© 2011 Dov Trietsch

What is a good SLA?

I have frequently pondered about Service Level Agreements (SLA). Yesterday after ordering and while waiting, and waiting, and waiting for the food to arrive, I passed the time reading and re-reading the restaurant menu (again and again..) until I noticed their very interesting SLA.

Because (as promised) we had to wait even longer and the conversation around me was mostly in Russian, I ended doodling some of my thoughts of the menu, on the menu.

People are both providers and consumers of services.

As a service consumer – maybe the SLA above sucks – though to be honest, had the service been better, I would not have noticed this and you, the reader, would have been spared this rambling monograph.

As a provider, I think it’s great!

Because I provide services in the form of business software, I extend the idea to the following principles of design:

1: Wygiwyg. You guessed it. What You Get Is What You Get.

2: Ugiwugi.  U Get It When U Get It.

How’s this for a developer friendly SLA?

I’ll never be off the spec, or late.

And BTW, the food was good, so when I finally got what I got, I liked it.

That's All Folks!!