By David Barrow – Community Champion
We live in a rapidly changing world, especially those of us who work in the Information Technology workspace.
Service Integration and Management (SIAM) skills being included within various roles has marked a significant upward trend in recent years. According to data from IT Jobs Watch, since 2022, there has been a 38% increase in job descriptions requiring SIAM skills for permanent staff and a dramatic 124% rise for contract roles.
Question to the reader: Could it be that ‘contractors’ are just better at updating their CVs?
This surge underscores the growing appreciation of SIAM’s value in managing and delivering IT services effectively across increasingly complex organisational environments. Moreover, individuals with SIAM skills often find themselves in high-demand roles such as IT service manager, project manager, and operations manager, with ample opportunities for career growth and advancement.
This article explores why SIAM skills are increasingly in demand, why they typically do not correspond to a standalone job title, and how SIAM is both a competency and a culture deeply embedded in the IT profession.
SIAM – What is it?
Service Integration and Management (SIAM) is a methodology designed to manage multiple service providers and integrate them into a seamless service delivery mechanism that supports and enables the organisation. For instance, a large multinational corporation might use SIAM to coordinate its various IT service providers across different regions, ensuring a consistent level of service quality. It focuses on managing the complexities in supply chains, maintaining quality across different service layers, and aligning IT services with organisational objectives.
Why SIAM Skills are in Demand
1. Complex IT Service Delivery
Organisations increasingly rely on a mixture of in-house and outsourced IT services. Developing and having the skills to manage these diverse services requires communication and human-centred skills such as negotiation, relationship building and empathy.
2. End to End Service Management Capabilities:
SIAM helps to standardise service management practices across various providers, enhancing operational efficiency, managing risks, and ensuring cultural compliance with service agreements. Identifying and reducing waste, measuring quality, and building an end-to-end culture of ‘service experience’ is critical to success.
3. Cost Efficiency:
Well-deployed SIAM significantly cuts costs by optimising resources and eliminating blame culture (aka tickets bouncing), contributing directly to organisations’ financial health. Those outcomes are often delivered through understanding organisational strategies and their desired outcomes and an innate ability to build trust that results in clear information sharing.
4. Adaptability and Future-proofing:
Adaptability and future-proofing are areas in which people in Information Technology excel. We are used to responding to various circumstances, are often guilty of enjoying the thrill of ‘firefighting’, and love working as technologists. These skills are not just critical but also highly adaptable to the evolving demands of a SIAM environment when harnessed well.
The Implicit Presence of SIAM in IT Roles
Despite the critical importance of SIAM, it is rarely designated as a specific job role.
Broad Application in IT Roles:
SIAM skills are typically part of larger roles such as IT service management, project management, and operations management, which require a comprehensive approach to IT services beyond just integration.
Is the ‘SIAM Lead’ a specific role we need?
Below are the most used job titles in April 2024, which cite SIAM skills within their job description; we explore why (source: https://www.itjobswatch.co.uk/jobs/uk/siam.do).
Interestingly, several of the below roles are broadly similar in their title, though they each have a slightly different set of accountabilities within an SIAM environment; below are the author’s single-line interpretations of these. Food for thought?
Service Manager and IT Services Manager – Ensures harmonisation of multiple service providers to meet organisational standards and objectives.
IT Manager – Manages broad IT operations with an overlay of SIAM principles for strategic integration and risk management.
Delivery Manage and Service Delivery Manager – Implements SIAM to oversee the smooth delivery and continuous improvement of IT services.
Analyst – Applies SIAM to analyse service processes and integration for efficiency.
Vendor Manager – Manages relationships and aligns SLAs and commercials with SIAM principles.
Head of IT and Head of Service Management – Strategically implement SIAM to align IT services with business strategies and operational excellence.
Could we in IT be guilty of creating role after role that is defined as ‘specialist’ when, in fact, we could redefine an SIAM ‘role’ that encompasses the dynamic nature of IT services and diverse skills?
Could one ‘SIAM Lead role fulfil most of the above (question to the reader)?
Or is SIAM a competency and cultural role that belongs to all our skill sets?
Interestingly, SIAM is about more than just competencies. It should also be ingrained in the organisational culture, often reflecting a service mindset that many IT professionals practice unconsciously.
Working in SIAM implies a holistic view of how services are managed and delivered, emphasising collaboration, efficiency, and alignment with business goals. It’s a mindset that prioritises seamless service over individual component excellence, fostering a culture where every function is interconnected and interdependent.
This cultural aspect means that many IT professionals are already ‘doing SIAM’ without necessarily recognising or being recognised for it. They manage workflows, integrate services, and maintain service quality, embodying SIAM principles in their daily activities.
This unrecognised adoption of SIAM principles showcases its fundamental role in modern IT practices; on the flip side, it also highlights the need for explicit recognition and enhancement of these skills within IT teams.
Conclusion
So, should we have a defined SIAM role in our organisation?
Here, we have a typical consultant’s answer to any question.
“It depends” – Typical consultant answer #1
In this case, your author would argue that “it depends” is true.
Whether SIAM should be a standalone job title largely depends on an organisation’s specific circumstances, including its size, the complexity of its service management needs, and strategic priorities.
A dedicated SIAM role could bring focused expertise and accountability for organisations heavily reliant on multiple external IT service providers, enhancing service integration quality and efficiency. However, it’s important to note that implementing SIAM can also pose challenges.
For instance, it may require significant changes to existing processes and structures, and there may be resistance from stakeholders. Integrating SIAM responsibilities into existing roles might be more practical and cost-effective for many organisations, especially if the IT team manages multiple domains effectively. This approach allows for a gradual and less disruptive adoption of SIAM principles.
Ultimately, the decision should be guided by a strategic assessment of how IT services are delivered, managed, and aligned with the overall business goals. (See https://scopism.circle.so/c/case-studies/ for more related information).
To truly answer the question, your author suggests that creating a defined SIAM role in your organisation could enable and significantly improve service management at a reasonable cost. This would be a valuable addition to the organisational structure, offering new opportunities for efficiency and effectiveness—and, ultimately, more opportunities for you and your team to deliver the outcomes your colleagues and customers desire.
And in one final question to you, the reader:
What would you like to see in a SIAM-specific job description?
Answers on a postcard….
