Developing an Improved ITSM Framework for Ethio Telecom

Abstract

Abstract—Telecom service providers are engaged exhaustively in providing various kinds of IT services for their customers. These IT services should be customer-oriented, and quality-based to be competitive in the market. To this end, organizations should manage their IT services effectively and efficiently by introducing various Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) mechanisms. However, improving or developing optimal ITSM mechanisms is a subject of great concern that needs further investigation academically. Hence, developing an improved and customized ITSM framework to manage the various IT services delivered by the IT service provider is important.To the best of the researcher’s knowledge, little or no research has been conducted to design and develop ITSM frameworks for the telecom sector in Ethiopia. Previous studies focused on the implementation, adoption, tailoring, and system or model development for selected ITSM processes within the Ethiopian context. Ethio telecom (ET), the sole telecom service provider of Ethiopia, has a gap in the existing ITSM practices. Hence, this research study intends to investigate the current ITSM practice of Ethio telecom and propose an ITSM framework based on ITIL best practices that ensures the quality of IT services and improve customer satisfaction. Design science research methodology was employed to design and develop the ITSM framework. Furthermore, a qualitative research approach was followed to gather and analyze the primary data. Semi-structured interviews, observation, and document analysis were employed to collect different kinds of data. Also, thematic analysis was used to analyze the data that was collected from the respondents. A triangulation technique was applied to keep the validity and reliability of the research study. The findings of the research revealed that the existing ITSM practice did not address the needs of the organization. Finally, a new ITSL framework was proposed by incorporating the needs of the organization and demonstrated to selected respondents after passing through rigorous design, development, and evaluation stages. The proposed framework was evaluated by various IT staff through validated evaluation models. Consequently, the evaluation result disclosed that the proposed framework can help to improve the current ITSM practice of the company by maximizing the quality of IT services and customer satisfaction.