Self-service catalog

What is a self-service catalog?

A self-service IT catalog is like a menu that lists all the available IT services a company provides to its employees or customers. It's a convenient, user-friendly portal where you browse, select, and access IT resources without going through the hassle of contacting the IT department. 

This catalog includes services like software applications, hardware resources, and other IT-related tools and information. And, just like a restaurant menu, it's organized in a way that makes it easy for users to find what they're looking for.

But it's not just about convenience. A self-service catalog aligned with ITIL principles streamlines IT processes, reduces costs, and improves efficiency within the organization. It's a win-win situation for both IT departments and the end-users they support.

Benefits of using self-service catalogs

A self-service catalog provides a single-source of truth on all the IT services provided by an organization. According to the Freshservice Benchmark Report, nearly 57% of organizations use a service catalog to facilitate self-service capabilities for end-users requesting services. 

And when a service catalog is available, IT agents cut down the Average Resolution Time (ART) and they save up to 1.3 hours. The result? More productive hours spent working on service requests and greater efficiency and consistency across the organization. 

Here’s how different parties benefit from it:

IT professionals 

A self-service catalog empowers users to resolve their own issues, which means fewer tickets for the IT department to handle. This frees up valuable time for IT professionals to focus on more strategic initiatives that have a bigger impact on the organization. Plus, it provides a clear view of the available resources, reducing duplication and saving valuable time.

End users 

Cloud-based self-service catalogs are like having an IT expert at your fingertips 24/7. Solutions to common problems, access to IT resources, and even request new services, are all without having to wait for IT support. As a result, you can expect higher employee and customer success as users resolve issues quickly and get back to work. And, of course, it keeps costs in check by improving efficiency and reducing the need for additional IT support.

Decision makers & leadership 

And for decision makers and leadership, a self-service catalog provides valuable insights into IT usage and needs within the organization. Use this data to make informed decisions about where to allocate resources, identify opportunities for improvement, and even illustrate the value of the IT department to the organization.

Key components of an effective self-service catalog

There are a few features to keep an eye on when exploring self-service portals. Here's an overview:

User-friendly interface

An intuitive and straightforward interface ensures your employees find what they need with minimal fuss. Think clear categories, a search function, and filters to help users drill down to the specific service or resource they're looking for. What's more: a user-friendly interface also makes it easier for employees to adopt the self-service catalog, which means you'll see results sooner.

Personalization options

Personalization provides a tailored experience for end-users. A self-service portal should allow for customization in terms of what services you display, how they're organized, and the overall look and feel. Customization options enable you to align the portal with your brand and needs. Whether it's tweaking the colors or adding specific services to the catalog, personalization creates a fit-for-purpose portal that meets your organization's unique requirements.

Automated workflows

Automated self-service portals offer employees the option to submit service requests directly through the catalog. Configure incident response workflows that automatically route requests to the appropriate teams for faster resolution. 

Freshworks’ research shows that over 88% of organizations have streamlined business processes using workflow automations. When service desks continue to automate using workflows (anywhere between 11 to 50 workflows), agents resolve tickets faster by ~23%.

Automated approvals streamline the process and eliminate the need for manual requests, in effect, dissolving bottlenecks and delays. With a service request option, employees request the services they need, reducing the burden on IT staff and freeing up their time for more critical tasks.

Knowledge base

A knowledge base is a repository of information that employees access to solve basic problems or find answers to common questions. It's like the encyclopedia of your self-service catalog—it includes helpful articles, FAQs, and tutorials that users refer to if they need help or have questions. 

Users find questions on their own and don't have to wait for IT support, which improves knowledge management and reduces the number of helpdesk tickets. 

Smart-suggest technology assists self-service users by recommending relevant articles based on their keywords. Knowledge base features allow privacy options that enable authors to control who can see and use their articles. This feature helps organizations maintain confidentiality by ensuring sensitive information is only accessible to authorized personnel.

Analytics

A top-notch self-service portal provides valuable insights into user behavior and usage patterns. Track user behavior, see which services are most popular, and even identify potential areas of improvement. Is a specific service receiving a high volume of requests? Maybe it's time to consider automating that process. Are certain departments using more services than others? This level of reporting in real-time enables proper reallocating of resources and optimizes the portal for different teams.

