What differs.
WHAT MAKES SERVICES HARDER TO BUY
Quality is judged after delivery The specification is harder to write People change Outcomes depend partly on you
WHAT TO SPECIFY
The outcome, not the activity.
WHY
Paying for activity rewards effort rather than results.
WHAT EXAMPLE SHOWS IT
Specifying system availability rather than hours of monitoring.
WHAT TO DEFINE
What is delivered To what standard How it is measured How often it is reported What happens if standards are not met
WHAT MEASUREMENT REQUIRES
Something observable.
WHAT TO AVOID
Standards phrased as effort or intention.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT PEOPLE
Who will actually do the work.
WHY
Proposals frequently feature senior people who never appear afterwards.
WHAT TO REQUEST
Named individuals, and notice of changes.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT YOUR OWN OBLIGATIONS
What you must provide, and when.
WHY
Service failures are frequently caused by the customer, and disputes turn on this.
WHAT TO AGREE ABOUT CHANGES
How additional work is authorised and priced.
WHY
Scope expansion is the commonest source of service disputes.
WHAT TO REVIEW
Whether the service is still needed, periodically.
WHAT TO WATCH
Services renewing indefinitely with nobody assessing them.
