SLA, OLA and UC
Let us first have a quick look at what SLA’s, OLA’s and UC’s are
SLA Stands for Service Level Agreement – Signed between the Customer/Client and the Service Provider
OLA Stands for Operational Level Agreement – Signed between Business Units/Divisions and Internal IT of the same Organization
UC Stands for Underpinning Contracts – Signed between Service Provider and the Vendor
The Contents and Purpose of all these Agreements are the same; few of the Critical Contents of all these agreements are:
- What is Provided
- To Whom it is Provided
- By Whom is it Provided
- How it is Provided
- What has to be Measured
- How to report a degradation/deviation
- What to do when there is a Deviation
- How it is Billed
- What are the Penalties for Non Conformance to the Agreement
- How long is it valid
- Contacts – Representatives, SPOC’s, Escalation Points
- Last but not the least – Parties who agree and sign on the contents
The Terminologies only differ based on the Parties between which it is signed, Rest all remains the same; Even the Structure. Speaking about Structure let us have a quick view on the Structure of these agreements. There are 3 Types:
- Service Based Agreements:
Here the Agreement is same for multiple Customers/Clients for a Specific Service.
Examples:
- OLA: Agreements of An Internal IT providing same type of LAN Service to different Business Units or Business Groups
- UC: Agreements of Vendors providing same type of MPES Connection to different Service Providers or say a Software License and Maintenance to different Service Providers
- SLA: Agreements for IaaS/SaaS/PaaS Provider providing same type of service to multiple end customers
- Customer Based Agreements:
Here the Agreement is specific to each Customers/Clients and will consist of Multiple Services tailored for each Customer
Examples:
- OLA: Agreements between a BU/BG and the Internal IT to manage the specific software’s and its upgrades or new releases – This will include BG/BU Specific Multiple Software Maintenance and Development Activities
- UC: Agreements between a Service Provider and a Vendor to manage a Datacentre in turn enabling the Service Provider to provide Service to the End Client/Customer
- SLA: Agreements of a Service Provider to Manage Client’s IT on the whole – This will include Client specific Infrastructure, Datacentre, ITSM Capabilities, etc.
- Multi-Level Agreements:
This Consists of 3 Levels:
- Corporate Level: Common/Generic Services similar to Service Based Agreement
Example: Email Service
- Customer Level: Specific Services of each Customer/Client/BU/BG/Service Provider
Example: Development and Maintenance of Applicant Tracking System specific
- Service Level: Specific to each Service and Customer
Example: A Development Team needs a High Speed Internet Service
I have not given details examples for Multi-Level as it becomes more complex – Keep it Simple whatever you belong to Internal IT/Service Provider/Vendor just segregate the Services to 3 Levels for each Client/Customer/BG/BU/Service Provider – Common, Tailored Services and then Specific Services
Note: ITIL® talks about the Structure only specific to SLA’s, since I have read many Agreements and have worked on more than 100 Agreements so far – My View is that this is the Base Structure for all agreements. I feel the best is the Multi-Level Agreements and Even ITIL® states this is widely used by organizations providing Multiple Services. Also to add ITIL® - Thumb Rule is Adapt and Align; Not Just Implement as it is.
Feel free me connect with me or follow me:
Lokesh Kumar Narayana
Email: LKN.ITILConsultant@gmail.com
Disclaimer: The concepts covered in this post are thought as part of the ITIL 2011 Trainings and Authors views have been added to the posts to make it more understandable. The content of the posts are strictly the author’s view or perspectives in conjunction with the concepts part of ITIL® framework.
ITIL® is a registered trade mark of AXELOS Limited. All rights reserved.
