Written by John Noctor I love a bit of Ted Lasso. It’s funny, warm and relentlessly kind, but underneath all of that, there are some surprisingly useful lessons about leadership. Ted arrives in England to manage a Premier League football club despite barely knowing the game. He isn’t the technical expert, and he doesn’t lead through tactics alone. WhatContinue reading “Be a Goldfish: 8 Leadership Lessons for Service Desk Teams”
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Skills every modern service desk manager needs (beyond certification)
An ITIL qualification or vendor certification can provide a valuable foundation, but it does not automatically make someone an effective service desk manager. Modern service desks sit at the intersection of technology, people and business operations, so the strongest managers combine service-management knowledge with leadership, commercial awareness, communication and a continual-improvement mindset. Today’s service desk manager is expected to leadContinue reading “Skills every modern service desk manager needs (beyond certification)”
Integration Ops: Is This the Missing Piece in Modern Service Management?
By John Noctor, Service Desk Institute One of the advantages of spending far too much time thinking about service management is that every now and then you come across something that makes you wonder whether the way we work is starting to change. Integration Ops is one of those things. My first reaction was probably the same as yours: doContinue reading “Integration Ops: Is This the Missing Piece in Modern Service Management?”
ITSM Automation Tools: Where to Start, What to Automate, and What to Avoid
Automation is now central to how modern service desks improve speed, consistency and experience. Many ITSM platforms include automation capabilities as standard, and newer solutions increasingly add AI-assisted workflows, self-service and orchestration across multiple systems. The opportunity is clear, but so are the challenges. Service desk leaders need to know: What to automate first? How to evaluate the options properly? What are the risks? A goodContinue reading “ITSM Automation Tools: Where to Start, What to Automate, and What to Avoid”
How to Write an XLA From Scratch
Creating an XLA from scratch is a process that’s more about articulating what good IT support should look like than making that into a workable deal that teams can implement daily. Experience Level Agreement provides service desks with a way to go beyond response and resolution times to measure the quality of the support experience. Quality of IT delivery isContinue reading “How to Write an XLA From Scratch”
AI Native Knowledge Management
Your answer to a better knowledge base might be a much smaller one The pitch for agentic AI in the service desk is seductive. Point an agent at your knowledge base, let it resolve tickets, watch the deflection rate climb, go on holiday and let the agents make the money. However, that pitch assumes your knowledge base is ready forContinue reading “AI Native Knowledge Management”
Advanced Incident Management Tools for IT Support Teams: Features to Consider
We’re moving beyond the old days of basic ticket-logging tools. Advanced incident management can now significantly reduce downtime by being fully automated and AI-powered, and with strong integrations with other IT tools. So, what does this all means for IT support engineers and managers? Simply put, now more than ever they need to know which features are most important to select tools that will not only enhance response time, collaboration, and root-cause resolution, butContinue reading “Advanced Incident Management Tools for IT Support Teams: Features to Consider”
ITSM Tools for Small Businesses: How to Choose the Right Platform for a 5–50 Person IT Team
Smaller IT teams are often expected to deliver the same level of responsiveness, consistency and visibility as much larger service organisations, but with fewer people, tighter budgets and far less time to manage tooling. That makes choosing the right ITSM platform especially important. The right tool can simplify support, improve service quality and create room for growth. The wrong one can add unnecessary complexity, cost andContinue reading “ITSM Tools for Small Businesses: How to Choose the Right Platform for a 5–50 Person IT Team”
ITSM Software Comparison Guide 2026: How to Evaluate Modern Tools
Finding the right ITSM software is becoming more and more complex. The market is rapidly changing, and vendors are getting more aggressive in touting their AI and automation features, as well as their employee experience and broader platform capabilities. What this means, you now have a longer list of features that does not necessarily mean it’s the better fit for you, and comparing tools the right way isn’t simplyContinue reading “ITSM Software Comparison Guide 2026: How to Evaluate Modern Tools”
How Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board Strengthened Service Excellence Through Continual Improvement
Continual improvement isn’t about making one big change. It’s about building on success year after year, making improvements, and using insight to deliver better services. That’s exactly what Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) has achieved through its ongoing Service Desk Certification journey with SDI. Following its third surveillance audit, BCUHB has successfully retained its 4-Star Business-led Service Desk Certification,Continue reading “How Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board Strengthened Service Excellence Through Continual Improvement”