Practice Relationship-Management

Relationship management
ITIL® 4 Practice Guide

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24th
February
2020
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Contents
1 About this document 3
2 General Information 4
3 Value streams and processes 15
4 Organizations and people 20
5 Information and technology 24
6 Partners and suppliers 26
7 Important reminder 27
8 Acknowledgements 28
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1 About this document

This document provides practical guidance for the relationship management practice. It is split
into five main sections, covering:
● general information about the practice

● the practice’s processes and activities and their roles in the service value chain
● the organizations and people involved in the practice
● the information and technology supporting the practice
● considerations for partners and suppliers for the practice.
1.1 ITIL® 4 QUALIFICATION SCHEME

Selected content from this document is examinable as a part of the following syllabus:
● ITIL Specialist Drive Stakeholder Value
Please refer to the respective syllabus document for details.
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2 General Information
2.1 PURPOSE AND DESCRIPTION
Key message
The purpose of the relationship management practice is to establish and nurture the links
between the organization and its stakeholders at strategic and tactical levels. It includes
the identification, analysis, monitoring, and continual improvement of relationships with
and between stakeholders.
The relationship management practice is focused on ensuring successful relationships within an

organization, as well as between an organization and external parties, including: customers, users,
partners, suppliers, and others. To make this possible, this practice aims to establish a common
approach to relationships and relationship management that can be adopted and followed across
the organization. This approach is an important component of an organization’s culture.
In the context of an organization’s culture, the relationship management practice may include:
● shared or mutually recognized goals
● no-blame cooperation and collaboration
● continuous learning
● open and transparent communications
● conflict prevention and mediation.
The relationship management practice can address the relationships between individuals, teams,
or larger groups of stakeholders. The identification and management of stakeholders and their
interests is also an important aspect of this practice. Stakeholders may include:
● internal teams and individual team members
● managers
● executives
● auditors and other controls
● shareholders
● customers
● users
● sponsors
● investors and shareholders
● governments and regulators
● competitors
● partners and suppliers
● various social groups
● professional communities.
Both internal and external relationship management practices should address the cultural
differences between the individuals and groups involved, as well as other differentiating factors,
including whether the relationship is:
● commercial or non-commercial
● formal or informal
● group or individual
● direct or indirect
● professional or personal
● voluntary or compulsory
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● equal or hierarchical.
There are multiple typologies for relationship management based on these and other factors, and
organizations adopt the most relevant and effective approaches for particular situations.
Key message
Any type of relationship is an interaction between people, therefore, human nature and values
should be accounted for whenever people connect with each other.
2.2 TERMS AND CONCEPTS
2.2.1 Types of relationships

People interact and relate to others within organizations in different ways. Most people are likely
involved in several relationships, performing a range of roles that can conflict with one another.
Organizations are complex systems which consist of several smaller systems. Every person or group
participates in several subsystems and every group itself forms a system.
There are a few types of relationships that may be noticed within an organization. As organizations
are complex, some relationship types will overlap and it is not easy to arrange clear boundaries
between these types. Yet, it is useful to be able to distinguish and be aware of the relationship
types necessary to build an environment where relationships serve organizational goals and
continually evolve.
Relationship between individuals and teams

Individuals in both permanent and temporary teams build relationships that are influenced by their
individual cultures, as well as the cultures of their team and organization. Every type of
relationship is driven by implicit and explicit norms and expectations regarding exchange, equity,
intimacy, commitment, trust, coordination, and communication.
Social exchange theory argues that individuals only pursue relationships for as long as the
relationship is satisfactory in terms of the rewards and cost. Yet, the reward and cost of the
relationship depends on the type of relationship. Relationships can be characterized as either
communal or exchange oriented, and these two types define differences in norms and expectations
between the relationship partners.
Exchange relationships are transactional and utility-oriented. It is commonly assumed that

workplace and business relationships are examples of an exchange relationship.
Communal relationships usually provide benefits in response to needs (for example by offering
help, gifts or providing emotional support) and to express a sincere concern for the other person.
In communal relationships, no immediate exchange is expected, and the partners are not obliged
to reciprocate a benefit that they have received. Relationships between friends and family
members are usually examples of communal relationships.
Similarly, relationships between teams may demonstrate features of cooperation or collaboration.
Definitions:
Cooperation
Working with others to achieve your own goals.
Collaboration
Working with others to achieve common shared goals.
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A qualitative study of firm-to-firm relationships by D. Haytko 1 found that there were three types of
work relationships:
● business associate
● business friend
● personal friend.
The three relationship types vary in the amount of information disclosed between the partners,
the resulting level of intimacy, and the trust between them.
As described in Table 2.1, this typology can be characterized by the different levels of
communality, from being a purely exchange-based relationship, to a more communal relationship.
Table 2.1 Examples of the most common types of relationships in organizations 2.
Relationship Business associate Business friend Personal friend

characteristics
Degree of communality Low Medium High
Helping behaviour Low Medium High
Conversation Only essential topics Medium level of non- A lot of non-essential

essential topics topics
Self-disclosure None Medium Highly intimate
Trust Low Medium High
Performance control High Medium Low
Response to social needs, Low Supportive response to Supportive response to

empathy social needs social needs and
emotional stress
Obligation for High level of obligation Some level of obligation Low level of obligation
exchange/repay to return comparable for equal, immediate
benefit immediately repayment
Emerging paradigms of work, such as Agile methods, are more effective in teams where more
communal, friendship-like relationships are established. In other words, today’s ways of
management are based on communal and collaborative relationships rather than on eхchange,
control, and obligations. When organizations consider adopting emerging ways of work and
management, it is important to consider the current organizational culture, the dominant type of
work relationships, and the effort required to evolve to a collaborative work culture.
Relationship between organizations

