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In an increasingly tense competitive environment, SMEs want to improve their productivity and efficiency, to satisfy customers by respecting their commitments, to control costs and to reduce risks (Ghobakhloo, Hong, & Sadegh, 2012). In fact, SMEs face a number of management challenges on a daily basis. They are often managed by a single person who ensures the role of leader, manager and human resources manager. Reconciling all these roles and leading the company to a high level of productivity, profitability and quality is a major challenge. In their book, the authors Nana Hamilton and Randy A. Steinberg (Hamilton, 2009) demonstrate that this style of management has a direct impact on the quality of services perceived by clients.
Among the various frameworks available for IT departments to manage IT production, ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is recognized as the most structured and effective framework that meets three business management objectives: aligning services, improving quality and reducing costs. Yet, the scope of this framework can give the impression that its adoption is complex.
In this context, (Loignin, 2012) have proposed a simple approach for the implementation of Service Desk function, management of requests and management of incidents processes within SMEs. According to (Cohn-Muroy, 2016), the first step to take into consideration is to understand the implementation level of the processes implemented currently, which will help to put in place the adequate solutions. These authors have presented the results of the analysis of a survey conducted in 64 SMEs in Spain.
A study of the literature about the subject has shown that:
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There is a lack of models, methodologies and strategies dedicated to the technical adoption of ITIL processes within organizations;
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There is an absence of methods for ITIL processes implementation sequencing order;
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ITIL framework is essentially designed for large enterprises; the adoption of this framework by SMEs is often a source of confusion (El Yamami et al., 2017).
These issues should be taken into account when introducing ITIL good practices in small companies. A solution that considers only the operational or technical aspects without considering the service and human aspects could result in a costly and inefficient solution that would not meet the expectations of different stakeholders.
The aim of this work is to present a practical methodology for implementing a tailored version of ITIL in a small-scale environment. This methodology is formally developed according to Design Science Research Methodology (DSR).
DSR methodology can be defined as a system of principles, practices and procedures to carry out a study (Almeida, 2013). Information system studies can draw advantage from this methodology by using theories from diverse disciplines: computer science, engineering, social science, economics and philosophy to address problems at the intersection of IT and organizations (Hevner, 2004). It focuses on creating and evaluating innovative IT artefacts that enable organizations to address important information-related tasks (Dahanayake & Thalheim, 2011).
Since it is difficult for researchers to distinguish their works from practice activities such as consulting, (Peffers et al., 2007) have developed a design science research methodology (DSRM) for the production and presentation of design science research in information system. DSRM includes six steps: step1: Problem identification and motivation, Step2: Define the objectives for a solution, Step3: Design and development, Step4: Demonstration, Step5: Evaluation, Step6: Communication).
We describe below the design process followed for the development of our proposed artefact: