Product managers are under pressure: expectations from the business, dependencies on IT, operational hustle and bustle. Anyone who doesn’t know which service commitments are realistic in this complex situation—and where their limits lie—will quickly lose trust and control.
70% of product managers do not know their SLAs precisely.
This is not a statistic from a trend study, but a real observation from our customer projects. And it has consequences: decisions are based on assumptions. Communication becomes unclear and technical problems escalate – even though they could have been avoided with clear expectation management.
SLAs are not just a technical document – they are a key management tool for everyone responsible for digital products.
What exactly are SLAs?
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) defines how well an IT service must perform. It provides a binding description of exactly what is to be delivered, the quality of delivery, and what happens if these requirements are not met.
For example:
- Response times in the event of failures or bugs
- Time to problem resolution (e.g., for incident priorities)
- Availability promises (e.g., 99.5% uptime)
- Communication channels & escalation mechanisms
SLAs are therefore not just a contract between the service provider and the client, but a kind of “insurance” that says: You can rely on this. And that is beyond our commitment.
The SLA specifies which services a service provider provides and which quality standards must be met.
Why product managers need to know their SLAs
Product managers are not usually technicians. But they are translators—between business requirements, user expectations, and technical reality. And that’s exactly why it’s so important for them to understand SLAs.
Here are 5 reasons why SLAs should be part of every product responsibility policy:
- Set realistic expectations: If you don’t know how quickly bugs will be fixed or what response time has been agreed upon, you can’t make reliable commitments internally—and you risk disappointing stakeholders.
- Take responsibility: Product managers are accountable for “their” product. They need to know where the service limits lie – and how these affect the user experience.
- Optimize processes: Frequent SLA violations are not isolated incidents, but a signal. Those who recognize them can initiate improvements at an early stage.
- Manage priorities better: When SLAs are transparent, product managers can better weigh up what needs to be escalated immediately and what can wait.
- Communicate more clearly: Those who master the language of SLAs gain credibility – both with the business and with IT.
SLA responsibility is not a one-way street
Reality shows that many SLAs are defined by IT or purchasing without the active involvement of the specialist department. This often leads to inappropriate agreements and a lack of transparency.
It is therefore better if SLAs are negotiated and understood jointly. Only then can a balance be struck between requirements and feasibility. And only then can an SLA reveal its true value—namely, creating trust.
A shared understanding in the SLA builds trust and strengthens the partnership. (Source: Adobe Stock – Fahad)
Common issues when SLAs are unknown or unrealistic
leads to conflicts, friction losses, and poor decisions—both in day-to-day operations and in strategic discussions. This often results in a vicious circle of misunderstandings and recriminations that could easily be avoided.
- A bug in the live system remains unresolved for days, even though the department expected a response within minutes.
- IT delivers stable performance, but there are complaints because the service level does not meet expectations.
- On the customer side, 24/7 support is advertised, but the SLA specifies a response time on the next business day.
- Product managers are unaware that an SLA exists until something goes wrong.
These situations are not exceptions, but symptoms of a structural problem: a lack of SLA expertise in product management.
How you, as a product manager, can make smart use of SLAs
Product managers do not have to write SLAs themselves—but they should understand them, enforce them, and be able to use them in everyday life. Knowledge of service levels is not a technical detail, but a strategic management tool for managing expectations realistically and strengthening accountability.
How to successfully implement SLAs in practice:
- Enforce SLAs: If there is no clear agreement, initiate one.
- Understand SLAs: Don’t just read them, discuss them with IT. What exactly does “response” mean, for example?
- Make SLAs visible: Make it clear to your team and stakeholders what has been agreed upon.
- Use the SLA as a control mechanism: Link escalations and KPIs to the SLA. This will create transparency and trust.
- Develop the SLA together: SLAs are not static documents, but living agreements.
Responsibility requires clarity
SLAs are not IT toys, but rather the basis for realistic planning, credible communication, and reliable services. Those who understand them can actively manage expectations. Those who ignore them quickly find themselves overwhelmed.
This is especially true for internal product managers: only those who know the rules of the game can truly lead.
flowciety supports product managers and IT teams in establishing the right structures and processes for reliable digital services. With methodological depth, technical experience, and an eye for the truly crucial interfaces between business and IT. So that SLAs not only exist, but also work.
Get our Whitepaper on IT Architecture (in German) – and learn how to lay the technical foundations on which sustainable product responsibility and stable service levels can truly be built.
Source header image: Adobe Stock – mod
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