Laser surface hardening technologies have been used to improve characteristics of wear and to enhance the fatigue resistance fur mold parts. The objective of this research work is to investigate the influence of the process parameters, such as power of laser and defocused spot position, on the characteristics of laser surface hardening for the case of SKD61 steel. CW Nd:YAG laser is selected as the heat source. The optical lens with the elliptical profile is designed to obtain a wide surface hardening area with a uniform hardness. From the results of the experiments, it has been shown that the maximum average hardness is approximatly 780 Hv when the power, focal position and the travel of laser are 1,095 W, 0mm and 0.3 m/min, respectively. In samples treated with lower scanning speeds, some small carbide particles appear in the interdendritic regions. This region contains fine martensite and carbide in proportions which depend on the local thermal cycle.