All the latest news from the SDI Forum http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php Wed, 08 Sep 2010 18:11:57 -0500 1 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=292
In the current financial climate everyone is looking to save money and in our organisation I have been asked to investigate the feasibility of merging the following Service/Help Desks: -

• ICT
• Finance
• Procurement
• Business Services
• Estates Management

I work in ICT and we currently have a Skilled Service Desk which receives approximately 7000 IT calls per month and we are in the process of implementing a new fully intergrated Service Management tool.

Does anybody have any experience of merging different business functions into one Service Desk?

I would appreciate any advice on the benefits, risks & pitfalls of doing so.

Thanks]]> Tue, 24 Aug 2010 01:45:21 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=292 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=266
These are currently performed by the Server team and I am anticipating restistance in delegating the access rights... have other been through this experience and how was it approached? I'd rather the server team focused on infra maintanance and major changes....

Steve]]> Mon, 02 Aug 2010 09:14:12 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=266 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=265
I am looking to review the metrics the individual Service Desk Analysts are measure on and wondered what other organisations target?

Currently I measure against:

1st level fix
call duration
ticket breaches
average handled per agent
number of calls over 10 mins
bounced calls
ticket quality
continuous improvement ideas etc

I just wondered if there were any other ideas out there?

Thanks

Amanda]]> Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:57:48 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=265 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=264


We support between 1,000 & 5,000 customers whom are employees of NWL and also contractors working on behalf of the company located often at remote sites.



I am keen to bench mark with Service Desks from similar organisations or companies in the North East.

If you can help please contact research@sdi-e.com]]> Thu, 08 Jul 2010 09:08:40 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=264 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=263
Please contact: research@sdi-e.com if you can help
]]> Thu, 08 Jul 2010 09:07:33 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=263 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=249 We are a Service Desk of 16 providing an IT Service to 3500 IT users throughout the UK.

We have implemented Problem Management into the Service Desk Team over 12 months ago, our concern is that we do not feel we are getting the most out of this service.

I would really like to meet a Team that have implemented Problem management and are getting the benefits from doing so.

I wait in anticipation.....]]> Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:33:58 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=249 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=240
Thought I'd try canvassing some like minded people and am hoping some of you can help me with perhaps some ideas I've missed or over looked.

I've been working in a Helpdesk environment for several years now support 1400 users across 15 offices and basically working with a centralised Helpdesk providing 1st/2nd line support and using 2 x remote engineers who I send out to site if there are things we are unable to complete via remote access, PC installs, office moves and the like. It works reasonably well and we use Heat for call logging.

The company has recently merged!!

The company joining us has a workforce of 1700 users and doesn't operate a centralised helpdesk and has atleast 1 IT support person at each key office. The use an in house call logging system (No Helpdesk/phone) and calls then get routed to the relevant site and picked up by the relevant engineer.

Again, that works reasonably well but generally speaking there staff are office based and not as mobile as ours...

I've been tasked with coming up with an ideal support model moving forward as has a colleague at the other company!!

I'd like to think I'm reasonably open minded about the support structure and how it should work, but I truely believe that with a workforce of 3000+ staff a centralised Helpdesk is essential and I think the country should be regionalised which would mean redundancies across the remote staff with the regionalised engineers covering multiple offices where required and most of the calls being handled by the central desk.

However, is that the best way?

Should we use Heat moving forward or the In-House tool which is clunky and difficult to change/update and why?

I have my opinion but I'd very much like to canvas others opinions who may work in similar environments.

Any 'Constructive' comments or suggestions would be very much appreciated

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Regards

SIMON
]]> Thu, 13 May 2010 09:21:23 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=240 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=213
Thanks in advance for any help]]> Fri, 23 Apr 2010 07:21:00 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=213 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=212 Kirk Weisler, chief morale officer, is going to be presenting at the SDIe Conference on 8 & 9 June 2010 (visit http://motivation.sdi-e.com/speakers.html ).

Those of you who have seen him present will know what a truly inpspirational motivational speaker with an inside knowledge of the service desk. SDI would love to hear about your experiences of seeing Kirk present.

Click here to see the SDIe Conference e-brochure: http://content.yudu.com/A1m40t/sdiemotivationtimes/
]]> Fri, 23 Apr 2010 03:52:56 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=212 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=210
I'm looking to set up a "Call Coaching" template for performance management within my S/D, and rather than reinvent the wheel I wondered if anyone already used one and what questions you are including within the form, (i.e. "Was the resolution tested/confirmed with the customer). Whilst I understand that these forms can be "organisation specific" rather than generic I'm just looking for a sense check from the Forum Members.