Integrations

Your portal shouldn't exist in isolation—it needs to play nice with other tools in your tech stack. Per Freshworks’ research, organizations experience a 28.64% decrease in Average Resolution Time with integrations. Look for a portal that integrates with your existing IT infrastructure and interacts with third-party applications like IT ticketing systems, asset management tools, and chatbots. 

This way, you streamline processes across different platforms and provide a seamless experience for employees. Use app marketplaces and APIs to create custom integrations for specific business needs.

Examples of self-service catalogs

IT service catalogs have multiple uses across different industries and business functions. HR departments use them to manage employee onboarding and offboarding; IT teams automate software requests and password resets; legal departments streamline contract reviews.

Service request automation use cases include:

• Automatic approval workflow that includes multi-stage approval

• Automatic provisioning or de-provisioning of common requests

• Creation of change requests based on service request type

Here are some examples of how self-service portals make a difference in different scenarios:

• Onboarding an employee: When a new hire joins the company, HR uses the self-service portal to create onboarding tasks for different departments. This includes requesting access to necessary systems and assigning them equipment. By automating this process, you ensure all necessary steps are completed without any manual errors.

• Software requests: Instead of filling out forms or sending emails to request new software, employees use the self-service portal to submit a request with just a few clicks. This not only saves time for both employees and IT teams but also ensures that all requests are tracked and processed efficiently.

• Contract reviews: Legal departments use self-service portals to streamline the contract review process. Employees submit contracts through the portal, which then triggers automated workflows for review and approval by different stakeholders. This reduces manual effort and speeds up the review and approval process.

• Password resets: IT teams reduce the burden of password reset requests by enabling employees to reset their passwords themselves through the self-service portal. This not only saves time for both parties but also improves security by eliminating the need to share passwords over email or phone calls.

• Access management: A self-service portal also gives or revokes access to different systems. Employees submit access requests through the portal, which then triggers an automated approval process based on predefined rules. This helps to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive data and systems.

Enabling employees to resolve menial tasks themselves saves time for both employees and IT teams. It also empowers employees to take executive ownership of their own work. This reduces the burden on IT teams and allows them to focus on more critical tasks that require specialized skills.

Best practices for managing a service desk service catalog

A close check on the self-service catalog helps IT teams to stay in control of their service strategy while empowering employees. Some best practices for managing a self-service catalog include:

Regularly update & review. Remove outdated content, add new services, and ensure everything is relevant to your users' needs. Keep the catalog fresh to encourage employees to continue using it.

Monitor usage & feedback. Pay attention to your users. Are they using the catalog? What are they saying about it? Keep an ear to the ground to catch issues before they become bigger problems and make tweaks to improve the user experience.

Clear communication. Make sure users know how to use the catalog and what's available to them. Regular communication – be it through emails, training sessions, or user guides – ensure everyone's on the same page.

Train your team. Provide resources to get employees up to speed on using the self-service catalog. This increases adoption and improves change management.

Start small, scale later. Start with a limited service catalog and gradually add new services as needed. This ensures you don't overwhelm users or create too much work for yourself in managing the catalog.

How to create a self-service catalog

Step 1 - Understand your users' needs

Align service offerings with end users’ requirements and needs. For this, the first step is to understand what users want and deliver those services. On-time service request fulfillment depends on the demand-supply match. End users' requirements change as your business grows—add new services and update existing services to stay relevant. Using a service catalog isn’t just limited to IT services in an organization.

Collaboration with different teams and understanding their specific services is key to designing a holistic service catalog.

• Find out what users think about the service catalog and what their pain points are

• Identify their preferred channel for raising service requests

• Identify their complete needs, from onboarding to daily activities to offboarding

When we interviewed one of our customers on understanding end-user preference and the popular source of tickets, here’s what they had to say:

“The source before Freshservice was either a Slack channel, email or in person. We have created a plan with the comms team to inform everyone about the migration to the new system, which will also eventually include terminating any support provided by other means. We will also be introducing the system to the employees during induction, hence new users will automatically refer to the new system.”

