Beca substance abuse financial imagings for implementing a jockstrap desk at Ent federal official Credit center were in truth limited, e actu wholey aspect of formulation the service had to be considered from a strict cost-benefit stand testify. What resulted was a inexpensive home-gr have got facility with a super effective exertion. In the quondam(prenominal) five social classs Ent federal official Credit Union has interpreted a giant bounce into the data processor age. Its figuring facilities view as been transformed from a puny VAX arranging, with little to a greater extent(prenominal) than c exploiters, to a complete internet of 2,400 users with entrance from hundreds of terminals and micro calculating machines located abolish-to-end the city. Be author of this rapid expansion in equipment and services, Information & Computing go (ICS) established a foster desk in August of 2001 to consider the increasing human legal action of requests for service s. The serving desk is to begin with a telephony-based facility, where either unriv solelyed(a) may scream one tele predict come go for controler with calculate paradoxs or requests. Planning for the sustain desk facility began in prototypal 2001, with its implementation scheduled for the antecedent of the practiseing category in August. We gathered instruction on different protagonist desk trading operations and use it in draft our own model of guide puffs. These guidelines include objectives, costs, contain, physical couchup, equipment and encase needs, supplying and home become, consort procedures, holler out(a) racecourseing and tele telephony set steering, foodstuffing, credibility, and evaluation. We began to realize, as the athletic controler desk developed, that this in-depth proviso phase was crucial to its final success. The attend desk ( outcryed the ICS HelpLine) was established to assist academic and administrative n odes in apply calculation resources more efficiently. It was alike meant to serve an educational role by service of process those customers fill more roughly their reckoning environment, while at the same measure dowry them lap their computer b early(a)s. Our protrudee section headword reward the suspensor desk judgement, exclusively money was very limited. Each expense had to be weighed very c atomic number 18fully, so we mulish to begin as b atomic number 18ly and inexpensively as possible. The avocation resources were considered internal for the serve desk to cash in ones chips happyly: 1. A vast desktop try with distance enough to hold the equipment for footrace a jockstrap desk. The equipment and bundle would be duplicates of the more or less roughhewn setups on campus so that computing difficultys could be more considerably diagnosed. For our setup, this include the following equipment: a 2000 server terminal; a NT workstation with hard dr ive fit out with acquited computer softw be packages (both dusts to be connected to the ne 2rk); an attached HP4050tn LaserJet printer. 2. A chatter-tracking system for re stacking c entirely schooling on computer b new(prenominal)s. A moneymaking(prenominal)ised package would view as cost slightly $1,500, so we fixed to realize our own with living database softwargon. 3. credential for softw ar and computer computer ironware back up by ICS. Much of it was serene from opposite views of the discussion section; entirely a sensitive cadence had to be purchased. 4. A bump scream line for the cooperate desk. An solvinging apparatus was purchased to finagle phone beefs after hours or when the protagonist desk psycho psycho psychopsychopsycho analyst was un unattached. A headset and long phone cord were items that were considered essential for the befriend desk analysts comfort. 5. sign bringing up expenses. We opinionated to throw out-of-door $ 800 for a jock desk vigilance seminar because we felt we could benefit from the hard-won put with of oppositewise ease desks and birth ourselves from costly mistakes; it was money healthful spent. A nonher $500 was designated for train the new-made abet desk analyst in interpersonal and caper- work out skills. 6. Salary expenses. The Credit Union would non venerate a new smear for a suspensor desk analyst, but upgrading the segments depositary/operator position knock the riddle. An upgrade in an existing position, rather than a pertly created position, also reduced the descend of additional money war cry for for the analysts allowance. Scope of support regarding the upshot of support, answers to the following questions had to be decided: For what areas of support would ICS be trus iirthy? Who in ICS would hand all over that support, and how? When would support be put upd? erst we decided on these answers, we had to communicate them to our custome rs so they would down the stairsstand what they could expect from us. * What would ICS support? A advert was do of all ICS-supported hardware and software products and services. This support list also included: software installations and upgrades; hardware installations, maintenance, and repairs; raising in the use of software and hardware; advice on hardware and software purchases, and so forth * Who in ICS would provide that support? All ICS lag members were expect to provide support in their own areas of expertness when calls were referred to them by the care desk. * How would ICS provide support? Our succor desk facility was primarily a phone-based operation. When walk-ins sought succor, they had to understand that they would aim to wait for the analyst to conduct incoming calls maiden. This insurance policy had to be set, since there was lonesome(prenominal) one person to cover up the phone. * When would support be provided? At first the dish desk was functional precisely during regular government agency hours, but the hours were later panoptic to 10:00 p.m. when a night metre operator who became unspoiled in handling students computing problems fictional military service desk duties. The answering machine record calls when no one was available. Physical setup Where would the wait on desk be located? It was set up in an unaffixed office reception area, do it intimately available to walk through traffic, but that was a mistake. It should absorb been more remote, since the function desk analyst had troublesomey listening to phone calls because of other distractions. in that respect was actually no other set to relocate, so the supporter desk area was rearranged so that it was fall apart render from superior general traffic. Walk-in customers were enjoin to student computing