In IT service management, the implementation and execution of processes are critical. Request Management, as a key component of ITSM, directly impacts service delivery and user satisfaction within an organization. To ensure the efficiency and standardization of the request management process, it is essential not only to clearly distinguish between different types of requests but also to optimize the workflow for request fulfillment. This section will share practical insights from the implementation of ITSM processes regarding request management, exploring how to differentiate request types, optimize request fulfillment workflows, and standardize request models to enhance overall service levels.

01 Distinguishing Request Types

Different types of requests are associated with various service levels and have distinct priorities and routing rules. For example, in some organizations, most incidents may be resolved within one business day, whereas service requests may take longer to complete.

Distinguishing between these types helps clarify subsequent handling strategies and prevents confusion caused by inconsistent processing efficiency.

In many organizations, incidents and service requests are not clearly distinguished. Although earlier best practices sometimes combined the two, increasingly mature management practices now call for a clear distinction so that IT service organizations can deliver higher-quality services. How, then, should they be differentiated?

An incident refers to an unexpected interruption or degradation of normal service, with the goal of restoring service as quickly as possible. Examples include a printer not working properly or slow system access speeds.

A service request is a task that does not involve a service failure or directly affect service availability. It does not normally require immediate resolution, and its fulfillment time can be managed according to an agreed service level.

Below are some references for distinguishing between incidents and service requests:

02 Distinguishing Service Requests and Projects

Distinguishing service requests from projects is essential. A project may include requirements, tasks, and other activities. In many organizations, inefficient service-request processes often result from failing to make this distinction, allowing a small number of project-like requests to affect overall service levels. Service teams must understand the differences and apply the appropriate processes. Project governance is also much stricter than service-request management. End users should not be allowed to bypass project controls by attempting to deliver project work through service requests.

So, what are the differences between service requests and projects?

• The main differences include scope of resources, frequency, and risk.

• Compared to projects, requests typically require fewer resources, are easier to fulfill, and involve lower risk.

• First- and second-line teams should handle standard requests according to clearly defined responsibilities and escalation paths. An efficient IT service desk empowers users through self-service portals and automated request handling. An efficient IT service desk empowers users through self-service portals and automated request handling.

• If the scope of a request exceeds the boundaries of a normal request, it may turn into a small project.

Example

A medium-sized company is conducting centralized recruitment and needs to hire 150 new employees within a quarter. However, processing "new employee onboarding" requests for these 150 individuals would be a time-consuming, labor-intensive, and resource-heavy task. In this case, the IT service team might be unable to meet the agreed service levels for the HR department. Since such requests are not on the same scale as standard service requests in terms of risk, workload, and resource requirements, such requests with project characteristics should be collected and managed by the PMO (Project Management Office). The following sections will include examples to help distinguish between service requests and projects.

03 Optimization of the Request Fulfillment Workflow

Simplifying the Process

Redundancy within processes can hinder their efficiency. Many organizations design independent workflows for nearly every service. Often, from the initial design completion until long after implementation, there is no review of the process's efficiency. It leads to bloated and sluggish process operation as other factors evolve

Use the following questions to check whether your service workflows contain redundant steps:

• Does this step create value for the requester or the organization?

• Is the approval still necessary under current risk and compliance requirements?

• How many times is a request typically transferred between teams or individuals?

• What are the primary roles and tasks of each team within the request fulfillment process?

• Does the workflow route requests to the right team the first time?

Conduct regular reviews of all processes, identify steps that can be streamlined, and enhance process efficiency.

Optimize Approvals

Request handling requires appropriate authorization. In many organizations, the fulfillment and approval steps are often interleaved, which significantly reduces overall efficiency of the process. For the authorization process, it is recommended to adopt a centralized approval approach. For those approval steps with a 100% approval rate, the relevant approval steps may even be eliminated on the premise of compliance, to accelerate the overall fulfillment efficiency.

During the initial stages of ITSM implementation, an organization may not accurately identify all request types and often relies on a generic request model. However, continued use of this generic model offers limited potential for improvement in efficiency, automation capability, and user experience. A capable ITSM platform automates request fulfillment, reducing manual workload and improving user experience. A capable ITSM platform automates request fulfillment, reducing manual workload and improving user experience.

Therefore, as an organization consistently applies and refines this generic request model, it will accumulate substantial, high-quality data over time. This foundation allows for the abstraction of diversified request models.

In the overall distribution of all request models, standard requests and consultation requests should account for the majority of an organization’s total requests, with the universal service request model only applied to a small number of scenarios where classification cannot be determined. By continuously sorting out and abstracting service request models to form multiple distinct standard request models. This lays the foundation for subsequent process optimization and automation, and prepares for the compilation and publication of the service catalog.

Standardized Requests

Differentiating request types enables standard requests to be automatically routed according to established rules, preventing ticket backlogs and rapid growth. It also enables users/customers to understand the content of different services, especially those not currently offered or available products. Furthermore, it helps them recognize that additional approvals or more time to seek solutions might be required later.

Both standard requests and general service requests have their own characteristics. Organizations can identify them by considering the following features:

Standard Request：

• High frequency of occurrence and requiring continuous response

• Fulfilling these requests typically takes a few hours or days

• If a service catalog is available, these requests are usually handled through it.

• Formalized fulfillment processes are defined and documented.

• Defined processing times are in place.

General Service Request:

• More Complex Than Standard Requests

• Not Available Through a Service Catalog

• No Clearly Defined Processing Workflow

• No corresponding product or service is readily available, so technical solution analysis is required and additional approval or procurement steps may be involved.

The following is an example of a strategy used by an IT organization to distinguish between standard service requests, general service requests, and projects:

In ITSM processes, by scientifically differentiating request types, clearly defining the boundaries between incidents and service requests, optimizing request fulfillment workflows, and standardizing request models, IT service teams can more effectively handle daily service demands and enhance service quality. Within the IT Service Management framework, request management handles the full lifecycle of service requests from submission to fulfillment. Within the IT Service Management framework, request management handles the full lifecycle of service requests from submission to fulfillment.