AbstrActThis chapter describes a su

AbstrAct
This chapter describes a suggested model for
developing a service strategy within IT services.
It considers the context, the organization of IT
services which might be appropriate for a service
strategy. It discusses the content of an IT service
strategy which it suggests should be presented as
a portfolio of services. It reviews the process of
developing the service strategy, suggesting a set
of steps which may lead to the development of
appropriate content within the right management
structure. The example of hospital information
systems is used to illustrate the strategic process.
In order to set the scene for the strategic process,
the state of information systems strategy research
is discussed and set in the context of the developing
service management research literature. The
term service-centric is used and the difference
between service-centric IT management and
service-oriented architecture is clarified. A case
is made for a migration from an IT strategy based
primarily on the development of a portfolio of IT
systems to a service-strategy based on the development
of a portfolio of business services.
IntroductIon
In the last decade there has been a significant
shift in many IT departments. IT departments
increasingly recognize that IT within an organization
is a service which, like other services
within organizations, aims to deliver value to the
organization through the way that it supports the
activities of the business. This has led to an increasing
emphasis on the delivery of IT operations
as a service which not only involves the building
and delivery of the software and hardware, but
also the execution of a wide range of activities
around the technology.
The influences that have led to the realignment
of IT as a service are complex. Economies, particularly
in the West, are changing from a goods