master service level agreement overview

7/29/2019 Master Service Level Agreement Overview

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Background

Key definitions

Objectives

Scope

Methodology

Timelines

Benefits of developing MSAs

FAQ

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As part of the implementation of a new entrepreneurial

management service model at DAS, four service Enterprises havebeen created.

Each service enterprise is governed by a Customer Utility Board,

which acts as a governing board for those services provided by

each Service Enterprise that has been designated as utility

services.

One of the key responsibilities assigned to CUBs is the approval of

SLA (Service Level Agreement) documents. These are referred to

in this presentation as MSA (Master Service Agreement)

documents (see definitions), while the term SLA (see definitions) is

used to designate a section of the MSA documents.

This document presents an approach to the development of MSA

documents within DAS.

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1. Service: A bundle of activities and resources (IT, people and processes) combined toprovide a business outcome or output/ deliverable received by the customer.

2. MSA (Master Service Agreement): A document, specific per program, which includesa service catalog, agreed SLAs (performance targets) and responsibilities of the

service provider and customers, all of which helps improve service delivery, manage

expectations, clarify responsibilities and facilitate communication between the

parties.

3.Service Catalog: A description of the services and service offerings provided by a

program. This can be a multi-level set of information with linked and discrete

hierarchies of services, child services and specific offerings (specific tasks)

available for these services, and will typically include service terms, standards,

packages, exclusions, etc.

4. SLA (Service Level Agreement): A written, measureable target for service orprocess performance agreed between service provider and customers.

5. Service Agreements: Individual documents signed between a service provider andeach customer reflecting customer-specific information (choice of services from

service catalog, contact information for escalation procedures, etc).

6. Service rate: A price that incorporates the costs of delivering the service at theservice levels agreed to by both parties.

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The objectives for the project are:

1. Develop & provide support for the implementation of Master Service

Agreements with common structure and content across the 4 Service

Enterprises of DAS.

Develop/ obtain CUB agreement on MSA common structure.

Coordinate / facilitate program specific MSA document development.

Provide implementation support.

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The scope for the project is:

1. DAS EAM

Develop 6 new MSA documents ( 6 programs)

2. DAS EGS

Revise and update existing P&D MSA / SLA document

Develop 4 new MSA documents for remaining programs

3. DAS EHRS:

Develop 1 MSA

4. DAS ETS

Revise, update and combine existing documents:

3 MSA/ SLA documents (ETS, TSC, E-Gov)

ETS Service catalog document

1. Develop / updateservice catalog

2. Develop additionalSLAs

3. Adapt / convert

document to DAScommon MSA

structure, developing

additional MSA content

as identified in common

MSA index / structure

approved by CUBs for

all DAS programs

Common activities for

areas that have existing

documents

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FOCUS(common

activitiesfor all MSAs

in DAS)

DEVELOP (specific activities per program/ MSA)

STEP 1:

Establish MSA

Development

Workgroup

STEP 2:

Develop

Service

Catalog

IMPLEMENT

TAS

KS

FOCUS

Set up FOCUS

workgroup

(common to all 4Service Enterprises).

Define / agree on

MSA objectives and

criteria for

developing SLAs.

Define / agree on

common MSA

structure .

Define / agree on

service catalog

structure. Develop MSA

common template.

Define / agree on

MSA common

content (across all

programs/ Service

Enterprises).

Define common

approval and

governanceprocesses.

STEP 1

For CUBs with

multiple

programs,agree on MSA

development /

implementation

strategy.

Identify MSA

development

workgroup

members.

Align

understanding/

definitions. Review MSA

project

timelines.

Review

methods to

capture

customer input.

STEP 2

Identify list of

current services.

Describe &document current

services.

Capture and

document

additional

operational

information

(forms, templates,

etc.)

Identify DAS &

customeroperational

commitments.

Identify

opportunities to

change (add/

eliminate) the

current portfolio of

utility services.

STEP 3

Identify key

quality attributes

per service/process.

Identify

performance

metrics.

Establish service

standards

(performance

targets).

Measure current

performance

levels. Negotiate /

agree on SLAs

(targeted

performance

level).

Document SLAs.

STEP 4

Develop /

document &

complete alladditional MSA-

specific content

that was not

developed by the

common FOCUS

group:

Rates.

Contact data.

Definitions.

Other.

Report finaldocument to

CUB and obtain

approval.

IMPLEMENT

Develop & execute MSA

communication plan.

Execute/ sign agencyspecific Service

Agreements documents.

Measure & track and

report to CUB / all

customers on key

performance metrics.

Conduct regular MSA

review meetings.

Periodic evaluation &

review of MSA

document.

