The following are some core features within ITSM tools:
Standards alignment: ITSM solutions help organizations align their processes and policies with a standards framework. ITSM tools will typically denote which framework(s) they are built to enable. If there is a particular framework an organization is already using, users should select an ITSM tool that aligns with that framework.
Service desk: As the name might suggest, a core element of ITSM solutions is a service desk element. Businesses can organize internal requests through a ticketing system. Internal users can find help on a variety of issues using a service catalog, which outlines different types of issues or requests and helps organize addressing various issues.
Asset management: ITSM tools help businesses track their internal IT assets. Using these tools, IT teams can track company-owned user devices and hardware, as well as any hardware infrastructure, enabling them to keep tabs on when these items were provisioned and when they would need upkeep.
Knowledge base: Knowledge bases are central repositories of information. By providing a knowledge base functionality, businesses can centralize their IT knowledge to a single source that’s accessible by anyone who might need it.
Incident management: Addressing the development side of the house, ITSM tools provide incident management features that help product teams track issues related to product development and functions, namely those related to IT systems. Using these active tracking capabilities, businesses stay on top of development incidents by creating visibility around repeat issues that might point to a larger problem.
Change management: Changing policies, procedures, or structures is a difficult process for businesses. Change management functionalities offered by ITSM tools allow businesses to more thoroughly track changes from the individual to the organizational level, increasing transparency, and assisting in finding pain points in recent changes.
Reporting and dashboards: As with any other solution, transparency is key to the efficient and effective delivery of services. ITSM tools are equipped with reporting and dashboard functions to provide increased visibility into service provisions across the IT organization. These reports may come prebuilt, but most solutions will also offer customization so that businesses get the exact information they need at any point.
Solution integration: Considering the huge array of tools and infrastructure involved in IT service delivery, ITSM tools need to be able to integrate appropriately to be effective. Users must check a tool’s integration capabilities before purchasing to verify it will integrate with the systems already in use.
Automation: Many ITSM vendors are implementing automation functionality as a standard part of the offering. Many tools will offer automation to reduce the amount of time going into repeat tasks and actions, which can save both IT associates and end users significant time.
Configuration management database (CMDB): Some ITSM solutions will include a CMDB feature where businesses can track how different hardware and software systems relate to each other. This provides increased clarity in how a business’s systems work together, and can also offer an excellent starting point when troubleshooting for root causes.
Release management: ITSM tools that dive deep into development features may offer release management capabilities where product teams can track software build releases over time including what stage of production releases are in, any rollbacks that took place, etc.
Other Features of IT Service Management Tools: Performance logging, Policy dictation