As always, thanks in advance.
]]> Tue, 20 Apr 2010 10:35:16 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=210 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=185 We are moving from standard desktop PC and local software installs to using thin client and I would be very interested in speaking to anyone who has already gone through this exercise especially anyone responsible for the pre-thin client service desk and 2nd line support teams, managing their transition and forming the new structure required to support the business moving forward. We are an internal SD supporting approx 450-500 users across 3 locations currently with very manual processes relating to software installs, password resets, PC builds etc. so this will be a very different (but exciting) culture. Tue, 23 Mar 2010 03:23:20 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=185 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=181
Currently we use VNC here and we are considering changing this for something with less security loop-holes so are interested in finding out what tool other establishments use for this?

Could you give a brief idea of pros/cons too please?

Thanks in advance for your responses!
]]> Wed, 17 Mar 2010 06:17:12 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=181 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=179
I am really interested in exchanging ideas with other Service Desks to exchange any ideas etc. If anyone is interested please let me know. Potentially if interested we could arrange visits to each of the desks to get a better understanding of how each team works.

Thanks in advance.]]> Mon, 15 Mar 2010 05:57:47 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=179 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=171
We are undergoing a restructure and I am soon to have control of both the Service Desk and Desktop support teams, with a team leader for each reporting to me.

I have some ideas around improving our processes and workflows, encouraging more remote support and better feedback from desktop analysts, better knowledge management etc

However, I was wondering if anyone else has been through a process of more closely aligning these teams under one banner - what problems did you hit, and do you have any advice that might help me with this during transition and into the future.

There's nothing like experience!

Thanks

Karen]]> Tue, 02 Mar 2010 07:37:09 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=171 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=169 Anybody got any thought or experince of Service Desks and triage? Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:53:41 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=169 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=166
We currently provide support from our internal 2nd and 3rd line times up to midnight and payments are based on when you are on call and if you get called. Part of any consultation would have to include the plans for cover (rota's) and no doubt payment terms will also be raised.

At the moment the Service Desk would not form part of this cover but may well do so in the future depending on requirements / volume / need to manage the incident etc.

Has anyone been through this process or would be willing to share their methods of cover including patterns, payments etc.

For info we are a systems department of 51 colleagues.

Thanks
]]> Wed, 24 Feb 2010 08:57:34 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=166 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=165
We are looking to introduce Twitter within our organisation and I would like to hear from anyone who has already been down this path. I can think of loads of reasons why the Service Desk and the Customers could benefit, and I can think of just as many reason why not to do it. – So if anyone has already felt this pain at the bleeding edge of technology I would appreciate you sharing your experience.]]> Mon, 22 Feb 2010 06:59:06 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=165 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=164
I'm hoping that one of you might be able to help me with this query.

Some time ago I completed and sucessfully passed my Service Desk Manager exam with SDI. At the time I'm sure that I recall the trainer telling us that those who passed could use an SDI logo.

I need to update my CV, and was wondering if there was such an accreditation logo available.

Of course it is possible that I was so giddy with excitment after passing my exam that I misheard the trainer.

Thanks for your help.

Regards

Karen

P.S. Does anyone knows if anything similar exists for the ITL foundation?]]> Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:11:04 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=164 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=162 Membership of SDI is no longer considered helpful (which says more about this organisation than about SDI!)

I would like to thank SDI for their help and support, and for making this forum available, and to all the contributers for their collective wit and wisdom.]]> Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:54:38 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=162 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=161
We have had a request for a site visit from a desk based in Surrey - the details are listed below:

We have approx 12000 users to support, mainly engineers using CAD and modelling products. Our desk use remote tools to provide technical support. We do not provide application usage advice, more installation and break fix (OS support, MS Office, reinstallation of apps etc).

They are facing budget challenges and are especially interested in seeing how other desks are using chat support channels.

If you would like to arrange a visit, then please get in touch at research@sdi-e.com

Thank you and Merry Xmas! ]]> Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:21:46 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=161 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=158
I would appreciate your feedback/comments on these 2 questions.

1. I'm looking for reccommendations for a good Incident Management Tool set for a brand new Service Desk for a Retail Industry.

Will be doing benchmarking etc. But would love to hear people's experiences in selecting and implementing this. As well as the bog standard criteria, i.e. able to manage breaches, good quality reporting, automatic updates to customers etc. it should also be able to handle Problem and Configuration Management.