Organizations, like individuals and teams, engage in different types of relationships that can be
characterized by different levels of communality. ITIL® 4: Drive Stakeholder Value describes three
relationship types, similar to those described above.
1
Haytko, D. (2004) Firm-to-firm and interpersonal relationships: Perspectives from advertising
agency account managers. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (32:3), pp. 312-328.
2
Conceptualizing Interpersonal Relationships in agile IS Development:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/50257196 [Accessed 6th January 2020]
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Table 2.2 Types of service relationships between organizations 3
Service relationship Basic relationship Cooperative Partnership

type relationship
Typical focus Support and efficiency Improvement and Innovation and growth
effectiveness
Typical organizational Operational Operational and Operational, tactical,

level involved in the tactical and strategic
relationship
Typical level of Ad hoc, order taker Service provider, Strategic partner

relationship maturity trusted adviser
Typical service types Commercial off-the- Services that must be Custom or bespoke
shelf services, out-of- configured or services with unique
the-box services, customized to fulfil value propositions
highly standardized the needs of the
commodity services, service consumer
or goods supply
Typical types of Standard contracts, Advanced SLAs, Bespoke contracts,

agreement service level experience-based outcome-based
agreements (SLAs), agreements, or agreements, or no
and experience-based outcome-based agreement
agreements, mostly agreements
for mass market
Examples Service consumers Depending on the Services based on

articulate their relationship between service offerings and
expectations quite the service provider products that have
clearly, as the service and the service been planned and built
provider expects. consumer, it can be in accordance with
Examples can be difficult for the requirements specified
found in the provider to fully by the customer
standardized services understand the
offered to a wide outcomes that the Agile product
group of individual service consumer development where
external service wants to achieve. In the service consumer
consumers. This is howsome cases, they will and the service
mobile operators, work together to provider co-create the
broadband service define the desired product in shared
providers, and outcomes. For teams
transport companies example, relationship
usually operate. managers in internal
IT or HR departments
may regularly talk
with customers and
discuss their needs
and expectations.
Generally, non-service relationships between organizations can be described using the same
‘exchange-communality’ scale, with key characteristics such as:
● control versus trust
● exchange versus communality
● protectiveness versus self-disclosure
3
ITIL® 4: Drive Stakeholder Value, 1.2.3, Table 1.2
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● procedures versus experimentation
● separation versus sharing.
Formal exchange-based relationships can be effective in a regulated, predictable, and relatively
simple environments. However, the greater the complexity of the environment, the less effective
these types of relationships become. Collaborative relationships are generally more effective in
complex adaptive systems; this applies to both interpersonal and interorganizational business
relationships.
At the same time, relationships based on trust and collaboration expose people, teams, and
organizations to the misconduct of their peers. As a result, it can be traumatic for individuals and
organizations to end work relationships. To prevent this, a common relationship management
practice approach that promotes the common principles, values, and rules of collaboration should
be established and integrated into the organization’s culture.
2.2.2 Preventing toxic relationships
The successful relationship versus toxic relationship classification is often used in conjunction with
the communality typology described above. Toxic work environments lack enthusiasm and mutual
support; instead they are cynical and distrusting. The four most common types of toxic behaviour
are: criticism, defensiveness, contempt, and obstruction. Naturally, a greater level of trust,
empathy, and collaboration is not possible in organizations where these four behaviours are the
norm. These toxic behaviours can often be found in exchange-based organizations.
However, toxic behaviours can develop in a collaboration-based organization as a result of the

misconduct of individuals or the teams. Broken trust is hard to restore and can prevent trust in the
future. In a team with many members, or in an organization with many teams, these incidents are
hard to prevent, and collaborative organizations are typically more vulnerable to these than
exchange-based organizations. This means that the prevention and mitigation of toxic behaviour is
important in all types of organizations.
2.2.3 Communication
Relationships are built on communication. ITIL® 4: Direct, Plan and Improve highlights principles of
effective communication such as:
● communication is a two-way process
● we are all communicating all the time
● timing and frequency matter
● there is no single method of communicating that works for everyone
● the message is in the medium.
These principles should be incorporated within the organization’s relationship management

practice to increase the effectiveness of communication and the general mutual understanding
between people and the teams within the organization.
2.2.4 Stakeholder management 4