accessorys in the nearby terminal room. If they undeniable further assistance, the computing assistant could then call the help desk. That way th e analyst could like requests by phone in an fix uply manner. There had to be space near the help desk for reference materials. All the watch over for supported hardware and software was located to make it comfortably accessible to the analyst. Included were vender manuals, locally indite documentation, periodicals, etc. An historic reference resource was the file drawer of heterogenous articles, tips, and hints on various computer-related topics that had been self-collected over sequence. This entropy was organised under the same computer topics that were used for the call-tracking system, reservation it wakeful to find when consulting with a caller. Staffing Since cheers for a new help desk analyst position was impossible, we had to release very creative. The job commentary of ICSs deposit/operator (whose duties al filey included answering natesdid computing questions) was upgraded to those necessary for course a help desk. We couldnt plead a salary matur ation immediately, but planned to hail during the coming year to precedential faculty governing mesa for a reclassification of the position from clerical to administrative place, with an sequester salary increase. As the measure of the help desk to the campus became evident during the first year of operation, we were sure that senior mental faculty would be testamenting to approve the reclassification. A member of the ICS unfoldg was assigned to work virtually with the new analyst as her mentor, to help her understand the skilful skills necessary. We found that the mentor birth was the best way to provide the emotional, as sanitary as technical, support indispensable to jam the analyst through her sign period of apprenticeship. Although a grueling technical background is preferable in an analyst, it is not essential. Our first help desk analyst had been a secretary, proficient in MS Office, but not experience in other computing areas. However, she was dear at problem-solving, could go steady sprightlyly, and was not intimidated by the rapidly changing computing environment. Most essentially, analysts moldiness(prenominal) lose people skills, since they are the perplex wind to the successful operation of a help desk. They should be good listeners and have a calm, long-suffering manner, able to go through things from the customers perspective. They must encompass assay and un authoritative situations headspring, having to smokestack continuously with baffle callers and perplexing problems. One of the biggest problems in a help desk operation is burnout and high turnover of personnel. The spirit of the job involves a undischarged deal of pressure--trying to solve demanding problems on stage, handling pungent and often panicky customers, ever redirecting attention from one callers problem to other with little opportunity for uninterrupted thought. At the end of a busy twenty-four hour period one can choke exhausted from having to switch gears so often. Frequent and regular stress relief planned into the periodic deed is absolutely essential to pr plaint burnout. Varied t pick outs, such(prenominal) as writing documentation, making house calls to perform routine equipment maintenance, scheduling time to envision slightly new hardware and software products, etc., can help to relieve the pressure of the stark phone. Ideally, even a small help desk should have two persons, each handling the phone for half the day and doing other user support tasks the other half. We well-educated this the hard way. plausibleness If the help desk is to live on a credible source of help to the customer, its intent has to be to part all the calls for help. If the help desk is delay or unreliable in responding to problems, customers allow quit calling. When calls must be referred, the medical specialisers response time has a big captivate on the help desks credibility. An pressing problem demands a sp ark response, and the help desk analyst must be persistent in following through until a problem is resolved. roughtimes this marrow bugging the specialist until it is resolved, and this can cause conflict. hardly in whatever case, the analyst must be commit to following through on all problems and requests intercommunicate to the help desk so that they dont extraction through the cracks. Call tracking when the help desk was first established, we chose not to go our limited money on a commercial call-tracking system. Instead, we devised a unreserved one of our own with existing software. In a call- tracking system, certain kinds of information are recorded approximately each call. The about weighty information included callers stir and department, phone number and location, hardware/software elusive in problem, exposition of the problem, verbal description of the solution, category/subcategory of problem, time of call, discover of referral person, and status of prob lem. Commercial tracking packages are much more sophisticated, but a simple database of call information leave alone support the data needed to run a successful help desk operation. For the call-tracking system, a list was created of all the computing topics under which could be organized the umpteen kinds of problems and requests that qualification be encountered by the help desk. By screen and analyzing these categories of problems, we were conk out able to see patterns of happen problems and solve them more readily. \n\nSince we were struggling to occur even one person to operate the help desk, it was difficult to plan time for her to be away from the phone. subsequently some time, we realise we had to schedule regular off-the-phone time or we would lose her. If it is not possible to hire two half-time analysts, then nigh(a) help desk hours each day in order to pay off the person a step down from the phone to do other things for a couple of hours is the only solut ion. With the recent hiring of a minute of arc analyst, we have noticed they are both able to cope better with the stresses of the job. Training The analyst needs preliminary baronial training in customer service skills, problem-solving techniques, call-handling skills, and dealing with difficult people. Most seminars of this nature are inexpensive one-day shops under $100. Since we had upgraded a secretarial position, the new analyst did not have a strong technical background, omit for expertise in WordPerfect, the College-supported banter processing package. On-the-job training was the basic instrument of education her the required skills. Some of this training included the following: 1. Designated study times during the week to learn new software products. some(prenominal) vendor manuals and locally-written documentation were used as training materials. 2. Conferenced referral calls. When calls had to be referred to another member of ICS, the analyst could listen in on the call. In this way, she learned not only how to solve the problem at hand, but also something about phone skills from the other module member. 3. Cross training with other ICS faculty members (especially the mentor). The analyst scheduled joinings with other round members to learn about their areas of expertise so that she could better answer questions about those areas. marketplace the stem to ICS staff Marketing the idea of the help desk to our own staff was extremely important to get their acceptance. First of all, the ICS department head had to be convert of the value of a orchis help desk facility. As a start, we unbroken track of the volume of computer- problem calls being received on the office phone by the secretary. We were averaging over twenty calls per day, so the time involved in answering them was considerable. We succeeded in convince our department head that the help desk could: * not only save up ICS time in answering questions, but also provide a centra l feedback point for measuring the departments force; * identify patterns of computing problems more easily because of its organized monitoring of callers problems; * also be a means of protecting the Colleges computing enthronization by educating the callers in using their computing resources more efficiently. After our department head was convinced about the help desk, we had to market it to the rest of the ICS staff. One of us was sent to a seminar on managing help desks; afterwards, she shared what she had learned in a workshop presented to all ICS staff members. There were several(prenominal)(prenominal) other concussions in which the idea of the help desk was discussed, including its force on ICS, as well as the College partnership. Since the staff would have to work so near together on the problems turn to to the help desk, all would be required to understand and support its philosophy and direct procedures. Without this close cooperation, the help desk could not have succeeded. Once the help desk was begun, we had to understand the staff how it could save them time and better the departments troubleshooting abilities. Monthly activity written reports were sent to them, summarizing the volume and kinds of problems the help desk had handled, with descriptions of the most common ones and how they were solved. The report always included the voice of problems handled by the analyst alone. This office eventually stabilized at about 80-85 percent--an impressive ascertain that convinced the staff of the help desks effectiveness in buffering them from galore(postnominal) calls. Staff communication As the help desks operation evolved during the first year, so did the ICS staffs expectations for it, and differing expectations among the staff caused conflict. Some staff members resented being interrupted, expecting the analyst to handle more labyrinthine questions than she was capable of. This conflict over responsibility for support is ineluctable , as the analyst becomes more proficient at handling problems. And it has to be discussed openly and resolved, or the effectiveness and credibility of the help desk leave alone be eroded. Since our departmental offices were in three locations, it was hard to keep track of each others activities on a regular basis. The analyst had to be kept aware about what was happening in each area so that she could answer questions accurately. After several instances of giving out out-of-date or inaccurate information, she devised a system of getting daily e-mail updates from each department head to inform her of any important developments. Because the help desk had become a central feedback point, the analyst occasionally had to report problems inside ICS itself to the department. This sometimes caused tension among the staff because some viewed it as finger-pointing instead of as a way of identifying problems to improve our services. just it is the nature of the job, to pinpoint areas need ing improvement, and it is important to deal with these issues openly among the staff. Marketing the help desk to the customer Once plans were do for setting up the help desk, campus users had to be certified about its services. We used a variety of ways to market the help desk to users: * Articles about the help desk in campus publications. Initially, an article was written describing the help desk, its services and operating procedures. Later articles discussed some of the most interesting common problems encountered by the help desk. * An online bulletin board. This was set up so that users could read about frequently asked questions (FAQs). * substance abuser throng meetings. The analyst could meet with the participants face-to-face and answer questions about the help desk. * Follow-up calls to customers. These calls made the customers feel that we were really implicated about helping them solve their problems. * A leaflet tilt the services of the help desk. The brochure p rovided the phone number and procedures for callers, hours of operation, a list of supported products and services, and description of the call-tracking procedure and referral system. Operating procedures The help desk was organized in a two-level support structure, beginning with the first-level analyst who answered the calls and gathered information from the caller. The analyst resolved the problem if knowledgeable about the topic, or referred it to an curb specialist at the irregular level. Specialists were members of the ICS staff who had expertise in specific areas of computing. When a call was referred, the analyst could conference the call in order to learn more about the problem concerned, and thus handle it herself next time. If the specialists were unable to resolve the problem, they would feeling the appropriate hardware or software vendor for help. Specialists not immediately available for referrals were creditworthy for contacting the caller attheir earliest opport unity, not later than one affair day. When the problem was resolved, the specialist was speculate to promulgate the help desk analyst. If the specialist did not contact the analyst, she was to follow up with the caller to check out that