Service Life Cycle Management (SLM)

Definition - What does Service Life Cycle Management (SLM) mean?

Service life cycle management (SLM) refers to a strategy that supports service organizations and helps them recognize their gross income potential. This is done by examining the service opportunities proactively as a life cycle instead of a solitary event or set of discrete events. This helps to combine every service-based operation into a solitary, but complex, set of workflows and associated business processes. SLM is defined by industry analyst firm AMR Research.

Techopedia explains Service Life Cycle Management (SLM)

As powerful worldwide competition cuts down product sales margins, global vendors are beginning to understand and appreciate the significance of customer-centric business. This has led many businesses to search for better ways to distinguish their products and gain long-lasting customer loyalty, as well as discover new profit sources. This movement triggered the growth of SLM, which is an initiative tailored to servicing a business's after-market. Service life cycle management is different from product life cycle management (PLM), which examines the entire life cycle of a product, rather than the organization as a whole.

Service management software used in SLM lets manufacturers plan their service resources. It also helps them to efficiently handle responsibilities, partners and costs of offered services. These solutions also empower staff by making additional actionable data promptly available, both in the office and in the field.

SLM includes the following vital elements:
  • Workforce administration
  • Components planning and forecasting
  • Enterprise asset management
  • Reverse logistics
  • Knowledge administration
  • Contract management
  • Returns and repair management
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