As 2024 rapidly approaches, it’s worth considering what will change in the IT service management (ITSM) industry next year, i.e., the 2024 ITSM trends. In some ways, there’s “much of the same,” but there’s a need to finally address some long-known needs. As covered in our 2023 ITSM trends blog, value demonstration, people focus, and “advanced ITSM” remain relevant to IT organizations seeking to improve their business value in 2024.

Advanced ITSM includes not only doing new things but also doing existing things better – which could cover many of the “ongoing” ITSM trends that will likely be listed in other “2024 ITSM trends” blogs that appear in December and January. These 2024 ITSM trends are covered first in what can be considered an “umbrella trend” that’s a variant of 2023’s advanced ITSM trend – where the focus is on being and doing better rather than simply starting new things. For tips related to these trends, please check out this “ITSM Tips for 2024” from everybody’s favorite Joe the IT Guy.

Which #ITSM trends will be relevant to organizations seeking to improve their business value in 2024? Check out this blog from @SysAid. #ServiceDesk Click To Tweet

Top 5 ITSM Trends For 2024

Many ITSM trends have moved from year to year, appearing in multiple “ITSM trends for” lists because while some organizations have adopted them, they’re still relevant to others. They can also suffer from the time it takes the ITSM industry to bring in new concepts and innovations. These trends include value co-creation or demonstration as an overarching IT and ITSM priority, enabled by the following four focused trends.

#1: Enterprise Service Management Strategies

Here, even those organizations that have adopted enterprise service management strategies still likely have more to do – whether this is extending to more business functions or improving within what’s already done. The SysAid 2023 State of Service Management Report found that a third of respondents would consider deploying their service desk to other departments.

While some might state that we’re reaching a point where the IT industry will “drop the IT from ITSM,” the growing adoption of enterprise service management is unlikely to make service management more dominant than ITSM. What’s more important is whether “service management” is still the right term for using ITSM capabilities to improve business function operations and outcomes when these functions don’t view it as service management.

#2: Automation and AI Adoption

No matter what has already been automated, there are still likely more opportunities to improve through more. Using machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), and AI solutions, such as ChatGPT, offers additional opportunities.

No matter what has already been automated, there are still likely more opportunities to improve through more in 2024, says @SysAid. #automation #AI #ITSM #ServiceDesk Click To Tweet

However, the important point for 2024 is that the increased adoption – whether traditional automation or intelligent automation – will be essential to achieving all three of “better, faster, cheaper” operations and outcomes,  and the better service experiences and increased competitive advantage that result.

Employee or User Experience Improvement Action

This trend might better fit the second category of trend below because while most organizations now appreciate the need to focus on improved experiences, the number that have proactively introduced experience measurement and improvement capabilities is considered far lower. It’s not just a case of “walking the walk, not talking the talk” with another ITSM trend; the use of experience data rather than just traditional ITSM metrics finally allows IT organizations to understand how their capabilities are harming business operations and outcomes and “what matters most” to employees. Especially in terms of focusing limited improvement resources in the right places.

The SysAid 2023 State of Service Management Report found that employee experience has increased dramatically in importance in ITSM in just a year, from 55% to 73%.

#4: Sustainability Investments

Sustainability is in a similar position to experience management going into 2024, with IT organizations needing to do more related to sustainability. This need was validated in a Q3 2022 Axelos sustainability survey. The 1166 responses highlighted that while 80% of IT organizations have included sustainability in at least one of strategies, priorities, and metrics, 68% of respondents thought IT could do more on sustainability.

So, while the need to do something is understood, the actions to date are considered insufficient. This gap between perceived ambition and execution is blamed on three key challenges – competing priorities for resources, missing knowledge and skills, and insufficient education and training.

While 80% of IT orgs (according to an @AXELOS_GBP survey) have included sustainability in at least one of strategies, priorities, and metrics, 68% of respondents thought IT could do more on sustainability. This will definitely be the case in 2024… Click To Tweet

#5: People Management Improvement

This final trend is deliberately separated from the rest, given the perceived state of people management in ITSM and the insufficient progress in the area in recent years. For example, an ITSM.tools well-being survey, run in Q3 2022, found the following:

• 88% of survey respondents thought working in IT would get harder (at least for some roles), up from 76% in 2020, with only 8% thinking not
• 14% of respondents felt their efforts aren’t recognized by management, and another 57% stated that recognition sometimes happens but not enough – a total of 71%, which is seven out of ten employees, but at least this has improved from 76% in 2020
• 67% of survey respondents stated that working in IT has adversely affected their well-being to some extent; this is up from the 52% reported in 2020
• 32% of respondents believed their line managers are not suitably skilled in preventing and helping with well-being issues (down 13% from 2020), and another 29% said that they are only partially skilled.

This data highlights a particular issue, but it is also indicative of people management in ITSM per se – that there are people and people management issues that still need to be addressed. As with experience management, it’s an ITSM trend where there’s a need to turn the interest and words into beneficial actions. And before it’s too late.

In 2024 when it comes to "ITSM trends" there’s a need to turn the interest and words into beneficial actions. And before it’s too late, says @SysAid. #servicedesk #ITSM Click To Tweet

So there’s a lot for ITSM practitioners to focus on in 2024, depending on what their organization needs; importantly – as per the “umbrella” trend – much of it involves getting better at what might already be done.

What do you think of this trend list? Please let us know in the comments.