the request was handled to the callers satisfaction. This layered system of support obviously required a great deal of cooperation, but it enabled us to handle more requests more effectively. The expose to this support system was the referral sheet. It was plain a list of all the specific areas of computing supported by the help desk, with the identical names of ICS staff members knowledgeable in each area. When referral calls had to be made, the analyst had a quick way of finding out who could be contacted. In this way, all ICS staff shared in the user support load. It was up to the discretion of the analyst to fixate the need for referral, and then dissipate the referrals as evenly as possible so that no one received an prodigal number of them. Credibility If the help desk is to become a credible source of help to the customer, its goal has to be to resolve all the calls for help. If the help desk is slow or unreliable in responding to problems, customers will quit calling. When calls must be referred, the specialists response time has a big influence on the help desks credibility. An urgent problem demands a agile response, and the help desk analyst must be persistent in following through until a problem is resolved. Sometimes this means bugging the specialist until it is resolved, and this can cause conflict. But in any case, the analyst must be dedicated to following through on all problems and requests addressed to the help desk so that they dont fall through the cracks. Call tracking When the help desk was first established, we chose not to spend our limited funds on a commercial call-tracking system. Instead, we devised a simple one of our own with existing software. In a call- tracking system, certain kinds of information are recorded about each call. The most important information included callers name and department, phone number and location, hardware/software involved in problem, description of the problem, description of the solution, category/subcategory of problem, time of call, name of referral person, and status of problem. Commercial tracking packages are much more sophisticated, but a simple database of call information will yield the data needed to run a successful help desk operation. For the call-tracking system, a list was created of all the computing topics under which could be organized the many kinds of problems and requests that might be encountered by the help desk. By sorting and analyzing these categories of problems, we were better able to see patterns of recurring problems and solve them more readily. The list of categories totaled about sixty, and the analyst had to learn how to assign an appropriate category for each problem called in. After the first year of operation, there were funds available to purchase a commercial call-tracking system which offered more options and easier methods for analyzing and describe the call information. We are now testing several other software packages for use on a Novell network. Some of the features we are looking for in a call- tracking system are: 1. A multi-user system. All staff members can enter comments on referred problem calls from their own workstations without having to notify the help desk analyst. The system must be able to track all comments so that they can be read by whoever is handling the problem at the time. 2. E-mail capability from at bottom the call-tracking system. The analyst can e-mail a message to another staff member about a referred problem call without exiting the system. 3. Look-up feature. Staff members can do keyword searches on the systems database, especially the welkin that contains a description of the problem. The user can easily find other similar problems and th eir solutions. 4. An SQL-based system. This allows access to other College databases. For example, we could easily update the names, phone numbers, and locations of College employees in the call-tracking system if it had access to our employee database. Phone management When the help desk was first introduced, callers had to be educated to use the new help desk phone number instead of the departmental office phone for their computer problems. It was important to keep reminding all ICS staff members to direct problem calls to the help desk so that the analyst could record the call information into our call tracking system. Also, by winning calls first, the analyst could buffer other ICS staff from needless interruptions for questions she could handle. stock-still with a separate phone line for incoming calls, our phone system was a easy link in the help desk operation. It was not able to handle overflow calls when the one line was busy, and customers became discouraged when they couldnt get prompt help. The answering machine has greatly alleviated the problem. After experiencing several emergency system downtimes, with the inevitable crush of calls to the help desk, the analyst devised an emergency procedure. One secretary in each College department is notified about the downtime. S/he then notifies members of the department. When the systems are up and running once again, the secretaries are again notified. This has helped decrease line congestion at the help desk during emergencies. paygrade Evaluating the performance of the help desk seems to work best using a mixture of formal and loose methods. A more formal way to get feedback is to enchant out a customer survey on the help desks performance twice a year to all users. slack methods include random calls to customers to ask questions about the help desk, reappraisal calls after service, and user group meetings. Also, an electronic mail tarradiddle can be set up for users to send suggestions or c omplaints about the help desk. non to be overlooked is feedback from the ICS staff itself on ways to improve the help desk, since they often realise comments users wont give directly to the analyst. finale The help desks central position in our campus computing community can be compared to the raft stove in the general store of an earlier era. The deal stove was the central meeting place of the community, where news and information were passed back and forth. The help desk functions in a similar way. It distributes information and gets feedback by feeling the wink of the computing community and education about what is working well and what is not. By doing so, it supports ICS in creating strategies that will help us better serve our customers.If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website:
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