Service consumers and service providers are not the only people involved in the customer journey.
There are many stakeholders who contribute to and benefit from the service relationship between
organizations. These stakeholders may include owners, service provider employees, third-party
suppliers, competitors, regulators, unions, industry organizations, communities, society, and
others.
4
ITIL® 4: Drive Stakeholder Value, 1.2
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There are also many stakeholders within organizations (for example, leaders, managers, and
employees in various roles) and stakeholders outside of them (for example, shareholders,
regulators, auditors, societal groups and communities, and so on) that are not involved in the
service relationship.
A simple method for understanding how each stakeholder affects, or may be affected by, the
organization is to map the stakeholders in a matrix, categorized according to their influence and
interest levels. Figure 2.1 shows an example of stakeholder analysis and mapping.
Figure 2.1 Sample stakeholder map
Relationships with identified stakeholders should be managed according to their influence and
involvement. Stakeholders can be kept satisfied, informed, and monitored with an appropriate
level of communication. Stakeholders and their influence and interest may change over time, so
the stakeholder map should be regularly revisited and amended.
2.2.5 Relationship journey

Relationships are a journey, the steps of which vary depending on the type of relationship
(whether between individuals, an individual and a team, teams, or organizations, and so on).
Nonetheless, all relationships at the highest level include the following steps:
● exploration
● connection
● negotiation
● agreement
● onboarding
● cooperation/collaboration
● review
● offboarding, disconnection.
ITIL® 4: Drive Stakeholder Value describes the service relationship journey with the steps shown in
Table 2.3.
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Table 2.3 Service relationship journey 5
Explore: understand The journey often begins before the service provider and service
markets and consumer have established a relationship. Both parties may explore
stakeholders their own needs and market opportunities for identifying partners
that may contribute to the fulfilment of their respective needs. This
exploration may include aspects such as operational context,
strategic objectives, and organizational capabilities.
Engage: foster A functioning relationship between the service provider, service

relationships consumer, and other stakeholders is an important precondition for
co-creating value through services. Good relationships are a
prerequisite for a cooperative relationship or partnership.
Offer: shape To determine whether the parties may benefit from a mutual
demand and service service relationship, the service consumer and service provider
offerings should build a business case and articulate, shape, and match their
demand and supply in the form of requirements and service
offerings. Products and services can be designed only when the
service consumer needs are well articulated and understood.
Agree: align It is crucial to align expectations, plan value co-creation and

expectations and tracking, and agree service scope and quality before investing.
agree service
Onboard: get on Whether or not the parties come, they must undergo a transition
board or leave the that involves the integration or separation of both parties’
journey resources.
Co-create: provide The service consumer makes use of accessible service provider
and consume resources, consumes the goods provided, and acts together with the
service provider to co-create value based on the agreed service
offerings.
Realize: capture Value must be tracked and managed based on value co-creation
value and improve planning, and improvements must be applied to continually maintain
and increase the service value.
2.3 SCOPE
The relationship management practice supports all value streams and all management practices,
as every value stream and practice relies on people and their relationships.
The scope of the relationship management practice includes:
● developing and promoting an organization-wide approach to relationships and integrating this

approach into the organization’s culture
● identifying and managing stakeholders
● preventing and solving conflicts
● monitoring and maintaining effective and healthy relationships within the organization
● monitoring and maintaining effective and healthy relationships between the organization and
third parties.
5
ITIL® 4 Drive Stakeholder Value, 1.1, Table 1.1
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There are several activities and areas of responsibility that are not included in the
relationship management practice, although they are still closely related to relationships.
These are listed in Table 2.4, along with references to the practices in which they can be
found. It is important to remember that ITIL practices are merely collections of tools to
use in the context of value streams; they should be combined as necessary, depending on
the situation.
Table 2.4 Activities related to the relationship management practice that are described in other
practice guides
Activity Practice guide
Establishing and managing service level Service level management
agreements with customers
Establishing and managing service level Supplier management
agreements with suppliers
Managing human resources Workforce and talent management
Managing organizational changes Organizational change management
Managing ongoing interactions with users Service desk
Managing ongoing interactions with customers Service level management
Managing ongoing interactions with suppliers Supplier management
2.4 PRACTICE SUCCESS FACTORS
Definition: Practice Success Factor
A complex functional component of a practice that is required for the practice to fulfil its purpose.
A practice success factor (PSF) is more than a task or activity; it includes components from all four
dimensions of service management. The nature of the activities and resources of PSFs within a
practice may differ, but together they ensure the effectiveness of the practice.
The relationship management practice includes the following PSFs:

● establishing and continually improving an effective approach to the relationship management
practice across the organization
● ensuring effective and healthy relationships within the organization
● ensuring effective and healthy relationships between the organization and its external
stakeholders.
2.4.1 Establishing and continually improving an effective approach to

relationship management across the organization
A shared approach to relationship management is an important part of the organization’s culture.
It is based on a common set of values and principles adopted by everyone within the organization.
Often, the organization’s values explicitly address concepts such as: openness, collaboration, no-
blame, and psychological safety.
The relationship management practice is applied in conjunction with others (including the
workforce and talent management, strategy management, supplier management practices, and
others) to develop, communicate, and maintain a set of values and principles for relationships. It
is, however, a specific focus of the relationship management practice to ensure that these
principles are translated into effective techniques, rules, and behaviour patterns that are adopted
and practised by everyone within the organization.
The relationship management practice is closely related to the organization’s strategy and
positioning, structure, scale, and all external factors of the PESTLE model. Examples include
formal, conformant structured, and tayloristic organizations operating in a heavily-regulated
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environment on one end of the spectrum, and creative, self-driven, agile organizations operating
in a free and safe environment on the other end of the spectrum.
The accepted approach to relationships and relationship management should be communicated

and accepted by everyone within the organization. This practice is usually part of a wider
organizational culture of communication and fostering, which involves multiple practices, the most
important of important of which are relationship management and workforce and talent
management.
2.4.2 Ensuring effective and healthy relationships within the

organization
The popular statement ‘happy employees make happy customers’ is an example of a wider
correlation between an organization’s culture and its success in relationships with external parties,
including customers. Consequently, successful internal relationships are an important prerequisite
for successful external relationships.
There are multiple groups of stakeholders in every organization. People are grouped by their roles,
level of authority, perception of value provided by the organization, demographic factors,
experience and history in the organization, and other factors. An individual usually belongs to
multiple groups, and these combinations may lead to conflicts, alliances, misunderstandings, and
insights that eventually create risks and opportunities of various kinds.
Over the recent decades the internal relationship management in many organizations has come to
include the protection of previously vulnerable groups of people, such as the disabled, those with
difficult family circumstances, and others. Examples of this approach include gender equality
policies, diversity policies, and other solutions to ensure equal opportunities for all.
Whenever new teams are created in an organization, whether permanent or temporary, a formal
stakeholder analysis and relationship management practice exercise may occur. Other
organizational changes may also trigger a formal assessment and planning of stakeholder groups,
interests, and relationships. In an established work environment, a less formal approach is usually
enough. However, a regular review of the organization’s climate and relationships is recommended
to any organization and team.
2.4.3 Ensuring effective and healthy relationships between the

organization and its external stakeholders
Service relationship
Every organization is a service provider and a service consumer, and therefore involved in multiple
service relationships.
When acting as a service provider, an organization aims to ensure that sponsors, customers, and
users representing service consumers are satisfied with the services provided and with the
relationship in general. These stakeholder groups may have different, and sometimes conflicting
interests. The relationship management practice includes techniques and tools that help to
understand the stakeholders’ interests and ensure that their needs and expectations are managed
and met. The relationship management practice is used in conjunction with the service level
management, service desk, business analysis, and measurement and reporting practices, among
others.
As a service consumer, an organization aims to ensure that its relationships with suppliers and
partners lead to the expected value co-creation and that any consumed services support the
organization’s objectives. The supplier management, architecture management, and service level
management practices are the key practices that support the relationship management practice in
achieving these aims.
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Regardless of its role in the service relationship, organizations use the relationship management
practice to ensure that the relationships are healthy, sustainable, effective, and do not conflict
with the organization’s values, strategy, and objectives.
Non-service relationship
Besides the service relationship, organizations are constantly involved in non-service relationships
with various groups of stakeholders. These groups include, but are not limited to:
● governments and regulators
● societies and communities
● industry competition
● shareholders, investors, and sponsors
● media.
These groups may include stakeholders with different interests and opinions. However,
organizations need to actively manage relationships with influential groups. An important factor in
the success of the relationship management practice is the identification and analysis of these
stakeholders. Other practices are involved in the planning and realization of the resulting
relationship plans. These include the business analysis, strategy management, risk management,
and portfolio management practices, among others.
2.5 KEY METRICS

The effectiveness and performance of the ITIL practices should be assessed within the context of
the value streams to which each practice contributes. As with the performance of any tool, the
practice’s performance can only be assessed within the context of its application. However, tools
can differ greatly in design and quality, and these differences define a tool’s potential or
capability to be effective, when used according to its purpose. Further guidance on metrics, key
performance indicators (KPIs), and other techniques that can help with this can be found in the
measurement and reporting practice guide.
Key metrics for the relationship management practice are mapped to its PSFs. They can be used as
KPIs in the context of value streams to assess the contribution of the practice to the effectiveness
and efficiency of those value streams. Some examples of key metrics are given in Table 2.5.
Table 2.5 Examples of key metrics for the practice success factors
Practice success factors Key metrics
Establishing and continually • Adoption of the common approach to relationship

improving an effective approach management as a part of the organization’s culture
to relationship management • Satisfaction of key stakeholders with the organization’s
across the organization approach to relationship management
• Number and percentage of broken relationships because the
agreed approach was not adopted and followed
Ensuring effective and healthy • Climate in the organization

relationships within the • Employee satisfaction with their relationships in the
organization organization
• Number and percentage of people leaving the organization
because of toxic relationships
Ensuring effective and healthy • The organization’s image in the industry, market, and social
relationships between the media
organization and its external • Satisfaction of key stakeholders with the relationship
stakeholders between the organization and external parties
• Number and percentage of broken relationships because of
the relationship management approach adopted by the
organization
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The correct aggregation of metrics into complex indicators will make it easier to use the data for
the ongoing management of value streams, and for the periodic assessment and continual
improvement of the relationship management practice. There is no single best solution. Metrics
will be based on the overall service strategy and priorities of an organization, as well as on the
goals of the value streams to which the practice contributes.
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3 Value streams and processes

