Difference between reactive and proactive
There are two parts of problem management. Reactive problem management responds to incidents and problems that occur. The proactive side of problem management is concerned with preventing incidents and problems occuring. Proactive problem management is often triggered by continual service improvement.
A good analogy is to consider a Fire Service. Any Fire Service is going to be involved in fighting fires. This is the reactive part of their role. All Fire Services are also involved in fire prevention by raising public awareness and the installation and testing of smoke alarms and sensors. This is the proactive side. Problem management should have a similar split, ensuring that resources
are involved in longer-term problem prevention as well as the here and now
reactive response to problems and incidents. It is often difficult to release resources to the proactive side, especially when the reactive demands are high, but it is proactive problem prevention that allows organisations to become more mature in their service management.