Synergos Logo

ISO 20000-1

IT Service Management (ITSM)

If you are looking to enhance the way your services are managed and delivered, then you have come to the right place.

When your business is certified to ISO/IEC 20000-1, you immediately show your stakeholders that you are serious about the quality and reliability of your services, and that you consistently deliver agreed service levels through a structured Service Management System (SMS). This helps organisations of any type to control and improve the way services are planned, delivered and supported, while strengthening credibility and opportunities across the supply chain.

Ready to Get Started?

Take the Next Step Towards ISO 20000-1 Certification

Choose how you'd like to begin your ISO 20000-1 journey - we're here to help every step of the way.

Call us Email us
Global Impact

ISO 20000-1 By The Numbers

Join businesses worldwide that trust ISO 20000-1 for IT service management excellence.

27,332
Valid ISO 20000-1 Certificates Worldwide
43,277
Certified Sites Globally
Source: ISO Survey
What is ISO 20000-1

What is ISO 20000-1?

ISO/IEC 20000-1 is an internationally recognised standard for Service Management Systems (SMS). Achieving this certification demonstrates to customers and stakeholders that an organisation is committed to delivering reliable, well-managed services, helping to enhance the overall customer experience.

Updated to reflect modern service management practices, the framework supports the design and control of service delivery with clearly defined service levels. It enables the development of processes and policies that ensure services are consistently planned, delivered and improved — all independently assessed and verified by a third-party certification body.

Any organisation can create its own internal rules for how services should be delivered, but from the outside a customer has no way of knowing whether those rules are effective or not. That is why many organisations choose to work to standards issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), as they are trusted and recognised around the world. Within the ISO/IEC 20000 family of standards, ISO/IEC 20000-1 is the part that sets out the formal requirements and is the one against which organisations are certified; the other parts are mainly guidance and supporting documents.

The current edition is ISO/IEC 20000-1:2018, which shows that an organisation is working to the latest set of service management requirements. It is built around key service management principles such as continual improvement, integrated processes and strong governance of services throughout their lifecycle.

Certification to ISO/IEC 20000-1 demonstrates that an organisation has put in place a robust Service Management System (SMS) and meets defined criteria for planning, delivering, supporting and improving services. The SMS provides the framework for aligning processes, procedures and policies so that the organisation can meet contractual commitments, service level agreements and the needs of customers and other interested parties.

Rather than concentrating on the technical features of a particular service, ISO/IEC 20000-1 focuses on the management practices that sit behind service delivery – such as incident, problem and change management, capacity and availability planning, service continuity and information security integration. This structured approach helps to achieve consistent service outcomes and improve customer satisfaction over time.

Embedding ISO/IEC 20000-1 into everyday ways of working strengthens overall performance, supports better risk management and creates a solid foundation for ongoing improvement and innovation in services.

The framework can be applied by any organisation that provides services, whether internal or external, and is frequently specified in tenders and contracts as a requirement for service providers.

Thousands of organisations across the globe are independently certified to ISO/IEC 20000-1, underlining its value as a recognised means of demonstrating reliable, well-managed service delivery.

Why ISO 20000-1

Why would a business need ISO 20000-1 certification?

There are many specific reasons why an organisation may seek ISO/IEC 20000-1 certification, but the benefits of meeting the standard are felt right across the business — from improving the consistency and reliability of services, to increasing customer satisfaction and supporting sustainable growth.

Working to ISO/IEC 20000-1 also helps a service provider to operate more competitively in its target markets. It can open the door to new opportunities such as access to tender frameworks that require ISO/IEC 20000-1, winning new contracts, strengthening client confidence and, ultimately, improving overall financial performance.

Support continual improvement in service performance

Sound service management means always looking for ways to do things better. Implementing and maintaining ISO/IEC 20000-1 helps an organisation to drive ongoing improvements in how services are planned, delivered and supported, enabling it to meet — and increasingly exceed — its service and performance objectives.

Gain a competitive edge

When choosing between service providers offering similar solutions, customers will naturally favour the organisation that can demonstrate robust, independently certified service management. ISO/IEC 20000-1 certification provides visible assurance of controlled, reliable and well-governed services, giving you a clear advantage over non-certified competitors and helping you stand shoulder to shoulder with those that are already certified.

Enhance customer satisfaction

With an ISO/IEC 20000-1 Service Management System (SMS) in place, and the quality and consistency of your services continually improving, customer satisfaction is likely to increase significantly. This in turn drives positive reviews, stronger client references and word-of-mouth recommendations, helping you win new service contracts and grow your presence within your chosen markets.

Improved chances of getting onto tendering frameworks and Approved supply chain lists

ISO/IEC 20000-1 is frequently specified as a prerequisite for entry to tender frameworks and wider supply chains. Holding accredited service management certification signals that your organisation operates to recognised best practice, increasing your chances of tender success and strengthening your position when seeking preferred supplier status.

Securing long-term business growth

With improvements in the way services are managed and delivered, increased customer satisfaction, the winning of new contracts and stronger performance in tenders, many Synergos clients who achieve ISO/IEC 20000-1 report measurable business growth directly linked to their Service Management System (SMS). It is clear that investing the time and effort to gain certification can deliver tangible commercial benefits.