Step 2 - Select the right team

When setting up a service request fulfillment team, it's not just about picking any team – it's about selecting the right team. A proficient team recognizes patterns, anticipates potential challenges, and knows how to tackle them. 

Clearly assign roles and responsibilities to every team member with relevant permissions for users to access the service catalog. Create different groups based on the request type to handle specific service requests. 

All departments, including IT and non-IT, are maintained in a single catalog through enterprise service management. Every department should have a service owner by:

• Classifying your agents into multiple groups based on the service offerings

• Assigning relevant permissions to your end users to access only those relevant service catalog items

• Identifying approvers for service items and assign relevant scope. Admins are responsible for designing and configuring all service items. This gives the admin full power

Step 3 - Design & roll out in phases

Service catalog design has a direct impact on the end user experience. It makes it easy for users to navigate the portal, find what they need, and how easy it is for users to navigate the portal, find what they need, and use the services. 

First and foremost, classify service items into different service categories; make it intuitive and visually appealing. Additionally, invest time in user experience; minimize the number of clicks and avoid long forms. Additional tips include:

• Configure service item forms with a few fields

• Add visual elements like a shopping cart

• Add a service description - cost, availability, expected date of fulfillment

• Make them accessible via mobile app as well

• Take a phased approach in implementing service catalog across departments

Step 4 - Automate the workflow

Understand service request workflows from the time of request placement until fulfillment. At the same time, identify the right teams and assign clear responsibilities. Most businesses follow service request approvals—automate workflows to improve efficiency. Bridge the gap by establishing a strong communication channel with other teams.

Service request automation use cases include:

• Automatic approval workflow that includes multi-stage approval

• Automatic provisioning or de-provisioning of common requests

• Creation of change requests based on service request type

Step 5 - Review existing processes

Review the current process using end-user feedback as the benchmark. A thorough review process identifies gaps in what new items you need to add or what existing service items to update. Monitor the performance based on ITSM KPIs such as number of service requests received vs resolved, or SLA consistency. Communicate the performance to management and improve based on user expectations.

Success measurement and ongoing evolution of self-service catalogs

You've set up your self-service catalog, but the work doesn't stop there. It’s imperative to monitor the performance of your catalog. Why? Because a keen understanding of impact will drive opportunities for further improvement and efficiency.

Keeping an eye on your catalog's performance ensures it meets user needs. Though, the real magic lies in the details — it's about which metrics to track: 

• User engagement: Track how often and how long users interact with the catalog. Are they finding what they need?

• Request fulfillment time: This shows how long it takes to complete a service request. The faster, the better.

• User feedback & satisfaction: Gather feedback directly. If users are happy, you're on the right track.

• Number of incidents: A high number of incidents suggests problems in service delivery or the catalog itself.

• Service usage: Which services are popular? Which ones aren't? This information fine-tunes offerings by giving you direction on what to improve.

But don't just collect data—act on it. See a service that's barely used? Maybe it's time to rethink its placement or even whether it should be there. Are users facing delays? Dive into the workflows to uncover why.

Issues will pop up (they always do). But the goal is to be proactive. If you notice consistent slowdowns during certain times, maybe you're facing a system bottleneck. Perhaps you need to allocate more resources during peak times. Maybe a process in the backend is more complex than it needs to be. 

Remember, proactive ITSM benefits the entire organization and saves you from bigger headaches down the line.

The success of your catalog isn't just about its launch — it's about continuous improvement. Keep your eyes on the data, listen to your users, and don't be afraid to make changes.

Choosing the right self-service catalog solution for your needs

Choosing the right self-service catalog isn't just about ticking boxes—it's about matching solutions to your unique needs.

• Consider your business size. Enterprises might require more robust features, while SMBs may prioritize ease-of-use. But remember, size doesn't dictate complexity. Sometimes, a small team has big tech needs.

• Industry matters. Are you in healthcare, finance, or education? Different sectors have varied compliance and operational demands. Always choose a solution that speaks your industry's language.

Freshservice’s self-service catalog solution isn't just feature-rich—it's right-sized model scales with your needs. Discover why Freshservice is a beloved IT solution for organizations everywhere today.