The second step is to conduct an objective current-state assessment of existing services and service management practices. This should include consideration of the users' perception of the value being received, along with a review of people's competencies and skills, the processes and procedures involved, the capabilities of the available technological solutions and the prevailing organizational culture. The success of an improvement initiative depends on a clear and accurate understanding of the starting point and the required impact of the initiative.
For example, an organization can measure the current net promoter score (NPS) from a customer satisfaction survey, conduct a benchmark survey against its competitors or review findings of operational statistics or audit reports to understand its current state. If this step is skipped, the current state will not be understood and there will not be an objective baseline measurement against which improvement can be measured.
https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-continual-improvement/

There are many ways in which practices and services can be optimized. Regardless of the specific techniques, the path to optimization follows these high-level steps:
* Understand and agree the context in which the proposed optimization exists
* Assess the current state of the proposed optimization
* Agree what the future state and priorities of the organization should be, focusing on simplification and value
* Ensure the optimization has the appropriate level of stakeholder engagement and commitment
* Execute the improvements in an iterative way
* Continually monitor the impact of optimization
https://www.bmc.com/blogs/itil-guiding-principles/