Project management and communication / reporting to CUBs

STEP 3:

Develop

perf. metrics

and targets

STEP 4Develop rest of

MSA document

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FOCUS(common

activitiesfor all MSAs

in DAS)

DEVELOP (specific activities per program/ MSA)

STEP 1:

Establish MSA

Development

Workgroup

STEP 2:

Develop

Service

Catalog

IMPLEMENT

DE

LIVERABLES

FOCUS

Common MSA

document structure/

index. Service catalog

structure/ elements.

MSA Template.

STEP 1

MSA

development

project plan(specific per

MSA/ program)

Meetings

scheduled.

STEP 2

Service catalog

section/ of MSA

document. Customer & DAS

operational

commitments.

Recommended

list of new

services/ services

to discontinue.

STEP 3

Documented

metrics and

SLAs (targetedperformance

levels).

STEP 4

Finished MSA

document .

Approval byCUB.

IMPLEMENT

Communication plan.

Periodic MSA

performance reports. Other reports.

APPROACH

Project management and communication / reporting to CUBs

STEP 3:

Develop

perf. metrics

and targets

STEP 4Develop rest of

MSA document

FOCUSWorkgroup

sessions

FOCUS team

presentation

to CUB

SLA DEVELOPMENT TEAMWorkgroup sessions

SLA development team presentation

to CUB after steps 2, 3, 4

DAS support team

Analysis and documentation of progress

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1. Set up FOCUS task group (common to all 4 Service Enterprises).

2. KEY TASK: Define / agree on structure of information.

1. Key decisions:

1. Define elements and structure of information in MSA document

and in service catalog section of MSA.

2. Agree on level of detail.

3. Define common templates for MSA and service catalog.

4. Define / agree on MSA common content (across all programs/ Service

Enterprises) (e.g.: basic reporting, SLA amendment process, etc.).

5. Define common MSA approval and governance processes.

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Servicecatalog

Servicespecific

Service levelAgreements

Service rates Servicemanagement

processes(reporting, MSA

amendment, remedies,etc)

Customercommitments

Glossary/Definitions

Operationalprocedures

(forms,templates)

Process

specificService levelAgreements

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Proposed draft high level structure for MSA documents:

1. Service catalog (service terms, standards, packages, exclusions, etc.)a) Service terms, packages, standards, exclusions, schedules, etc.

b) DAS & Customer (operational) commitments

2. Service Level Agreements: metrics and targets for service performance anddelivery agreed with customers

3. Financial processes information (billing, payments, etc.)4. Service management processes:a) Reporting

b) Periodic review

c) SLA amendment procedure

d) Remedies (e.g, incompliance with agreed service levels, dispute resolution, etc.)

5. Definitions6. Contact data7. Appendixes:

a) Hyperlinks to forms & templates to be used (if available) (e.g., to request a new service, etc.).

b) Hyperlinks to written operational procedures (if available )(e.g., ordering, change requests,incident management).

c) Program-specific service rates.11


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Each service described in the catalog can have a number of elements/ service

attributes. A key decision is agreeing on what elements each service description must

contain and their level of detail.

Different Service Enterprises in DAS may have different service elements, as

elements relevant in an IT service catalog (e.g. availability or outage response

commitments), may not be pertinent in service catalog for EHRS or Surplus).

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Key: R = Required for all services / Minimum service definition/support

B = Required for Basic service definition/supportA = Required for Advanced service definition/support

What is the service?

Whats included?

Whats not included?

How is this service requested?

What forms are used to request this

service?

What to ask for?

When can you expect to have your

service fulfilled?

What are the availability and outage

response commitments for this service?

Is there anything else you need to know

about this service?

EXAMPLE :

INFORMATION IN

CURRENT SDC

SERVICE CATALOG

ELEMENTS R B A IT Specific element?

Question 1: What is the service (Service Description)

R Service summary X

B Features & Functions X

B Bundled/ unbundled offerings X

A Availability, Metrics & Statistics X

Question 2: What is included (Service Description)

R Description of what is included in service X

RDescription of standard configurationsupported

X X

Question 3: What is not included (Service Description)

RDescription of what is not included inservice

X

Question 4: How is this service requested (Service Request)

RHow is this service requested?

X

BWhat forms are used to request thisservice?

X

AWhen can you expect to have your servicerequest fulfilled?

X

A Service Request Process/ Procedure X

RCustomer and Service providercommitments

X

Question 5: How do I get help? How does the Service Enterprise provide support this service? (Support, Help and Self-Service)

R Getting Help X

B Self-Service Support X

R Escalation process X

R Communication Plan X

B Eligibility for service X

BClients and services affected by changes tothis service

X

A Testing X X

A Documentation and Training for Support X

RCustomer and Service providercommitments

X

Question 6: How does ETS provide this service? (Service Delivery) B Technical Specifications X X

A Technical Service Delivery Documentation X X

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1. Identify MSA development workgroup members.

