A categorization scheme for SLA metrics

Abstract

Effective SLAs are extremely important to assure business continuity, customer satisfaction and trust. The metrics used to measure and manage performance compliance to SLA commitments are the heart of a successful agreement and are a critical long term success factor. Lack of experience in the use and automation of performance metrics causes problems for many organizations as they attempt to formulate their SLA strategies and set the metrics needed to support those strategies. This paper contributes to a systematic categorization of SLA contents with a particular focus on SLA metrics. The intended goal is to support the design and implementation of automatable SLAs based on efficient metrics for automated monitoring and reporting. The categorization facilitates design decisions, analysis of existing SLAs and helps to identify responsibilities for critical IT processes in disruption management during the execution of SLAs.