July 2024

It's not only during the European Football Championship that Hamburg, Frankfurt and Munich are in a state of emergency, but also afterwards - at our three SERVICE MANAGEMENT TOOL MEETUPs! This year we have expanded our range and offer trade visitors an even greater variety of tools from the four areas of ITSM, ESM, ITAM & ITOM:

ITSM covers the provision and management of IT services to support business requirements and improve the quality, efficiency and user satisfaction of IT services.

ESM (Enterprise Service Management) focuses on the application of ITSM principles and processes to other business areas outside IT, with the aim of improving the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery in different business areas.

ITOM stands for IT Operations Management and ensures that a company's IT infrastructure and services work efficiently and smoothly. 

ITAM (IT Asset Management) is used to manage and optimize digital IT resources. The aim is to maximize the value and useful life of IT assets, minimize costs and minimize risks from compliance violations.

Software manufacturers from all four disciplines will be present at our TOOL MEETUPs, with some even covering all areas with their solutions. It starts on September 12 in Frankfurt, followed by Munich and Hamburg. Come along, you can't miss it!

Register now free of charge

By taking part in the Peter Maffay "Walk and Run", you could support children in need at the SERVIEW Summit 2024. But doing good is even easier and can be done at any time: write a review - and SERVIEW will plant a tree in your name. How does it work? Via ReviewForest: share your experience in an honest Google review - done!

The trees are planted in Mexico, where SERVIEW supports "Plant-for-the-Planet": The global children and youth initiative is driving the fight against the climate crisis by planting trees on the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico and training children to become ambassadors for climate justice. A great project that you can easily support with your rating!

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People are central to successful projects and have always been part of PRINCE2 - but never as a separate chapter. This has changed with the current seventh version, which places greater emphasis on the human component. And there are good reasons for this: Studies have shown that projects are more successful when they take motivation, commitment, soft skills, leadership qualities and communication within the team into account. In addition, our working world has changed drastically - with a focus on remote working, agile methods and cross-team collaboration. PRINCE2 7 has been developed to meet these new challenges.

"Experienced project managers have long known how important the team is - because people are what make a project successful," says Björn Hinrichs, Head of Upskilling at SERVIEW. "It is therefore the right step to dedicate a separate chapter to this element." But what impact does the human factor have in PRINCE2 7?

• More motivation: In PRINCE2 7, project managers are more strongly encouraged to use their leadership skills to motivate and inspire their team. This can be done through regular feedback, recognition and support.
• Same direction: A key aim of the new version is to promote communication and collaboration within the team. This is crucial to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that everyone is working towards the same goal.
• Better conflict management: By focusing on the human aspect, conflicts within the team can be identified at an early stage and resolved more effectively. This contributes to a more harmonious working environment and prevents delays in the project.
• More innovative ideas: When team members feel valued and heard, they are more likely to come up with creative solutions and innovative ideas. This can lead to better results and a higher quality end product.
• Closer commitment: By involving team members in the decision-making process and emphasizing their importance to the success of the project, employees feel more committed to the project goals. This increases the likelihood that these goals will be achieved.

By taking the human factor into account, PRINCE2 7 has become an even more powerful tool for effective project management: "I think PRINCE2 7 is very coherent and successful. The new version is even more flexible, simpler, clearer and more adaptable," concludes Björn Hinrich. "PRINCE2 provides the framework - how the decision is then made is in the hands of the people."

PRINCE2 training for all

No Scrum team without a Scrum Master and Product Owner! Together with the developers, they make a significant contribution to the success of product development. Each role has its own tasks and responsibilities.

The Scrum Master: moderator, coach and organizer

He ensures that Scrum theory, practices and rules are adhered to. The Scrum Master supports the team in its self-organization and internal development and drives the continuous improvement of processes and working methods. Their main tasks are

• The Scrum Master moderates the Sprint Planning and Daily Scrum as well as the Sprint Review and the Retrospective.
• He identifies and removes obstacles that prevent the team from working productively.
• He coaches the Scrum team and the organization in the application of Scrum and helps to improve Scrum practices.
• The Scrum Master protects the team from external influences and distractions so that they can concentrate on their work.
• It promotes a collaborative way of working and supports team development.

The product owner: decision-maker and prioritizer

He is responsible for maximizing the value of the product by setting the right priorities. The Product Owner mediates between the development team and the stakeholders and ensures clear communication and understanding. Their main tasks:

• The Product Owner defines and communicates the product vision and ensures that the team understands the goals and requirements.
• He creates and maintains the product backlog, prioritizes the entries and ensures that the backlog is visible and comprehensible.
• The product owner works closely with stakeholders to understand their needs and requirements and integrate them into the product backlog.
• He decides on the timing and content of releases and ensures that the product continuously delivers added value.

Different focal points

While the Scrum Master focuses on the process and the team, the Product Owner concentrates on the product and its value. To this end, he communicates with the stakeholders, while the Scrum Master works mainly with his team. Both roles are crucial to the success of a Scrum team and work together to improve the development process and the end product.

Get to know Scrum!

