IT KORR Knowledge Center
IT Operations Checklist
A cross-functional checklist covering documentation, change management, incident and problem management, asset management, monitoring, and continuous improvement.
Documentation
- Core systems, network topology, and system configurations are documented and current — not last updated during initial deployment years ago.
- Recovery procedures for critical systems are documented in enough detail that someone other than the original engineer could execute them.
- Documentation has a named owner responsible for keeping it current.
- Access to documentation is centralized and available to everyone who needs it, not scattered across individual inboxes or desktops.
Change Management
- A defined change management process exists in writing, covering how changes are requested, assessed, approved, and implemented.
- The process is actually followed for routine changes, not just invoked for major ones.
- Changes are classified by risk (standard, normal, emergency) with an approval path appropriate to each.
- A rollback plan is documented before a change is implemented, not improvised if something goes wrong.
Incident & Problem Management
- Incidents are logged consistently, with severity, timeline, and resolution captured for every incident — not only major outages.
- Recurring incidents are tracked as problems and investigated for root cause, rather than being resolved the same way every time they recur.
- A defined escalation path exists by severity, so the right people are engaged without delay.
- Post-incident reviews happen for significant incidents, with follow-up actions tracked to completion.
Asset Management
- A current inventory exists of hardware, software, and cloud assets, including ownership and lifecycle status.
- The inventory is reconciled against reality on a defined cadence, not assumed to be accurate indefinitely.
- End-of-life and end-of-support dates are tracked so aging assets are addressed proactively.
- Asset data ties back into change management and incident management, rather than existing as an isolated spreadsheet.
Monitoring
- All critical systems and devices are covered by monitoring — not just the ones that have caused problems before.
- Alert thresholds are tuned to the environment rather than left at vendor defaults, so alerts reflect meaningful signal.
- A defined escalation and on-call path exists for alerts by severity.
- Monitoring coverage is reviewed when new systems are introduced, not only during periodic audits.
Continuous Improvement
- A recurring review cadence exists to assess operational performance — incident trends, change success rate, documentation currency, and monitoring effectiveness.
- Findings from reviews translate into tracked action items, not just discussion.
- Operational maturity is reassessed periodically rather than assumed static once initial processes are in place.
Related Resources
- IT Operations Fundamentals — /knowledge-center/it-operations/it-operations-service-management/it-operations-fundamentals
- IT Operational Maturity Model — /knowledge-center/it-operations/it-operations-service-management/it-operational-maturity-model