SLA (Service Level Agreement)

An SLA (Service Level Agreement) records measurable commitments between customer and provider for a defined service. It may include hours, availability, response time, priority, resolution, maintenance, exclusions, dependencies and measurement method. Response does not necessarily mean resolution, and an average can hide critical incidents; each metric needs clear start, pause, data source and time zone. The agreement should also separate supplier and customer duties such as access, approval or required information. Penalties do not replace continuity or correct a poorly designed objective. Review should use reconciled reports, explained exceptions and trends rather than only green percentages. An SLA is useful when it reflects real impact, is operationally achievable and leads to defined actions.