TABLE 9.

Roles and responsibilities for service agreements

Activity	Role(s) and/or responsibility(ies)
	Institution	Microbiology laboratory management	Microbiology staff
Determine the need for service agreements	Provide the method to enter into a service agreement	Review operations to determine what service agreements are needed	Provide data to drive the decision for service agreements
Entering into service agreements	Maintain the system that allows procurement of service agreements and good relationships with providers	Work with business analyst to facilitate development of appropriate service agreements	Maintain detailed records of services provided
		Identify expense budget for providing the services to ensure continuation of service agreements across fiscal years and budget periods, ensuring uninterrupted service coverage
		Identify requirements to be provided by the service agreement
Monitoring service agreements	Ensure that service agreements are kept current, renewed, or cancelled	Review the service agreement to make certain that terms are met	Understand and adhere to the terms of the service agreement
		Analyze data on the performance of the service agreement
		Monitor the performance of the service agreement