Identify workgroup members from DAS and customers.

A team of 6-8 members is recommended for each MSA, with equal numbers of program delivery unit

staff and customers represented.

Aim is having a balanced mix of customers representing different agency sizes and services contracted

in workgroup. Participation from CUB will be preferred, but participated from non CUB representedcustomers will be tapped as needed. At least one CUB member will be a member of the work \group.

Support staff from DAS/DBS will also participate in order to assist and to facilitate the MSA

development process / meetings.

2. Hold preliminary workshop/ meeting with following objectives:

Discuss / align definitions.

Review project timelines.

Review available methods to capture program specific customer input.

Review tasks and criteria to prioritize services- processes.

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1. Workshop to identify structure/ list of currentservices.

Identify high level service structure/ framework (with service

groupings / functions).

Identify service components: individual service offerings within

each function /grouping.

Identify linked and/or discrete service hierarchies of services,

child services and specific offerings (specific tasks) available

for these services.

2. Describe current services / service offerings.

Describe service items, packages, bundled and unbundled

offerings.

Describe service terms, standards, and exclusions.

Describe service hours/ schedules, contact channels.

Additional content:

Forms? Templates? Operational procedures?

See SDC service catalog

What is the service?

Whats included?

Whats not included?

How is this service

requested?

What forms are used to

request this service?

What to ask for?

When can you expect to

have your service fulfilled?

What are the availability

and outage response

commitments for this

service?

Is there anything else you

need to know about this

service?

EXAMPLE :

INFORMATIONFROM SDC

SERVICE

CATALOG

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1. Ideally, the output of the initial workshop between provide and customers would be:

A simple high-level definition of the service structure or framework.

Identification of service components each service would be defined in terms of its position

in the overall service structure/ framework i.e. is it part of a larger service, or does it also

have some child services or offerings which are simply low level service features.?

EXAMPLE OF IT SERVICE STRUCTURE/ FRAMEWORK2. It is important to keep

service catalog workshops

/ meetings to the point on

service definitions, not

SLAs or service issues

(although these sometimes

creep in).

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1. Identify key quality attributes for each

service (key customer input).

2.Define SLAs (service specific / Process

specific).

3. Develop good SLA documentation.

Identify customerexpectations/ quality

factors

Identify performance

metrics

Establish servicestandards

(performance targets)

Measure current

performance levels(Baseline)

Identify list of services

Publish SLA- Service

Level Agreements(agreed performance

targets)

Negotiate/ agree on

new performancetargets

Develop long termperformance

improvement program

Re-establish

perf. targets?

Yes

No

Yes

No

Are standards metor can they be met in

the short term?

e.g., by implementing shortterm performance

improvement actions

Service Level Agreements:

Written measureable targets for

service performance agreed

between provider and

customers

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DEVELOP SLAs PROCESS EXAMPLE FOR EHRS

Identify list of services Client agency recruitment

Identify customer expectations/ quality factors Agile process

Quality of candidate list

Identify performance metrics CYCLE TIME FOR RECRUITMENT

Establish service standards SERVICE STANDARD: 60 days

Measure current performance levels (Baseline) BASELINE: 80 days

Are we meeting service standards or can they

be met in the short term?

NO (hope to get to standard incrementally in

the next 4 years)

Can standards/ performance targets be

renegotiated?Yes

Agree/ publish service level agreement

(agreed service performance target)AGREED SLA: 75 days

SLADEVELOPMENT

PROCESS:

SIMULATED

EXAMPLE FOR

EHRS

EXAMPLE OF

KEY QUALITY

ATTRIBUTES/

DIMENSIONSIDENTIFIED

FOR A

SERVICE

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How Long Does It Take to Establish an MSA?

It depends. Many factors can influence the duration of the effort, such as:

The number and complexity of the services covered: The more services covered by a MSA, and the more complex

these services, the longer it takes the two parties to discuss, negotiate and document the conditions of service delivery.

The availability / commitment of the working team members: Joint service provider & customer work and face-to-

face negotiations are crucial in establishing a MSA. Insufficient commitment or availability of key SLA development team

members can add significantly to the elapsed time.

The choice of performance metrics and the availability of past performance data. In the absence of past

performance information, the team will need to baseline current performance levels before negotiating the final service

level agreements.

The approval/ governance model for the agreement. A complex multi-party approval process, either for the final

document or for any of its key elements, can certainly add to the elapsed development time.

The availability of a base model & template: The first MSA in an organization usually takes the longest. Once it is

completed and in operation, however, both the document and the process can serve as a model for subsequent MSAs.

