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This SLA Policy explains what a Service Level is, what “Guaranteed Response Time” means in practice, and how it interacts with ticket handling under the Technical Support Policy. This Policy is incorporated into, and forms an adjunct to, the Framework Agreement. If there is any inconsistency between this Policy and the Framework Agreement, the Framework Agreement takes precedence.
An SLA is not a standalone contract. It is an operational service guarantee (primarily response time within coverage) that forms part of GEN’s service provision and is incorporated into the Framework Agreement.
GEN service levels are standardised and non-negotiable: they are not bespoke, flexible, or individually redefined per customer. The published SLA set is designed to cover common and complex operational requirements. The SLA(s) required for your environment should be discussed with your Account Manager, who will apply the required configuration changes within the HelpDesk.
A Service Level is an agreed operating envelope for support. It defines (i) when GEN is deemed “in coverage” for a ticket (coverage window), and (ii) the guaranteed response time within that coverage window. Higher service levels typically mean faster response windows and broader coverage (for example, longer business hours or 24/7).
“Guaranteed Response Time” is the maximum time for a ticket to be picked up within the agreed SLA coverage. It is not a guarantee of time-to-resolution. Resolution depends on the nature of the issue, information quality, access, change controls, third-party dependencies, and other constraints.
The Start Time Metric for any SLA is the date/time the ticket is raised in the correct HelpDesk channel (Help Topic) and department by an authorised customer contact through the HelpDesk web portal. Service Levels vary by Help Topic, Department, User and Organisation. If a ticket is raised into an incorrect queue and then moved, the start metric resets so the SLA is measured against the correct service area.
If GEN does not pick up a ticket within the agreed SLA response time (as measured from the Start Time Metric within coverage), GEN will still handle the ticket, but that specific ticket (and directly related sub-tickets/tasks) will be without charge. This is deliberately a straightforward remedy: the labour is free, whatever it turns out to amount to. It replaces any system of service credits or compensation, and no other remedy arises from a missed response window.
This applies only to tickets raised by you. That means a ticket raised by one of your people through the HelpDesk portal, or raised by GEN at your request following a call, email or chat. It does not apply to tickets generated automatically by monitoring or alerting, to planned or preventative maintenance, to scheduled tasks, or to any ticket GEN raises on its own initiative, none of which carry a response window in the first place.
It also does not apply where the ticket arises from, or relates to systems affected by, a change made outside GEN's control, or an environment under Shared Management, as described in Section 8.2.2.3 of the Framework Agreement.
GEN does not operate on the basis of long-term “contracted commitments” for support outcomes. If you are unhappy with the service received for any ticket or engagement, raise this with your Account Manager who will investigate and address concerns in line with the Framework Agreement and incorporated policies.
SLA operates within the HelpDesk process. For how tickets are raised, triaged, routed, documented, and handled, see the Technical Support Policy.
The table below shows the published SLA levels and their response windows. These windows define when a ticket is considered “in coverage” for that SLA. All times shown are in the Europe/London timezone. Work outside of coverage may be billed at an out-of-coverage (OOC) rate where applicable; see Support Rates.
| SLA | Guaranteed Response | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
| SLA1 | 1 Day M-F 09:00-17:00 Europe/London | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | ||
| SLA2 | 1 Day M-F 09:00-17:00 Europe/London | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | 09:00-17:00 | ||
| SLA3 | 4 Hours M-F 09:00-18:00 Europe/London | 09:00-18:00 | 09:00-18:00 | 09:00-18:00 | 09:00-18:00 | 09:00-18:00 | ||
| SLA4 | 4 Hours M-F 08:00-20:00 Europe/London | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | ||
| SLA5 | 1 Hour S-S 08:00-20:00 Europe/London | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | 08:00-20:00 | ||
| SLA6 | 4 Hour 24/7 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 |
| SLA7 | 2 Hour 24/7 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 |
| SLA8 | 1 Hour 24/7 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 |
| SLA9 | 30 Minute 24/7 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 | 00:00-23:59 |
Service Levels and charging are inter-related. Faster response windows and broader coverage require additional operational capacity and therefore attract higher rates. The authoritative pricing and rate behaviour (including any SLA multipliers and out-of-coverage charging) is published at Support Rates.
In complex environments, it is normal to apply different SLA levels to different support agreements, services, or business units. For example, a customer may require 24/7 response for critical infrastructure, but a standard business-hours SLA for non-critical applications. There should always be a default (or minimum) agreed SLA that applies where a higher SLA is not explicitly specified.
Escalation is possible within a ticket where an issue becomes critical, impact changes, or you wish to increase the service level during an active incident. Any such escalation request must be recorded in the HelpDesk ticket so it forms part of the audit trail. Where an SLA upgrade is agreed mid-ticket, it is a one-way upgrade for that ticket: you cannot later downgrade the SLA on the same ticket.