The function of the Help Desk is to provide users with a single point of contact through which their needs related to the use of resources and services of technological platforms are resolved and/or channeled, always according to a standard adopted by the company. Among the objectives of a help desk are:
- Attend all incoming calls.
- Solve a high percentage online.
- On-line follow-up of referred cases.
- Reduce recurring calls over time.
The scope of a Help Desk is very broad. Some of the categories into which we could group its various functions are the following:
- Services
- Attention to Reports
- Terms of Use
- Training
- Recommendations
- Announcements
- Publications
This service provides the following benefits for users and for the organization:
- Provides a single contact number where users can channel their queries or problems.
- Centralized management of all requirements and problems associated with the IT platform is provided.
- Constant availability of support.
- Increases user productivity, preventing them from requesting help from their co-workers, generating unproductive time and resolving a high percentage of requests within minutes.
- It relieves the IT areas, which usually assume this role, of a very demanding problem, allowing them to focus on their core business.
- Periodically provides information and recommendations for continuous improvement actions.
- First Level Support: This role represents the first point of contact with the user. The first level of support is made up of personnel in charge of resolving simple and/or procedural requests by telephone, based on the procedures previously described for first instance resolutions.
- Second Support Level: This role corresponds to groups of technicians in charge of resolving requests that require a higher degree of specialization. The second level of support is made up of more specialized personnel and they act on the basis of predetermined procedures according to their respective specialties.
- Supervision: For the purpose of managing the service, the Supervisor will be responsible for overseeing and controlling compliance with the predefined solution time standards for all calls received, as well as monitoring and controlling the correct compliance with the solution time standards for all problem reports, as well as the commitments assumed by the resolving units with respect to the solution timeframes for these reports. The Supervisor will then act as the first level of escalation for cases not resolved within the specified time.
In each implementation of a service of these dimensions, the following activities are developed:
- Induction of technical support personnel in the culture, objectives and business processes, specific to the client.
- Periodic training of the human resources provided by the Help Desk.
- Analysis and implementation of the Help Desk Administration system, procedures, methodology and controls, as well as feedback from the client for the continuous improvement of the Help Desk Administration system.
- System definitions: Problem categorizations, adequate and efficient assignment rules, Impact Levels, prioritization of cases according to criticality, appropriate escalation policies so that requirements are reassigned according to their complexity in combination with minimum waiting times for the end user, notifications and alarms of active servers and equipment, documentation of solutions to be applied to future resolutions (knowledge base).
- Testing of the model according to the above.
- Documentation of procedures, methodologies, controls, model design and use of the requirements management software.
- Installation and start-up of the requirements management software.
- Generation and documentation of management reports required by the client for the purpose of evaluating and measuring the level of service.
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Some of the problems faced by organizations and in particular by IT departments are:- To be able to justify and reduce costs for IT services.
- To increase user satisfaction and productivity by focusing most of the time on their core issues and leaving to the Help Desk the treatment and resolution of problems related to the SW and HW tools used by the user.
- Real" registration of IT assets (fixed assets) as well as their use, location and accounting status.
- Solve reiterative problems and also implement software updates and patches that require too much time in many occasions.
The Help Desk should make periodic proposals and warnings to its customers to reduce the cost of operation and support, taking into account the following perspectives:
- Financial: Control of owned and leased assets, budget reduction, justification of value and return on investment in systems, transformation of fixed costs into variable costs.
-Security: Constant patch updates and effective compliance with external audits and information security and risk policies.
-Technical: Diversity of products, constant updates, little time dedicated to business strategy.
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