3.1 VALUE STREAM CONTRIBUTION
The relationship management practice contributes to all value streams. It is important to
remember that a value stream is never formed from a single practice. The relationship
management practice combines with other practices to provide high-quality services to consumers.
The main value chain activities to which this practice contributes are:
● plan
● improve
● engage
● design and transition.
The contribution of the relationship management practice to the service value chain is shown in
Figure 3.1.
Figure 3.1 Heat map of the contribution of the relationship management practice to value chain
activities
3.2 PROCESSES
Each practice may include one or more processes and activities that may be necessary to fulfil the
purpose of that practice.
Definition: Process
A set of interrelated or interacting activities that transform inputs into outputs. A process takes
one or more defined inputs and turns them into defined outputs. Processes define the sequence of
actions and their dependencies.
The relationship management practice activities form two main processes:

● managing a common approach to relationships
● managing service relationship journeys.
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3.2.1 Managing a common approach to relationships
This process is focused on defining, agreeing, and promoting a common organization-wide
approach to relationships between various stakeholders.
Table 3.1 Inputs, activities, and outputs of the managing a common approach to relationships
process
Key inputs Activities Key outputs

• Analyse the organization’s • Stakeholder maps
• Organization’s strategy culture, strategy, and • Culture analysis
• Assessment of the stakeholders • Strategic requirements
organization’s culture and • Develop and agree key • Principles of relationships
relationship behaviour principles of relationships • Relationship models
patterns • Develop and agree • Planning, training, and
• Stakeholder information relationship models for key awareness material
stakeholder groups • Relationships review report
• Embed effective behaviour • Improvement initiatives
patterns into daily work
interactions
• Review and adjust the
relationship’s approach and
models
Figure 3.2 shows a workflow diagram of the process.
Figure 3.2 Workflow of the managing a common approach to relationships process
The process may vary, depending on the scale and type of organization, its stakeholders, and
culture. Table 3.2 provides examples of the process activities.
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Table 3.2 Activities of the managing a common approach to relationships process
Activity Example
Analyse the The organization’s leaders (where relevant, supported by external

organization’s culture, consultants) analyse the organization’s culture and how it supports the
strategy, and strategy. They also analyse key internal and external stakeholders. The
stakeholders resulting analysis reports and stakeholder maps are discussed with the
wider management audience to validate the results and raise awareness of
the initiative.
Develop and agree key The organization’s leaders and managers (where relevant, supported by
principles of external consultants) develop and agree the key principles of the internal
relationships and external relationships for the organization. The principles define key
characteristics of relationships with key stakeholder groups, as described
in section 2.2.1.
Develop and agree For every key stakeholder group, a relationship model is developed and
relationship models for agreed. A relationship model includes: level of communality, relationship
key stakeholder groups journey steps, key activities, responsibilities, risks, opportunities at every
step of the journey, and recommended behaviour patterns.
Embed effective The agreed principles and models are communicated and discussed across
behaviour patterns into the organization. Depending on the model, this can be done as formal
daily work interactions training (i.e. for relationships with customers, users, media, auditors, and
so on) or woven into the wider cultural awareness and development
programmes (for internal relationships). The workforce and talent
management, organizational change management, strategy management,
service desk, service level management, and supplier management
practices are usually involved in this activity (depending on the
relationship model being promoted).
Review and adjust the The organization’s leaders and managers monitor and review adoption and
relationship’s approach effectiveness of the agreed relationship principles and models. This is
and models done on an event-based (relationship incidents, conflicts, crises) and
interval-based (usually annual) basis. The resulting findings and initiatives
are used as input for continual improvement.
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3.2.2 Managing service relationship journeys
This process is focused on effective ongoing management of relationships with various
stakeholders, in line with agreed relationship models.
Table 3.3 Inputs, activities, and outputs of the managing service relationship journeys process
Key inputs Activities Key outputs

