Minimum score to achieve this level: 'Y' for all mandatory (blue colouring, bold font') questions + 1 other answer 'Y'
Level 1 - Pre-requisites
Are at least some problem management activities established in the organization, e.g. problem determination, problem analysis, problem resolution?
Are problem management activities assigned to specific individuals or functional areas?
Is there a procedure by which significant incidents are escalated by incident management?
Are potential problems formally assessed and identified prior to disruption occurring?
Level 1.5 - Management Intent
Has the purpose and benefits of problem management been disseminated within the organization?
Does the organization have procedures for the registration of problems and their resolution?
Is there management commitment to support staff allocating sufficient time for structural problem solving activities?
Is the organization committed to reducing the total number of problems and the number of incidents that interrupt the conduct of business?
Is there management support for problem management staff only accepting support requests from authorised sources?
Level 2 - Process Capability
Have responsibilities for various problem management activities been assigned?
Is there a procedure for analysing significant, recurring and unresolved incidents and identifying underlying problems?
Is there a procedure by which potential problems are classified, in terms of category, urgency, priority and impact and assigned for investigation?
Do problem owners have adequate guidelines for identifying and recording the nature of a problem?
Are complex problem investigations across for example, several technical areas adequately co-ordinated?
Is there a procedure for problem closure?
Is there a mechanism for tracking problem resolution?
Is the effectiveness of problem support areas monitored?
Level 2.5 - Internal Integration
Is the nature of the problem always documented as part of the problem record?
Is Problem Management responsible for the completeness of all problem records?
Does problem management escalate problems with severe impact to the Change Advisory Board to increase the priority of the Request for Change (RFC) or to implement an urgent change as appropriate?
Are proposed solutions to a problem reviewed and authorised by a third party?
Are problem records updated to reflect the progress in resolving the problem?
Is the Problem Manager responsible for reviewing the problem records?
Level 3 - Products
Are standard reports concerning problems produced regularly?
Are problem records updated on resolution of a problem?
Are requests for change raised on the basis of problem analysis?
Do problem management reports comment on the results of proactive problem management?
Level 3.5 - Quality Control
Are the standards and other quality criteria made explicit and applied to problem management activities?
Are the personnel responsible for problem mangement activities suitably trained?
Does the organization set and review either targets or objectives for Problem Management?
Does the organization use suitable tools to support the problem management process?
Level 4 - Management Information
Does Problem Management provide management with information concerning...
analysis of problem records?
recurring problems of a particular type or with an individual item?
the need for more customer training or better documentation?
trends in problem distribution and potential 'hot' spots?
Level 4.5 - External Integration
Are regular meetings in which Problem Management matters are discussed held with interested parties ?
Does Problem Management exchange information with...
Configuration Management regarding the quality of configuration records, highlighting any issues, and the potential flagging of items as 'failed' (or equivalent)?
Change Management regarding the details of any changes to resolve problems or on emergency actions undertaken?
Incident Management for identification of significant incidents or multiple incidents exhibiting common symptoms in order to identify problems?
the Service Desk concerning related incidents, or follow-up on initial handling and possible feedback to users (e.g. via urgent bulletins for major incidents)?
Service Level Management regarding priority handling of problems and potential impact on service level agreement performance?
IT Service Continuity Management regarding possible contingency actions in the event of a major outage?
Availability Management for detection and avoidance of problems and incidents?
Release Management (if applicable) regarding current CIs and for possible association of problems with specific CIs?
Capacity Management for potential implications of planning options, and the likely effect on problem trends?
Level 5 - Customer Interface
Are checks done with the customer that the activities performed by Problem Management adequately support their business needs?
Are checks done with the customer that they are happy with the services provided?
Are trends in customer satisfaction actively monitored?
Is customer survey information fed into the service improvement agenda?
Is the customer's value perception of the services provided to them actively monitored?
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