ISO 20000-1 Requirements

What are the requirements to gain ISO 20000-1 certification?

The ISO/IEC 20000-1 framework sets out a structured set of requirements for establishing, implementing, maintaining and continually improving a service management system. It covers areas such as organisational context, leadership, planning, support, service design and transition, service delivery, performance evaluation and improvement.

To achieve ISO/IEC 20000-1 certification, each of these areas needs to be defined, documented and evidenced. In practice, most organisations already have many of these elements in place to some extent, whether formally or informally. The task is to bring them together into a coherent Service Management System (SMS) that acts as a practical blueprint for how services are managed and controlled across the organisation.

Context of the organisation

Work out what could affect your service management system – internally and externally – and define the scope of what is covered. That includes understanding who your interested parties are (customers, users, regulators, suppliers, internal stakeholders), what they need from your services, and using this to set clear boundaries and objectives for the Service Management System (SMS).

Leadership

Show that top management is genuinely leading service management, not just signing off documents. They must set a service management policy, ensure that objectives are aligned with the organisation’s direction, provide adequate resources, and assign and communicate roles, responsibilities and authorities so everyone knows what they are accountable for in the SMS.

Planning

Identify the key risks and opportunities that could affect your services and your SMS, then plan how you will deal with them. You must set measurable service management objectives, decide how they will be achieved, and integrate these plans into your day-to-day operations.

Support

Make sure the SMS has what it needs to function effectively. That includes: Adequate people, tools and other resources Competence and training for staff involved in service management Awareness of the SMS and service objectives Effective internal and external communication Control of documented information (policies, procedures, records) Management of organisational knowledge needed to run and improve services.

Operation

Plan, control and continually manage the full service lifecycle – design, transition, delivery and improvement – using defined processes. This clause is where the “core” IT/service management processes sit, such as: Relationship and agreement management Ensure you manage customer relationships, define and monitor service levels, and manage suppliers so that all agreements are clear, controlled and support your service objectives. Service design, build and transition Plan and control changes, new services and releases so that they are tested, approved and introduced in a controlled way, without disrupting existing services. Service portfolio, catalogue and asset/configuration management Maintain a clear view of all services, their intended outcomes, the service catalogue, and the assets and configurations that support them. Incident and service request management Restore normal service as quickly as possible when something goes wrong and handle requests efficiently, following defined priorities and procedures. Problem management Investigate the root causes of recurring incidents and implement fixes or workarounds to prevent them from happening again. Capacity, availability and continuity management Ensure services can meet demand, are available as agreed, and can be recovered within acceptable timeframes if a disruption occurs. Information security in services Integrate information security requirements into service management so that confidentiality, integrity and availability of information are protected.

Performance evaluation

Monitor and measure how well your SMS and services are performing. You must define what to measure, collect and analyse data, conduct internal audits, and carry out management reviews at planned intervals to determine whether the SMS remains suitable, adequate and effective.

Improvement

Act on what you learn. When things go wrong, you must take corrective action to address the cause and prevent recurrence. More broadly, you are expected to drive continual improvement of both the SMS and the services – using findings from audits, performance data, customer feedback, incidents and problems to make structured changes over time.

Ready to Get Started?

Take the Next Step Towards ISO 20000-1 Certification

Choose how you'd like to begin your ISO 20000-1 journey - we're here to help every step of the way.

Call us Email us
Global Impact

ISO 20000-1 By The Numbers

Join businesses worldwide that trust ISO 20000-1 for IT service management excellence.

27,332
Valid ISO 20000-1 Certificates Worldwide
43,277
Certified Sites Globally
Source: ISO Survey
We have always found the team at Synergos to be extremely knowledgeable, professional, helpful and friendly and I would most certainly recommend them to anybody who requires support with implementing any of the ISO standards.
Liam Fitzakerley
Liam FitzakerleySkanwear
Great professional service from all of the team at Synergos. They provided a fully managed service to deliver ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 which we achieved with the professional and competent guidance from our consultant.
Louise Elliott
Louise ElliottMeetupcall
We were looking for a local business and a company that could meet our very tight deadline. Synergos Consultancy provided a comprehensive proposal and a clear outline on how they would meet our deadline. We would recommend Synergos Consultancy. Their ISO Express Service and professional turnaround was just what we were looking for and they delivered exactly what they said they would, when they said they would!
Steve Sweryda
Steve SwerydaInterfurn Medical Systems
We have worked together with Synergos over the last 5 years and always found them to be very helpful and professional in their approach. Utilizing different Synergos team members we have successfully achieved ISO 9001:2015 and put several other processes in place including GDPR . Our aim is to continue to utilize the services of Synergos for the foreseeable future. We would like to express our special thanks to Jenny who ensures our procedures and policies are always up to date.
Paul Noton
Paul NotonSuilvision
Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to receive updates, promotions, and sneak peaks of upcoming products. Plus 20% off your next order.

Promotion nulla vitae elit libero a pharetra augue
Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to receive updates, promotions, and sneak peaks of upcoming products. Plus 20% off your next order.

Promotion nulla vitae elit libero a pharetra augue
Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to receive updates, promotions, and sneak peaks of upcoming products. Plus 20% off your next order.

Promotion nulla vitae elit libero a pharetra augue