Top 12 ITSM tools

A long time ago, all it took to run an IT service desk was a couple of spare desktops, a phone line, and a bad sense of humor. Now, information technology is the backbone of the enterprise and the job has grown with the responsibilities. Many companies would take a significant hit if a sustained outage shut down just a small corner of their operations. When computers handle every step of every workflow, no computers mean no work gets done. That makes the IT service desk one of the most important functions for keeping a company running and its revenue flowing.

Of course, the complexity of servicing the enterprise has grown considerably since the help-desk days of yore. The marketplace has responded with a burgeoning collection of products to manage the chaos. These IT service management (ITSM) platforms range from standalone products to full suites of tools that handle other chores, such as asset tracking, architectural planning, and performance measurement.

Ticketing portals are the core of ITSM, there to track requests and ensure no one forgets them. At the end of the month or quarter, ITSM platforms generate reports to help companies flag poor service and fix it before it endangers the bottom line.

Many of these packages highlight “self-service” features that save IT time and help the able user diagnose and even fix some problems without IT’s involvement. At the very least, they enable users to fill out trouble tickets and track their progress. Many also have a knowledge base where IT staff can fill out FAQs and how-to pieces for self-starters.

Some ITSM tools can also route tickets to the right person, saving managers from having to funnel decisions. These usually work based on keywords, monitoring ticket queues to send the job to the least busy person who has some of the skills that best fit the description. Some platforms employ artificial intelligence to make the call.