What is system operation ? Introducing business content and trends to be addressed

In today’s increasingly digitalized world, almost all corporate activities are supported by systems, and stable operation of systems is an important element from a business perspective. In other words, system operations play an important role in ensuring that a company’s business does not stop. In this article, we will focus on system operations management and introduce the specific business content and trends that should be kept in mind in modern operations management.

Overview of system operation management

Below is an overview of system operation management.

Operational tasks essential to the system

A system cannot demonstrate its value simply by developing it. Only by performing “operational work” to ensure that the system is used correctly can we provide its maximum value.

In system operation work, we perform a variety of tasks such as monitoring servers and storage, responding to help desk inquiries, and responding to security incidents.

Through these activities, we ensure continuous system operation and ensure that all users can use the system without any problems.

What is system operation management?

So, what does “operational management” of a system mean?

Although there is no clear definition of “operations management,” it generally refers to operations that are managed as an organization based on management standards, procedure manuals, and procedures to ensure that system operations are performed correctly.

Management is essential for an organization to carry out system operations. In order to guarantee SLA (Service Level Agreement), we perform various types of management such as progress management, risk management, and change management based on the operation plan.

By managing these, you can ensure that system operations can be carried out appropriately.

Utilization of ITIL in system operation

In general, it can be said that ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is often complied with when implementing system operation work.

ITIL is a framework that systematizes best practices in IT service management, and organizes the efforts required to advance system operation. Utilizing ITIL will lead to implementing all the elements required for system operation.

Furthermore, ITIL4, released in 2019, has become a framework that includes not only system operation but also service strategy consideration and design. In recent years, the idea that systems should not simply provide functionality has become widespread, but that systems should also provide value to users as a service. This way of thinking is also reflected in ITIL4.

Operation management work content

Below, we will introduce the specific business content of system operation management. Here, we will introduce the contents of “service operation”, which is an element that corresponds to system operation management in ITIL4.

event management

A state change that is important for managing a system is called an event. Events consist of “information”, “warning”, and “exception”.

For example, if an exception occurs and the application stops working, it can be said that an “exception” event has occurred. On the other hand, if the backup simply ends, this is a case where an “information” event has occurred.

Managing these events is necessary to proceed with operational operations. In particular, if an “exception” event corresponding to a system problem occurs, some kind of response may be required.

Incident management/problem management

Incident is a term used to refer to a failure that prevents the continuous operation of a system. When an incident occurs, it is necessary to respond and report according to predetermined procedures.

Generally speaking, incidents are managed by categorizing them into levels according to their impact. If a processing error occurs but does not affect the continued operation of the system, immediate action is not necessarily required. On the other hand, if a serious system problem occurs, it is necessary to issue an alert, contact the relevant parties, and take immediate action.

In cases where a highly important failure occurs or an unknown phenomenon occurs, it is necessary to analyze the cause in order to prevent recurrence. The process of identifying the root cause of a problem is called “problem management.”

Request realization/Service desk

In order for a system to be of value to users, it must respond to the user’s needs that arise when using the system. User requests vary, such as “I want to reset my password” and “I want to register my master.”

One way to respond to user requests is to prepare manuals, but especially for systems with many users, it is necessary to set up a service desk.

The service desk responds to inquiries about how to operate the system and requests for processing that can only be performed by administrators. The service desk responds according to the response manual, and depending on the content, escalates the issue to the operations team or business team and collects the necessary information.

Change management

In some cases, due to changes in the environment or laws, it may become impossible to achieve business objectives with the functions provided by existing systems. In such cases, it is necessary to modify the system.

On the other hand, system changes come with various risks. In order to apply system changes, you must temporarily stop the system. Also, changes may affect other processes. Of course, making changes comes at a cost.

Therefore, system changes should be managed as change management. During the change management process, we evaluate the validity of requirements and approve only those items that need to be implemented. We also check to see if it has been properly planned, constructed, and tested. This prevents unnecessary repairs that may have a negative impact on business operations.

Trends in system operation management

Below, we will introduce the latest trends in system operation management.

Responding to cloud migration

Many systems now operate on the cloud, and it is now necessary to approach system operation management with a new way of thinking.

When using cloud services to operate a system, the cloud provider is responsible for managing the functions provided by the cloud.

It is also common for cloud services to provide monitoring tools. However, many companies use the cloud and on-premises systems in parallel, and in that case, it is necessary to monitor the on-premises side as well. Additionally, it is becoming common to use multiple cloud services together as a multi-cloud.

In these situations, you may want to adopt a tool that can integrate and monitor multiple cloud services and on-premises environments.

System operation that contributes to business

Traditionally, system operation work has been viewed as a “defensive measure” to achieve stable operations. On the other hand, in modern times, the use of systems in business is seen as a source of competitiveness, as symbolized by DX. Therefore, system operation management work must also contribute to business.

What kind of system operation management work contributes to business?

One is considered to be “operation with agility that allows for speedy releases.” As the speed of business increases, the response speed of systems is also required to be faster. In addition to speeding up development, organizations are required to advance operational management to support frequent releases.

In addition, high-quality support is also important as a source of improving customer satisfaction. The quality of support desk service is a factor that determines customer satisfaction. Even if the system is for internal use, it can be said that we live in an era where high-quality support is required to keep business running.

Emphasis on observability

In recent years, people have become aware of the importance of data visualization (visualization) in business. Similarly, there is a growing belief that systems should be able to observe their internal states. This way of thinking is called observability.

The reason why observability has become so important is that system structures are becoming more complex and difficult to understand.

In recent years, system dependencies and communication routes have become more complex due to the introduction of microservices and serverless technologies. In this situation, observability is important in order to trace the cause of the failure in the system.

Observability is also important from the perspective of accurately understanding the system status, which can lead to system improvements. We will help you understand whether the released system is working properly, whether it is performing as expected, and whether users are using the system appropriately.

Increasing observability requires appropriate design and adoption of monitoring tools to collect information such as logs, traces, and metrics. Whether observability is achieved is also an important aspect in operational management.

What is xutechs that realizes efficient operation management?

In today’s world, where IT systems are considered the source of a company’s competitiveness, the importance of ensuring stable operation of IT services is increasing. Under these circumstances, operational management must also become more sophisticated.

LogicMonitor is a SaaS-type IT integrated operation monitoring service to realize efficient operation management work.

In recent years, the use of cloud services has become commonplace, and LogicMonitor enables centralized monitoring of both cloud and on-premises services. This allows you to achieve integrated monitoring with a single monitoring system, including your existing on-premises assets.

You can also automatically discover your hosts and devices and automatically apply pre-defined monitoring templates. These functions realize efficient operation management work.

In addition to viewing raw data, it also supports graphing and reporting, allowing you to visualize collected information in an easy-to-understand manner.