For a scrum team to work successfully, it needs a clear structure and transparency. This is where the three central artefacts come into play: these tools enable the team to plan and periodize its work and monitor the progress of product development.

1. product backlog: The ultimate feature list

The product backlog is a prioritized list of all requirements that should be included in the product. It is maintained by the product owner and contains:

• User stories: descriptions of the functions from the end user's perspective
• Bugs: Errors that need to be fixed
• Technical tasks: Necessary technical work or infrastructure tasks
• Improvements: Suggestions for improving existing functions

The product backlog is not fixed from the outset. On the contrary: it is dynamic and is constantly evolving in the Scrum process. It serves as a guideline for the development team when planning the next work steps.

2. sprint backlog: The concrete work plan

The sprint backlog is a list of tasks that the development team wants to complete during the current sprint. This list is selected from the product backlog at the start of each sprint and adopted by the team. It contains

• A clear overarching goal that the team wants to achieve in the sprint.
• The specific Product Backlog Items (PBIs) that the team has selected for the sprint.
• Itemized tasks required to complete the selected PBIs.

The sprint backlog belongs to the development team and is created during the sprint planning meeting. It is flexible and can be adapted during the sprint to take account of new findings and changes.

3. product increment: the presentable interim result

An increment is the result of a completed sprint and represents a finished and usable version of the product.

• The increment contains the PBIs completed in this sprint and is fully functional.
• It is fully integrated into the existing product and can be delivered or used as required.
• It has passed all the necessary tests and has been checked to ensure that it meets quality standards.

Each increment builds on the previous one, continuously expanding and improving the product. At the end of each sprint, the increment should be in such a state that it can potentially be delivered, even if the product owner may decide not to release it immediately.

In today's dynamic business world, transformations are often necessary to remain competitive. However, major changes also pose many challenges and risks. It's good when organizations are prepared for everything!

With our targeted "ARE YOU READY?" check, you create the best possible conditions for the success of your transformation projects. The workshop format is aimed at managers within the Process Eco System. It focuses on the four perspectives PEOPLE, PROCESS, TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE and provides management with a powerful set of tools and templates.

Four reasons why managers should use this check:

1. Quality assurance: With our "ARE YOU READY?" expert check, organizations ensure that they have the necessary resources and skills and that the quality standards are right.
2. Risk minimization: By checking off that all requirements are met before you start or continue a transformation, you minimize potential risks.
3. Increased efficiency: By ensuring that all necessary steps are prepared and completed, unnecessary delays can be avoided - improving overall efficiency.
4. Documentation & follow-up: Which steps have we carried out and which are still outstanding? Our expert check offers the option of documentation and tracking. This is particularly important in environments that are subject to compliance requirements.

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Complex problems often require special approaches and unconventional ideas. This is where design thinking comes into play, as the innovation method opens up new perspectives: In a joint creative process, solutions are developed that focus on the wishes and needs of the user.

It combines human empathy, creative thinking and iterative processes. Design thinking originated in Germany in the 1920s and is often used in product development and innovation management.

The core principles of Design Thinking:

• User orientation: The focus is on the needs and perspectives of the users. Design thinkers try to understand their problems and wishes in depth, which leads to accepted solutions.
• Collaboration: A multidisciplinary team from different disciplines works together to bring in different perspectives and knowledge. This promotes diversity and holistic approaches.
• Step-by-step approach: Solutions are developed, tested and improved step by step. This so-called iterative process makes it possible to react quickly to feedback and continuously improve solutions.

Design thinking is a cyclical process that consists of different phases:

1. Understanding: Gathering information about users through observations, interviews and interactions to understand their needs and problems.
2. Define: The insights gained are analyzed and concretized in order to formulate a clear problem statement.
3. Develop ideas: Creative brainstorming sessions in which the team generates as many solution ideas as possible without immediately evaluating them.
4. Create prototypes: Selected ideas are turned into tangible prototypes so that they can be tested quickly and cost-effectively.
5. Testing: The prototypes are tested with real users to gather feedback and make improvements.

If necessary, the team can also go through the individual process steps several times. If, for example, it turns out that the end users give negative feedback, it may be necessary to work on understanding the problem before the next iteration loop is started.

To the training

What does your day-to-day work look like?

I am constantly in contact with our partners and those who want to become partners. My day therefore often consists of phone calls and video calls. No two conversations are the same, so it never gets boring. I really enjoy cultivating partnerships - that's all I do. That's what makes the job exciting for me.

What character traits are essential for your job?

When you have so much contact with so many different people, you need communication skills and empathy to be able to respond to each person individually. You also have to keep a cool head and remain friendly even in stressful situations. I think I'm really good at that.

Would you rather work from home or in the office?

Despite working from home, I am regularly in the office because I really appreciate the contact with my great colleagues at SERVIEW. Whether it's a private chat at the coffee machine or a constructive exchange on work topics: It's simply worthwhile to be in contact with SERVIEWians. As a mom, however, it is just as important for me to be able to work flexibly from my home office. The perfect balance for me!

Would you also like to become part of our colorful team? Then we look forward to receiving your application!

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