service level agreement (SLA)

A service level agreement defines the lifecycle and workflow for addressing a work request or service request entered by an employee.

An SLA defines rules for such information as:

• the service provider (external vendor or employee) to complete the task
• the service window for completing and responding to the task
• the priority of addressing this task
• procedures for approving the service request
• procedures for notifying various staff, including the requestor, on the status of the request
• option to allow the requestor to verify and comment on completed work
• generation of a work request to handle the requested service

The service desk manager can create multiple SLAs for the same request type, allowing parameters such as the requester, location, division, and equipment to dictate different priority levels, approval procedures, and response times.

Archibus Foundations

Archibus Foundations offers a simplified SLA. Archibus Foundations managers work with the "Manage Service Providers and Notifications" view (ab-ess-sla-console.axvw) to define, edit, and delete simplified SLAs. With the Archibus Foundations SLA, the following features are not supported or use default values:

• a service window for completing and responding to the request
• priority of addressing this request
• procedures for estimating the cost of the service request
• the requestor verifying and commenting on the completed work