• Relationship principles and • Identify stakeholders and • Lessons learned,
models relationship model improvement initiatives
• Training and awareness • Verify and adjust • Relationship records
materials relationship model to the according to the model
• Roles and responsibilities situation
• Communication with • Follow the relationship
stakeholders model
• Manage exceptions
• Review the relationship
Figure 3.3 shows a workflow diagram of the process.
Figure 3.3 Workflow of the managing service relationship journeys process
The process may vary, depending on nature of the relationships and relationship journey. Table 3.4
provides examples of the process activities.
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Table 3.4 Activities of the managing service relationship journeys process
Activity Individuals’ work relationship Service relationship with external
service consumer
Identify stakeholders When a new team member joins a The organization’s relationship agent
and relationship model team, or a new team is created, (such as a marketing or sales person,
individuals familiarize themselves specialist, or manager) contacts or is
with each other. In some cases, the contacted by a representative of a
team lead communicates the potential service consumer. The
relationship principles, in others the relationship agent or relationship
principles are implicit. manager assesses the consumer and
identifies an appropriate relationship
model.
Verify and adjust The relationship model is rarely The relationship manager confirms or
relationship model to communicated explicitly, but is assigns a relationship agent for the
the situation norms-driven and values-driven. journey and confirms or adjusts the
However, in some cases, there is a relationship model.
more formal approach, including
journey mapping and reflection on
the journey’s progress.
Follow the relationship The relationship journey is monitored Assigned relationship agent(s) follow
model and, where needed, steered by team the relationship model in interactions
leads, organization managers, and with the service consumer
employees themselves. representatives and guide other
members of the organization in their
communication with the service
consumer.
Manage exceptions When conflicts arise, or the When conflicts arise or the
relationship model does not prove to relationship model does not prove to
be effective, managers and HR help be effective, the relationship agent
to resolve the issue and, where and the relationship manager help to
relevant, suggest an update for the resolve the issue and, where
model. relevant, suggest an update for the
model
Review the relationship Managers and team leads (in a Team members involved in
collaborative relationship, also team relationships with the service
members) review the relationship consumer, relationship agent(s), and
(following changes; when the relationship manager(s) review the
relationship is ending; or relationship (following changes;
periodically). The resulting findings, when the relationship is ending; or
including lessons learned and periodically). The resulting findings,
improvement initiatives, are including lessons learned and
communicated to the relevant improvement initiatives, are
parties and used for continual communicated to the relevant
improvement. parties and used for continual
improvement.
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4 Organizations and people

4.1 ROLES, COMPETENCIES, AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The practice guides do not describe the practice management roles such as practice owners,
practice lead, or practice coach. They focus instead on the specialist roles that are specific to
each practice. The structure and naming of each role may differ from organization to organization,
so any roles defined in ITIL should not be treated as mandatory, or even recommended.
Remember, roles are not job titles. One person can take on multiple roles and one role can be
assigned to multiple people.
Roles are described in the context of processes and activities. Each role is characterized with a
competency profile based on the model shown in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1 Competency codes and profiles
Competency code Competency profile (activities and skills)
L Leader Decision-making, delegating, overseeing other activities, providing

incentives and motivation, and evaluating outcomes
A Administrator Assigning and prioritizing tasks, record-keeping, ongoing

reporting, and initiating basic improvements
C Coordinator/communicator Coordinating multiple parties, maintaining

communication between stakeholders, and running awareness campaigns
M Methods and techniques expert Designing and implementing work techniques,

documenting procedures, consulting on processes, work analysis, and continual
improvement
T Technical expert Providing technical (IT) expertise and conducting expertise-

based assignments
Examples of other roles which can be involved in relationship management activities are listed in
Table 4.2, together with the associated competency profiles and specific skills.
Table 4.2 Examples of roles with responsibility for the service catalogue management practice
activities
Activity Responsible roles Competency profile Specific skills
Managing a common approach to relationships
Analyse the organization’s • Organization’s LC Good understanding of

culture, strategy, and leaders the organization’s
stakeholders • HR specialists
• Organizational • strategy
culture • culture
• Relationship • stakeholders
management • relationship types
consultants
Develop and agree the key • Organization’s LMCA Good understanding of

principles of relationships leaders the organization’s
• HR specialists
• Organizational • strategy culture
culture • stakeholders
• Relationship • relationship types
management • Expertise in the
relationship
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consultants management
• Relationship practice
managers
• MCA • Expertise in the
Develop and agree • Organization’s relationship
relationship models for key leaders managers management
stakeholder groups • Relationship practice
managers Understanding of the
• Relationship organization’s
management • strategy
consultants • good knowledge of
the key
stakeholders and
their interests
Embed effective behaviour • HR specialists LCA Good understanding of

patterns into daily work • Organization’s the
interactions leaders and • organizational
managers culture
• Relationship • internal
managers stakeholders
• Community • Good knowledge
leaders of the agreed
models. Excellent
leadership and
communication
skills
Review and adjust the • Organization’s AC • Analytical skills

relationship’s approach and leaders
models • HR specialists Good understanding
• Organization of the organization’s
culture • strategy
• Consultants • culture
• Relationship stakeholders
managers • relationship types
Managing service relationship journeys
Identify stakeholders and • Relationship C Understanding of the

relationship model agents
• Relationship • organization’s
managers relationship
• Sales and principles
marketing • key stakeholders
specialists
• Specialists and
managers
Verify and adjust • Relationship CA • Good knowledge

relationship model to the managers of key
situation • Relationship stakeholders
agents • relationship
models
Good knowledge of the

organization’s
• personnel
• roles
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• responsibilities
Follow the relationship • Relationship CAT • Good knowledge

model managers of the relationship
• Relationship models and of the
agents stakeholder(s) in
• Specialists question
(supplier • Good
managers, communication
Internal auditors, skills
service desk
agents, account
managers, and so
on)
Manage exceptions • Relationship CLA • Great

managers communication
• HR specialists and mediation
• Team leads skills, good
• Relationship knowledge of the
agents stakeholders and
their interests
leadership skills
• Excellent
knowledge of the
relationship
context
Review the relationship • Relationship ACM Understanding of the

managers organization’s
• Relationship • relationship
agents principles
• Team managers, • key stakeholders
and specialists • analytical skills
involved in • communication
relationships skills
4.1.1 Relationship manager and relationship agent

