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October 2, 2023

6 minutes read

How to Find the Best ITSM Tool

By

Andrew Graf

Finding the right IT Service Management (ITSM) platform for your organization doesn’t have to be hard. While there are several vendors in the space, you can use these tips, and TeamDynamix customer advice, to help you filter through all the tools out there and find the right vendor that fits your organization’s needs.

“It’s a three-legged stool,” said Deborah Rojas, Chief Information Officer for Charter Oak Financial, referring to what goes into making a successful organizational change. “You can’t really have any of those legs longer or shorter than the others. Balance is important.”

When Charter Oak replaced its aging ticketing system with TeamDynamix, Rojas and her team knew they were addressing the “platforms” and “processes” legs of the stool. They didn’t fully realize how much of an impact the software would have on the “people” component as well.

Sharing the view from her seat, Rojas said, “The financial services sector ultimately wants to be on the bleeding edge of technology. If you don’t have a good way of handling project management, hearing the voice of your customers, quickly resolving customer issues, and staying inside the regulatory box, I think you’re at a big disadvantage.”

TeamDynamix became the solution, offering automated workflows and seamless integrations with enterprise software. “TeamDynamix is allowing us to innovate more than we’ve been able to in the past,” said said.

7 ITSM Software Non-Negotiables

When evaluating ITSM software, here’s a list of features and functionalities that you should consider standard. If a vendor doesn’t have these, they won’t be a good fit:

  1. End-user Self-Service – Make sure your ITSM tool has an intuitive, searchable and configurable self-service portal with WCAG 2.0 AA compliance, at the very least.
  2. Knowledge Management – You’ll want your ITSM tool to have a knowledge base that’s integrated with ticketing so you can share information with both your IT techs and end-users.
  3. Multi-site and Multi-Department Capabilities– The ability to have one platform that can be used across multiple locations and departments is critical to achieving Enterprise Service Management (ESM); the solution should allow for the codeless creation of new applications without the need for additional IT support.
  4. Service Catalog – For the best user experience, make sure users can request products and services through a catalog that integrates with ticketing.
  5. ITSM/ESM, PPM + Integration and Automation on One Platform – When you have an ITSM/ESM platform that includes PPM (Project Portfolio Management) you get one view of all work happening – from ticketing to change and projects – throughout your entire organization. And when that platform also includes integration and automation capabilities you can create workflows and automations for projects and ticket requests, all from a single platform.
  6. Codeless Integration and Workflow – With a no-code platform you can supercharge your organization. Take advantage of codeless configuration, workflow building and automation with integration to other enterprise systems using a library of connectors. Supercharge your ITSM and automate your common and repeatable processes to save time and resources.
  7. Conversational AI Chat – One of the best ways to improve self-service adoption is to have a conversational AI chatbot on your service portal. When you use an ITSM tool with this capability you can help your end-users quickly get the information they need, and even take actions, all from a conversations with the chatbot.

By measuring your ITSM options against this list, you can find a tool that can be customized to fit your needs and scale for the future.

Questions to Ask

To properly identify a flexible, easy-to-use tool we recommend asking these questions:

  • Are you able to create custom ticket types and workflows?
  • Can you set up incidents and problems separately?
  • Can you tailor the self-service portal to your brand and the specific data you want?
  • Can users create a custom desktop?
  • How easy is it to create reports and dashboards?
  • Can you easily spin up new applications without IT resources?
  • Are you able to import and export data?
  • Does it offer ITSM with Project Portfolio Management and enterprise integration and automation on one platform? Can it support Enterprise Service Management?
  • Does it offer the option to include conversational AI chat?

The best ITSM tool is the one that supports your desired approach and is easy to use with great service that doesn’t stop once you complete implementation – you want to find an ITSM vendor that partners with you and your business to ensure success.

“I led the implementation of the IT Service Management software,” Alex Turek of Festival Foods explained. “It was honestly fantastic. We had a consultant from TeamDynamix, who helped give us a deeper knowledge (of the platform). In turning on features and setting them up, the actual process itself was very easy. And even the TeamDynamix knowledge base was comprehensive. I’ve never seen another vendor that has such an extensive, easily accessible knowledge base. It was a smooth implementation. We were always ahead of deadlines, and there were no hiccups in the launch.”

Less than a year into using TeamDynamix, the company has already seen dramatic improvements for end-users and IT staff alike.

From a user perspective, it’s now much easier to submit tickets using the self-service portal. “We went from having over 160 different service offerings to about 45 with TeamDynamix, under nine different categories,” Turek said. “We had a TeamDynamix service consultant help us whittle down our service offerings. The portal is now very easy to navigate. And the forms themselves are intuitive, simple and dynamic. So, end-user feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.”

Word of Mouth Recommendations Matter

Whether you’re reading reviews, checking out case studies or talking to customers – what people have to say about their experience with the platform you choose matters. Don’t be afraid to do your research and check out rankings to see how your vendor of choice stacks up.

If you’re interested in learning more about ITSM tools and TeamDynamix check out:

Andrew Graf

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