If the first MSA is successful, later ones usually proceed much more rapidly.

Prior SLA experience: The most expeditious MSA efforts are ones led or facilitated by SLA developers who have had

prior successful experience establishing MSA / SLA documents.

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Given these factors, how long should it take to establish MSA/ SLAs in DAS?

Too short

A misconception about MSAs is that they can be created quickly. Developing a MSA in a week or even a month is both

difficult and inadvisable. It is difficult because of the workload involved in such tasks as negotiating service standards,

establishing tracking mechanisms, preparing supporting procedures, gaining approvals and generating buy-in. And it is

inadvisable because the process is designed to help the two parties build the foundation for a strong, successful, long-term

relationship.

Too long

"Too long" refers not to a specific time period, but to an effort that has stalled and is making no progress. A major contributor

to a stalled effort is that one or both parties fail to bring a serious commitment to the effort. When management allocation of

staff to establish the MSA is insufficient, or the effort is given a low priority, making progress can be a cumbersome task.

Just right

Establishing a MSA is typically a many-month process of information-gathering, analyzing, documenting, educating,

negotiating, and consensus-building.

Given the complexity of services provided by DAS, a tentative period of 3-6 months can be a good rule of thumb. When

circumstances are optimal, 3 months is realistic, and sometimes even less. At the other extreme, if the situation is a complex

one, 6 months may not be enough. However, if significant progress has not been made within 6 months, it's time to stop the

effort and examine why. 20


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OCT NOV DEC

Q4 2012

JAN FEB MAR

Q1 2013

APRIL MAY JUNE

Q2 2013

JULY AUG SEPT

Q3 2013

FOCUS (COMMON WORK FOR

ALL DAS MSAs)

SET UP

FOCUS

TEAM

DEFINE

MSA

INDEX/STRUCTURE

DEFINE

REST OF

COMMON

ELEMENTS

SET UP

WORK

TEAM

DEVELOP

SERVICE

CATALOG

DEVELOP

SLA s

(PERF. METRICS AND

TARGETS)

DEFINE

REST OF

MSA

DEVELOP EHRS MSA

APPROVE

MSA

IMPLEMENT

COMMU-

NICATE

MSA

BEGIN MEASURING

& REPORTING

Tentative proposed project plan for the development of EHRS MSA document

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1. MSAs help to improve utility service delivery by Providing an objective basis for assessing service quality.

Facilitating the setting of performance thresholds/ targets.

Providing a context for service changes.

Providing a basis for continuous improvement.

2. MSAs help to create a business orientation by Creating awareness of cost/ performance tradeoffs.

Creating cost/ performance accountabilities.

Providing a link between services and business objectives. Facilitating the identification and integration of new service offerings.

3. MSAs help to improve communication & strenghten relationships by Creating an improved understanding between provider and customer.

Facilitating increased sharing of important information.

Providing timely feedback about problems and needs between the parties.

Reducing the number and intensity of complaints.

4. MSAs help to manage expectations & clarify responsibilities by Clarifying the scope of services and boundaries of responsibilities.

Providing a context for reasonable expectations.

Creating a shared language.

Establishing priorities and service levels jointly between provider and customers.

The process of reaching the agreement is as important as the agreement itself! 22


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1. MSA development needs to inform 2015-2017 rate development activities therefore it

needs to be finalized before kicking off the rate review process in July 2013.

Developing the service catalog is only a part of the MSA development.

The services identified in the service catalog need to be described with enough

detail so as to enable the identification of performance metrics and targets.

The proposed scope for the service catalog within the MSA development process is

limited to services already established at the time MSA development begins.

However, developing the service catalog section of the MSA document can offer an

excellent opportunity for DAS & CUBs to discuss & challenge the existing offering of

utility services and identify:

New potential utility service offerings for 2015-2017.

Additional utility service levels packages (e.g, gold packages)

Service offerings that could be discontinued for 2015-2017.

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2. The MSA development team (with DAS & CUB members) will define new services

for 2013-2015 as part of the MSA development efforts

If a need for a new service for 2013-2015 is identified as part of the

development of the MSA document, a separate, dedicated service design &

development team would have to be formed.

This team would be led by representatives from the appropriate DAS Program

or Service Enterprise and would have participation by CUB members (andpossibly by other DAS customers).

This team would work independently from the MSA development work-

stream in order to conduct the necessary service design and

development activities (market research, detailed identification of customer

expectations, defining growth projections, cost analysis, technical scoping,

development of business case, development & testing of pilot/ prototype,preliminary rate analysis and agency impact modeling, definition of billing

processes, development of POPs, etc).

The service development team would report its final recommendations/ output

to the CUB in order to inform the 2015-2017 rate development process.

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master service level agreement overview

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