service performance and identify improvement areas, helping you deliver high-quality services and meet SLAs.

A Service Report can include the following information:

1. Executive Summary: A high-level overview of the report's contents, including any significant events or changes that occurred during the reporting period.

2. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): A detailed analysis of the KPIs used to measure service performance, including trends and any areas of concern. Want a comprehensive list of KPIs you can measure against? Download our list

3. Incident Reports: A summary of incidents during the reporting period, including their severity, duration, and resolution.

4. Problem Management: An overview of any identified problems and how they were resolved or escalated.

5. Change Management: A summary of any changes made to the environment during the reporting period, including their impact and success.

6. Capacity Management: An analysis of the capacity utilisation, trends over the reporting period, and potential risks or opportunities.

7. Customer Satisfaction: A review of customer satisfaction ratings and feedback, including any action plans to address areas of improvement.

8. Service Improvement Initiatives: A summary of ongoing or planned service improvement initiatives, including their objectives, progress, and results.

9. Recommendations: Recommendations for further action or improvements, including potential risks or opportunities.

Is any financial information included in the Service Report?

Financial information can be an important aspect of Service Reporting, particularly if services directly impact revenue or cost savings. For example, an MSP providing managed services to a customer may want to include financial information on the cost of service delivery, including expenses related to staffing, hardware, and software licensing. If you’re leading Service Delivery for an MSP, you may also need to report to the Exec team about the Cost per Ticket.

If you lead in-house IT, including financial information in Service Reports can also help demonstrate the services' value and justify the cost to the customer or stakeholders. However, financial information should be presented clearly and understandably. It should not detract from the overall focus of the report on service performance.

When including financial information in Service Reports, it is important to consider the level of detail and granularity required. For example, high-level financial information such as the total cost of service delivery or cost per user may be sufficient for some stakeholders, while others may require more detailed cost breakdowns by service, location, or other factors.

Finally, whether or not you include financial information in a Service Report depends on the specific needs and objectives of the stakeholders involved, and the best way to find that out is through a good ole' conversation!

What’s the process for determining what goes in a Service Report?

The Service Report's KPIs and metrics should align with the business objectives and goals.

To determine which KPIs and metrics to include:

• Identify the key drivers of the business and the services being provided. This could include: customer satisfaction, system availability, response time, and other relevant factors.

• Once you have identified the key drivers, work with stakeholders to determine which KPIs and metrics are most relevant to measuring service performance in these areas. For example, MSP customers may be most interested in response time and customer satisfaction metrics. At the same time, an IT Director may be more concerned with the metrics related to system performance and availability.

• It is important to focus on actionable metrics and provide insights into service performance rather than simply reporting on data for the sake of reporting though.

• Set performance targets for each KPI based on the business objectives and industry standards.

• Identify the data sources required to measure each KPI and ensure the necessary data is collected and stored consistently and accurately. The last thing you need is hours of manual collation of stats each month!

• By aligning KPIs and metrics with business objectives and stakeholder needs, Service Reports can provide valuable insights into service performance, identify areas for improvement, and drive continuous service improvement efforts.

• Determine the frequency of reporting and the level of detail required. For example, some KPIs may require daily reporting, while others only need to be reported monthly or quarterly. Additionally, some KPIs may require detailed data and analysis, while others may be more high-level.

• Define the format and structure of the report, including the sections and sub-sections, the level of detail required for each section, and any visual aids or graphics to be used.

• Determine the audience for the report and tailor the report to their needs. For example, a report for IT staff may focus on technical details and system performance, while a report for Exec Teams may focus on financial metrics and customer satisfaction.

• Ensure that the report is accurate, complete and provides actionable insights that can be used to improve service performance.

Effective Service Reporting is essential for providing high-quality services and to meet SLAs. By following the steps above, Service Leaders can develop comprehensive Service Reports that provide insights into service performance, identify areas for improvement, and drive continuous service improvement.

Download our IT Service KPIs

To help you get started with Service Reporting, we have compiled a free resource that provides a comprehensive spreadsheet of approx. 300 KPIs that can be used to measure and report on service performance. These KPIs can be used for both in-house IT and MSPs and cover a wide range of metrics that can be used for high-level Balanced Scorecards and then go into further detail.

To be clear, you do not need to have hundreds of metrics in place, you just need to have those that are important to you in terms of contractual obligations, or where your focus is. You will also need to review the RAG measures that are in the spready to make sure they are aligned to you and your services.

Stop Wasting Time and Start Measuring Success with Our Incredible Spready of 300* IT Service KPIs!