Service Level Agreements

This Service Level Agreements training course highlights the importance of Service Level Agreements to meet the needs of companies that are dependent on long-term partnership arrangements with external suppliers of services in achieving strategic goals. Those managing such corporate relationships need to know how such a partnership will function and be able to deal with any problems.

The SLA establishes the measurement methodology that should drive the quality of service performance created as a legal contract between supplier and customer, or as a formal agreement between one internal supplier departments that provides corporate services to its internal client. It is imperative that everyone engaged in service provision understands the issues and processes involved in a service contract scenario.

This training course will feature:

• The benefits of using service level agreements
• How the different levels of SLAs operate
• What is involved in planning, writing and managing service level agreements
• Different SLA contracting structures and their applications
• SLA strengths and weaknesses, dealing with internal and external contractors

By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:

• Plan & draft a range of service level agreements & construct & control contract negotiations & disputes
• Articulate how quality SLAs should be included within the Procurement processes
• Negotiate service level agreements with internal and external suppliers
• Document appropriate quality outcomes from service contracts
• Evaluate the likely results from alternative service performance frameworks

This Service Level Agreements training course will benefit all levels of personnel engaged in purchasing and procurement, commercial and contracts management departments, and technical operatives providing performance under service level agreements. It will enable them to contextualise their work, understand the contract and become aware of the different issues and risks associated with SLA contracting.

This training course is suitable for a wide range of professionals but will greatly benefit:

• Service Delivery professionals/Quality Assurance professionals Contract Administrators, Contract Professionals and Project Coordinators
• Specifiers, Buyers, Purchasing Professionals and Procurement Officers
• IT Professionals
• Those involved in the planning, evaluation, preparation and management of tenders and awards for service contracts or internally-supplied corporate services

This training course will utilise a variety of proven adult learning techniques to ensure maximum understanding, comprehension and retention of the information presented. This includes high levels of participant discussion, group interaction, delegate group exercises and case studies. Delegates will be encouraged to raise their own issues and problems faced within their industry or organisations for discussion on a confidential basis.

• The need to measure quality of performance
• Why, when and how can SLAs help to achieve quality
• Key objectives
• SLAs: Contracts or Contract substitutes?
• Introducing SLAs for services bought in from contractors
• Use of corporate SLAs between in-house departments

• What services are being measured?
• Typical quality measures
• SLA Governance Frameworks: Managing, measuring and reporting service performance
• Duties of the customer
• Risk sharing and SLAs: Managing problems
• Termination of the agreement

• Drafting principles
• A model structure for the SLA
• Essential elements of a quality SLA
• Using appropriate measurement language
• Carrots or sticks to encourage achievement
• SLA checklists

• Review processes
• Using escalation to manage quality performance
• Keeping the SLA relevant: Managing changes
• Negotiation techniques to manage the variation
• Customer intervention options with an underperforming contractor
• Learning and applying lessons for the next SLA

• Origins of the scorecard approach
• Aligning the SLA with the corporate strategy
• Balancing the needs of stakeholders
• Planning and Constructing a SLA scorecard
• Key Performance indicators to support the SLA
• Business process quality improvement

Anderson Certificate of Completion will be provided to delegates who attend and complete the course