There are two roles specific to the relationship management practice: the relationship manager
and the relationship agent.
The relationship manager is responsible for:

● developing and maintaining relationship models
● communicating, training, and supporting relationship agents
● reviewing relationships
● coordinating relationship journeys
● managing exceptions in relationship journeys.
The relationship manager role can be performed by a team manager, business line manager, or HR
manager along with other roles, or it can be a dedicated position. The former is typical for internal
relationships and relationships with minor external stakeholders; the latter is usual for
relationships with customers (such as the customer relationship manager), media (such as the
media relationship manager), regulators (such as the regulatory liaison manager), and so on.
It is unusual to have a general relationship manager role that is responsible for all types of
relationships. In many cases (mostly to manage external relationships), a specific group of
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stakeholders or a major stakeholder are assigned a dedicated relationship agent, who represents
the organization in the relationship journey. This role can be performed by account managers,
personal advisors, customer relationship managers, sales agents, and others, depending on the
organizational structure and the type of relationship. Relationship agent is a generic term that is
not usually used by organizations within the context of a relationship journey, as organizations
prefer to name the role in a contextualized way, appealing to the stakeholder’s expectations and
language.
The relationship agent is responsible for:

● maintaining healthy relationships with stakeholders
● following the agreed relationship model
● coordinating ongoing interactions between the stakeholder(s) and members of the organization
● participating in the management of exceptions
● participating in relationship reviews.
4.2 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES AND TEAMS
As described previously, the relationship manager role may be associated with a formal job title. It
is also common to have a dedicated team(s) for the management of relationships with key external
stakeholders. These types of structures are usually found in organizations that are focused on
commercial relationships with service consumers.
The internal relationship management practice is not usually supported with dedicated
organizational structures. However, in large complex organizations, HR teams may include
dedicated specialists or teams focused on organizational culture and the relationship aspects of it.
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5 Information and technology

5.1 INFORMATION EXCHANGE
The effectiveness of the relationship management practice is based on the quality of the
information used. This includes, but is not limited to, information about:
● organizational strategy and values
● organizational culture
● organizational structure
● stakeholder information
● partners and suppliers
● policies and requirements which regulate organizational structure
● stakeholder satisfaction.
This information may take various forms. The key inputs and outputs of the relationship
management practice are listed in section 3.
5.2 AUTOMATION AND TOOLING

In most cases, the relationship management practice can benefit from automation. Where
this is possible and effective, it may involve the solutions outlined in Table 5.1.
Table 5.1 Automation solutions for relationship management activities
Process activity Means of automation Key functionality Impact on the

effectiveness of the
practice
Managing a common approach to relationships
Analyse the Collaboration and Collaboration, Low

organization’s culture, communication tools information exchange
strategy, and
stakeholders
Develop and agree key Mind mapping, Decision making support Low
principles of brainstorming tools
relationships
Develop and agree CRM tools, workflow Journey mapping, Medium/High

relationship models for tools, communication communication of
key stakeholder groups and collaboration tools training, and awareness
manuals
Embed effective Communication and Support of promotion, Medium

behaviour patterns into collaboration tools, training and awareness
daily work interactions presentation tools,
portals
Review and adjust the Collaboration and Collaboration, Medium

relationship’s approach communication tools, information exchange,
and models reporting tools report creation and
distribution
Managing service relationship journeys
Identify stakeholders Communication and Exploration, contact, Medium/High

and relationship model collaboration tools and initial
communication
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Verify and adjust CRM tools, workflow Journey mapping, High

relationship model to tools, knowledge knowledge management
the situation management tools
Follow the relationship CRM tools, workflow Journey mapping, High

model tools, knowledge knowledge management,
management tools records management,
communication
management
Manage exceptions CRM tools, workflow Journey mapping, Medium

tools, knowledge knowledge management,
management tools, direct communication
collaboration tools
Review the relationship CRM tools, workflow Journey mapping, Medium/High

tools, knowledge knowledge management,
management tools records management,
communication
management
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6 Partners and suppliers

