The IBM Services Connection: Service delivery through self-service portal technologies
by B. S. Tagg
Self-service technologies are relied upon by service delivery
organizations that make use of their low cost and ubiquity to
deliver componentized self-service to worldwide clients. A role-based
portal can be a key technology component for any service-delivery
organization seeking to provide an advanced self-service
capability. Portals that have access to information on the client’s
organization, its contracted services, and the service components
provided can be used to manage the parameters of service delivery.
Providing the client’s management dashboard through self-service
portals establishes a foundation that allows a service organization
to present its services value chain in terms and subprocesses that
are relevant to its clients. Exposing services processes to clients
requires a governance layer that ensures consumers of multiple
services can manage their service delivery in ways that make the
client more efficient. Supporting technologies such as "single sign
on," reporting, model-driven tooling, and real-time linkages to
services entitlement complete the core technology set that fulfills
the end-to-end self-service architecture. In this paper, we provide
an overview of the unique self-service requirements for service
delivery, followed by an overview of the technologies required to
meet those requirements. We also review innovations that enable
the creation of the IBM Services Connection, a worldwide deployed
service support portal.
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