Continually improve cloud services Ongoing CSP alignment Viable cloud strategy ITIL continual improvement practice: Recurring activity Continually meet expectations 1. What´s the vision ? Define strategy in explore Regularly revise vision Organization´s needs mature as more cloud services used Complexity increases Important considerations:

Considerations	Description
Usage	Competitor cloud usage ? Cloud trends ? Requirement patterns ?
Roadmaps	CSP activity ? Focus on specific areas ?
Feedback	Service consumer opinion ?
Current vision	Vision aligned with trends ? Requires evolutions ? Aligned with other IT strategies ?

Assess delivery against vision

Assess cloud readiness in engage

Reassess regularly

2. Where are we now ?

Proficiency:

• Identify value gaps
• Assess cloud architecture
• Evaluate cloud portfolio

Alignment:

• Architecture aligns with CSP ?
• Service portfolio aligns with strategy ?

Backlog:

• Assess architecture backlog
• Trending issues:
  • Incidents and problems
  • Security and risks

Costs:

• Current cloud costs
• ROI
• Usage costs optimized ?

Service level:

• Service level trends
• Service performance

Customer experience:

• Current level
• Feedback trends

Deployments: cloud real estate vs cloud architecture standards

Roadmap:

• Delivering against plan ?
• Work in progress ?

Accessibility:

• Trained versus non-trained staff
• Service accessibility

Changes:

• Streamlined, integrated changes ?
• Optimal adoption speed ?

3. Where do we want to be ?

Compare operating model to vision

Identify gaps

Improvement opportunities

May require new operating model

Sub-optimal model requires holistic change

Seek outside expertise

Simple change:

• List opportunities and risks
• Record in improvement register

Key questions:

• Culture enables change ?
• Required skills ?
• Appropriate governance ?
• CSP relationships ?
• CSP tools ?
• CSP improvements and risks ?

4. How do we get there ?

Compare operating models

Determine gaps between current and future state

Define transition roadmap:

• New processes
• Upskilling
• Restructuring
• Hiring
• Technology integration
• New agreements

Outsource operating model areas

Managed service provider

Cost effective

Outsourcing questions:

• Central to business ?
• Cost benefits ?
• Skills access ?
• Realize vision ?

Don´t outsource strategic areas

High risk to value

Outsourcer responsible for activity

Consumer responsible for outcomes

No target operating model

Prioritize improvement backlog

Involve CSP

5. Take action

For outsourced operating models:

• Assess CSP in engage
• Monitor performance continually

Complete improvement backlog with Agile:

• Scrum
• Kanban

Continuous improvement flow

Batch iterations in sprint

Use Agile metrics:

• Lead times
• Sprint velocity

Measure ongoing effectiveness

6. Did we get there ?

Key questions:

• Agile teams ?
• Continuous improvement viable ?
• Collaborative culture ?
• Autonomous decisions ?
• Agile CSP ?
• Cloud standards alignment ?

Objectives and key results (OKRs)

Success measure

Link key metrics and key results

Engage CSP in choosing metrics

Clear OKRs allow objective evaluation

Improvement evaluation:

• Who reviews results ?
• OKRs correctly defined ?
• Metrics appropriate ?
• Definition of good enough ?

7. How do we keep the momentum going ?

Continual improvement ongoing

Cloud continually evolves

OKRs for an improvement initiative achieved form the new baseline for the next improvement (ensure improvement no regress)

Improve the continual improvement practice

Allows rapid future improvements

Review practice

Practice OKRs

Assess improvement:

• Proficiency
• Production rate
• Lead times
• Work in progress

Ensure standardization through:

• Automation
• Cloud reference architectures

Use infrastructure as a code (IaaC) and configuration as a code (CaaC)

Cloud policy

Ensures compliance

Non-compliance obstructs deployments

Control cloud estate with CSP

Prevent:

• Configuration drift
• Compliance regression

Establish thresholds

Monitor regression

VUCA environment:

• PDCA cycle accelerated
• Improvements incrementally

Continual improvement cycle:

• Good aspects retained as part of the next iteration
• Indifferent or neutral aspects analyzed whether to be improved for the next cycle or unnecessary
• Bad to be discarded or fixed in the next cycle

Faster move, more improvement and higher value

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