itSMF Bulletin November 2020 | Page 9

Warranty, on the other hand, is the assurance that a product or service will meet agreed requirements: it answers ‘how the service performs’ or whether a service is ‘fit for use’. Warranty often relates to service levels aligned with the needs of service consumers, such as availability, capacity, security, and continuity.

When assessing a service, you must consider the impact of costs and risks on

utility and warranty—this generates a complete picture of the viability of a service. Both utility and warranty are essential for a service to facilitate its desired outcomes and, therefore, help create value. For example, if you are using a courier delivery service, the utility involves the delivery of your packages while warranty is about the speed and handling of your packages.

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About the Authors

Jon Hall

Jon is a Lead Product Manager in the BMC Remedy ITSM Product Management team at BMC Software, focused particularly on the evolving toolset marketplace and innovative new solutions for service. He has 18 years of experience in ITSM.

Joseph Mathenge

Joseph is a global best practice trainer and consultant with over 14 years corporate experience. His passion is partnering with organizations around the world through training, development, adaptation, streamlining and benchmarking their strategic and operational policies and processes in line with best practice frameworks and international standards. His specialties are IT Service Management, Business Process Reengineering, Cyber Resilience and Project Management.