The pace of digital transformation is putting increasing pressure on IT teams to deliver more services, faster than ever before. However, handling IT service requests manually can strain resources and hinder productivity. According to Gartner, 40% of IT support tickets are for repetitive tasks like password resets, costing enterprises valuable time and money.
Self-service automation presents a solution to this challenge by enabling users to access IT services on-demand through web and mobile self-service portals. According to Mordor Intelligence, the IT service management market is projected to reach $34 billion by 2026, driven largely by demand for self-service automation.
In this article, we‘ll explore four key ways enterprises can leverage self-service automation to streamline IT operations and boost efficiency.
1. Reduce IT Support Tickets
One of the biggest values of self-service automation is reducing the volume of routine IT support tickets. Employees can use self-service portals to reset passwords, provision software, manage user accounts, request access, update profiles, check service status, and more. By automating these repetitive tasks, IT teams no longer have to perform them manually.
According to Duo Security, password resets alone account for up to 40% of help desk tickets. Self-service password management takes this burden off IT teams. Employees can securely reset passwords themselves in just a few clicks, getting back to work immediately.
For example, Kansas City-based tech services firm Visual Connections reported a 50% decrease in password reset tickets after implementing self-service automation through ManageEngine.
Likewise, software provisioning, account management, reporting, and other common tasks can be automated and made available through self-service. This significantly reduces ticket volume so IT staff can focus on critical issues and innovation rather than routine support.
According to research by EMA, 60-80% of IT organizations have implemented some level of automation in service delivery to achieve these benefits.
2. Improve Incident Response
Another major advantage of self-service automation is faster incident response times. Automated monitoring and alerting identifies issues proactively before they become major outages. Alerts can automatically be routed to the appropriate team for triage based on categorization rules.
For example, ServiceNow allows administrators to set up automated workflows for different alert types like severity level or category. Critical hardware failure alerts can be assigned directly to Level 3 engineers while password reset alerts go to the service desk. This streamlines incident management.
Dashboards provide full visibility into automated processes across the IT environment. Performance anomalies and failures trigger instant alerts so teams can initiate fixes quickly. This minimizes downtime and improves overall stability.
Integrations with IT service management tools like ServiceNow allow seamless tracking and management of incidents. Tickets can be automatically opened to drive effective resolution.
According to DevOps research firm IT Revolution, teams leveraging automation and AI for IT operations can resolve incidents up to 90% faster. This significantly boosts service levels for the business.
3. Reduce IT Operations Costs
Manually handling IT support tickets and other routine IT management tasks is labor-intensive and expensive. Self-service automation curbs these costs in a few key ways:
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Reduced IT headcount – Automating manual processes through self-service portals minimizes the need for dedicated IT staff for handling routine tickets. Forrester research shows organizations automating IT tasks reduce help desk calls by 20-30%, enabling a 25% reduction in IT staff.
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Greater efficiency – Automation frees up IT teams to focus on more strategic initiatives rather than performing repetitive tasks manually. A Puppet survey shows 75% of IT professionals gain at least 2 hours a day in time savings through automation.
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Improved scalability – IT can support business growth without proportionally growing headcount since self-service tools easily scale. Adding more users doesn‘t have a linear impact on IT workload.
According to The Total Economic Impact of Automation study by Forrester, automation drives cost savings upward of $3 million over 3 years for large enterprises. Much of this is by optimizing expensive IT labor.
4. Increase Employee Productivity
Finally, self-service automation also benefits end users by making them more productive. Employees don‘t have to wait for IT to manually resolve routine issues like password resets. They can get back to work immediately through self-service.
Access to on-demand IT services prevents slowdowns and bottlenecks. And with automated incident response, outages that previously caused work stoppages are minimized.
Self-service IT keeps employees productive. (Image source: Aimultiple)
This creates a smoother, uninterrupted workflow for employees. They remain engaged and productive with fewer technology frustrations.
In a survey by Sungard AS, 78% of employees say timely IT service delivery improves their productivity and overall job satisfaction. Self-service automation helps IT deliver the experience employees need to stay focused.
For example, when Reynolds and Reynolds automated over 50 IT services, they cut ticket resolution time in half. Employees could access services independently, fueling productivity.
AI Capabilities Boost Self-Service Value
Modern self-service automation solutions are infused with artificial intelligence to further optimize the user experience. Features like virtual agents and chatbots can understand requests in natural language and immediately provide answers or recommendations.
If the virtual agent cannot resolve the request fully, it automatically routes the ticket to the appropriate IT team for follow-up. This enhances convenience for employees.
AI examines past tickets and solutions to continuously improve automated responses. Over time, the self-service portal gets smarter and drives higher first-contact resolution rates.
Gartner predicts that by 2023, 70% of self-service interactions will be handled completely by AI, minimizing human involvement. This boosts IT team productivity.
Getting Started With Self-Service Automation
To start benefiting from self-service automation in your organization:
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Assess current processes – Document manual IT tasks that could be automated and made self-service. Prioritize based on volume and impact.
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Evaluate solutions – Leading options include ServiceNow, BMC Helix, Ivanti, and ManageEngine. Ensure integration with your ITSM tool.
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Start small, expand slowly – Begin with high-value, repetitive processes like password resets. Then layer on additional capabilities.
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Encourage adoption – Drive employee usage by promoting self-service for appropriate requests versus ticketing.
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Track metrics – Monitor ticket volumes, resolution times, satisfaction scores to quantify benefits.
By taking advantage of self-service automation, enterprises can propel IT service delivery to the next level while optimizing operations. Automating repetitive tasks improves efficiency, while self-service portals make services accessible to employees on-demand. The result is a smoother IT experience that empowers employees and enables business growth.