The Change Request Process
Changing your IT software sets off a chain of events that often spreads through multiple departments. In some cases, software changes impact the entire company, which can adversely affect your customers. Preventing a negative customer experience requires skilled change management as well as an ability to identify and mitigate risks in a timely manner. Talented change management professionals ensure all stakeholders are involved in the implementation of IT initiatives. They use industry-recognized best practices to reduce back-outs, speed up deployment and prevent service disruptions from reaching customers
Standardizing Your Change Request Process
Technology advances constantly, and changes are a routine part of software maintenance. Automation smooths the change management process, making it possible to increase the speed of implementation. This reduces the impact of updates on the business and on customers.The first step to automating your change request process is standardization. You can begin by categorizing different types of IT changes, then designing a unique change request process for each category. Generally, changes can be sorted into three groups according to ITIL:
- Standard: These changes are made on a regular basis, and they follow a pre-authorized process. Typically, they are low-risk and low-impact, and they are integral to service operation without being disruptive. Standard changes deploy with an average success rate of 95 percent or more. Examples include lifecycle device replacement, storage growth, and IT onboarding.
- Normal: Normal changes are non-urgent, and they represent medium-to-high-risk or high-impact to the organization. These changes are vetted through a formal approval process and require a Request For Change (RFC). Depending on the level of risk, the Change Management Board (CMB) may also be engaged. Examples include changes in functionality, web server patches and bulk data loads.
- Emergency: Emergency changes are those with significant urgency. They occur when immediate implementation is needed to restore regular service or to correct errors that are causing substantial impact to the business and customers. These changes go through an expedited process that requires approval from the Emergency Change Management Board (ECAB). Examples include a server reboot and resolving a security breach.
