• Problem resolution: Once a permanent fix has been identified, it should be implemented as soon as possible. However, there may be good reasons for not doing this immediately. The reasons are similar to the reasons why organisations live with workarounds and include cost and risk. Additionally, an immediate fix may require a service outage which is not justifiable in the short term. A request for change (RFC) should be raised and progressed for any required change identified.
• Problem closure: Problem records should be closed once a change has
successfully been applied. It is important that the problem record stays open until it is certain that the problem has been resolved. Checking that the
problem has been resolved should be undertaken via testing. It may take some time to ensure that a fix has been successful, for example it may be the next time a particular process is used such as end of day, end of month, end of quarter, year-end or end of tax year.
• Major problem review: Whenever a major problem has occurred, a major problem review should be undertaken. Each organisation will have its own definition of a major problem based on the impact and urgency. It is crucial that these reviews look at lessons learnt rather than becoming ‘allocation of blame’ sessions. The output from a major problem review ought to include what went well, what went badly, what could be done better in the future, how could the problem have been prevented and how could the impact of the problem have been reduced.