Very few services are delivered using only an organization’s own resources. Most, if not all, depend
on other services. These are often provided by third parties (see section 2.4 of ITIL® Foundation:
ITIL 4 Edition for a model of a service relationship). Relationships and dependencies introduced by
supporting services are described in the practice guides for several practices, including service
design, architecture management, and supplier management.
The relationship management practice is extremely important when it comes to third parties, as
partners and suppliers are key stakeholders and effective and healthy relationships must be
maintained with them. In this respect, all recommendations of this practice apply to the
management of relationships with suppliers and partners. Moreover, the very name of this practice
highlights the distinction between partnership (collaborative communality-based relationships) and
more exchange-based, cooperative relationships with other suppliers.
Where organizations aim to ensure fast and effective relationship management, they usually try to
agree to close cooperation with their partners and suppliers, removing formal bureaucratic
barriers in communication, collaboration, and decision-making. All parties in such relationships
should aim for mutual transparency and visibility of the changes that may affect the other parties.
Some organizations delegate the management of relationships with partners and suppliers to a
service integrator. In this scenario, the integrator is treated as a partner by the organization, and
as partners, they share information needed for a successful relationship management practice as
well as other practices. The service integrator is likely to be involved in managing a common
approach to the relationship process in a consultant and/or relationship manager role. In the
managing service relationship journeys process, the integrator plays the roles of a relationship
agent and a relationship manager.
Other organizations prefer to build and maintain direct relationships with key suppliers and
partners. Despite the higher complexity of this approach, it can be beneficial because of a higher
level of engagement and trust between the parties. See the supplier management practice guide
for more information on service integration and management and disintermediation.
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7 Important reminder
Most of the content of the practice guides should be taken as a suggestion of areas that an
organization might consider when establishing and nurturing their own practices. The practice
guides are catalogues of topics that organizations might think about, not a list of answers. When
using the practice guides, organizations should always follow the ITIL guiding principles:
● focus on value
● start where you are
● progress iteratively with feedback
● collaborate and promote visibility
● think and work holistically
● keep it simple and practical
● optimize and automate.
More information on the guiding principles and their application can be found in section 4.3 of
ITIL® Foundation: ITIL 4 Edition.
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8 Acknowledgements
AXELOS Ltd is grateful to everyone who has contributed to the development of this
guidance. These practice guides incorporate an unprecedented level of enthusiasm and
feedback from across the ITIL community. In particular, AXELOS would like to thank the
following people.
8.1 AUTHORS
Antonina Klentsova, Paul Wigzel.
8.2 REVIEWERS
Roman Jouravlev, Irina Matantseva
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Practice Relationship-Management

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Relationship management

ITIL® 4 Practice Guide

1 About this document

● general information about the practice

1.1 ITIL® 4 QUALIFICATION SCHEME

The relationship management practice is focused on ensuring successful relationships within an

2.2 TERMS AND CONCEPTS

2.2.1 Types of relationships

Relationship between individuals and teams

Exchange relationships are transactional and utility-oriented. It is commonly assumed that

Similarly, relationships between teams may demonstrate features of cooperation or collaboration.

Working with others to achieve your own goals.

Working with others to achieve common shared goals.

Table 2.1 Examples of the most common types of relationships in organizations 2.

Relationship Business associate Business friend Personal friend

Degree of communality Low Medium High

Helping behaviour Low Medium High

Conversation Only essential topics Medium level of non- A lot of non-essential

Self-disclosure None Medium Highly intimate

Trust Low Medium High

Performance control High Medium Low

Response to social needs, Low Supportive response to Supportive response to

Relationship between organizations

Service relationship Basic relationship Cooperative Partnership

Typical organizational Operational Operational and Operational, tactical,

Typical level of Ad hoc, order taker Service provider, Strategic partner

Typical types of Standard contracts, Advanced SLAs, Bespoke contracts,

Examples Service consumers Depending on the Services based on

2.2.2 Preventing toxic relationships

However, toxic behaviours can develop in a collaboration-based organization as a result of the

These principles should be incorporated within the organization’s relationship management

2.2.4 Stakeholder management 4

Figure 2.1 Sample stakeholder map

2.2.5 Relationship journey

Engage: foster A functioning relationship between the service provider, service

Agree: align It is crucial to align expectations, plan value co-creation and

The scope of the relationship management practice includes:

● developing and promoting an organization-wide approach to relationships and integrating this

2.4 PRACTICE SUCCESS FACTORS

Definition: Practice Success Factor

The relationship management practice includes the following PSFs:

2.4.1 Establishing and continually improving an effective approach to

The accepted approach to relationships and relationship management should be communicated

2.4.2 Ensuring effective and healthy relationships within the

2.4.3 Ensuring effective and healthy relationships between the

2.5 KEY METRICS

Practice success factors Key metrics

Establishing and continually • Adoption of the common approach to relationship

Ensuring effective and healthy • Climate in the organization

3 Value streams and processes

The relationship management practice activities form two main processes:

Key inputs Activities Key outputs

Figure 3.2 shows a workflow diagram of the process.

Figure 3.2 Workflow of the managing a common approach to relationships process

Analyse the The organization’s leaders (where relevant, supported by external

Key inputs Activities Key outputs

Figure 3.3 shows a workflow diagram of the process.

Figure 3.3 Workflow of the managing service relationship journeys process

4 Organizations and people

Table 4.1 Competency codes and profiles

Competency code Competency profile (activities and skills)

L Leader Decision-making, delegating, overseeing other activities, providing

A Administrator Assigning and prioritizing tasks, record-keeping, ongoing