2. Also, what Telephony System are people using and Why? would you reccommend it?

Thanks
Marie]]> Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:28:53 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=158 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=157
Thank you,

George]]> Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:35:35 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=157 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=156
Not sure if anyone can help but i have just taken over the roll of Help Desk Manager and have been charged with improving standards can anyone tell me what there prefered option was out of ITIL, ISO20000 or SDI standards, or should I start with one and then it will lead to one of the others as there seems to be alot of crossover between each of them.

thanks in advance]]> Tue, 01 Dec 2009 10:51:12 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=156 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=155
Service Desk - 8 Full time and 2 Part time Analysts with 2 Seniors making up part of the 8
Desktop Support - 2 FTE's
Trading systems - A mixture of colleagues sharing support on a rota basis
Store Support - 1 Fte handling no application specific issues
Finance Support - 1 Fte handling system related finance issues
Infrastructure Support - 3 FTes
Integration Support - mixture of colleagues sharing support on a rota basis
And a number of external suppliers providing service such as application support

The above is not efficient and whilst works, is not providing the level of service that I feel is acceptable for the business.

We are currently creating a "support team" that is effectively 2nd line support but only consolidates the Trading, Store and Finance elements of 2nd line. We also have many routes into the dept to seek support and I am looking to build a case to move to a single point of contact.

In terms of 2nd line support, I'm keen to understand how others set themselves up for this. Is 2nd line a true 2nd line that covers off all areas of support or do you have different teams (i.e, desktop as a separate area). After hearing a few stories I am starting to believe that this "support team" is not going to be successful unless we create a true 2nd line team and support all areas rather than a few specialist areas mainly application.

Any info that someone could share would be appreciated.

Cheers]]> Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:35:45 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=155 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=154
Thanks in advance,

Ralph ]]> Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:08:09 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=154 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=153
I have no objection to visitors, but they generally turn up with expectation that we will drop what we're doing and assist them immediately, irrespective of anything else that we might be working on at the time or how many other requests/incidents might be take priority.

This is compounded by the fact that we have very few desktop engineers, and so when there is not one on site customers ask members of Helpdesk to provide deskside visits. I feel pressured to let my staff do this as it is often classed as urgent - e.g. a problem with a projector during a presentation.

This didn't used to be such a big issue, but we've recently moved offices and the staff that were already here seem to think that we can pop off to help them whenever they need it. For non urgent issues I generally ask that they log a call - but I'm often met with the response that it has to be dealt with now.

Any suggestions please?

]]> Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:16:50 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=153 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=152
Hello all,

Sorry if this is in the wrong place... I am trying to work out the CPC "Cost Per Customer" for my department however i am drawing blanks... I manage a department who provide customer and technical support in an online forum. We also support customers in other forums and social networking sites such as Facebook and twitter.

I read that its a simple as total salary paid divided by total number of customer serviced but i cannot help but feel that there must be more to it than that... Any ideas or help would be very much appreciated,.

Thanks
Stephen]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2009 07:02:59 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=152 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=151
I run an IT service desk based in Northamptonshire, looking after in-house users over europe and the middle east utilising ITIL. Having worked for the same company for almost 10 years I'd like to know if there are things I could be doing better. Would there be anyone willing to let me visit their service desk to get some fresh ideas?

Thanks - Mary]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:02:50 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=151 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=150
I currently run a technical IT Servicedesk where we have a FTF target of between 70% and 80%. Supporting a wide range of platforms, technologies and ability of customer.

I'm currently looking in to what metrics we should measure, I've analysed 6 months worth of data and it seems that to deliver that level of FTF each anylst would need to do 24 - 32 calls a day each depending on how busy it is.

Our SDM is convinced that the guys for 70% to 80% FTF should be doing nearer 60 to 80 calls a day. Having covered the desk for a day when people are off sick, and I have been a 2nd line engineer in the past. I just can't understand how you would get to those numbers given the number of different techologies and platforms we support.

If you look at it thats 5 minutes per call, if you worked solidly without a second pause taking in to account breaks.

How many calls logged / actioned per day per analyst does everyone else set as a target and what is your FTF target?]]> Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:32:34 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=150 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=148
We are currently arranging speakers for our annual conference in June 2010, which will be held at The Grand in Brighton. If you are interested in speaking at the conference please contact us at: research@sdi-e.com or phone us on 01689 889100.


Thanks

SDI]]> Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:52:12 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=148 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=147
Our Service Desk is based on a table of 6 within an open plan office (other ICT functions are on adjoining tables). Our first two “Analyst” positions are customer facing and thus we can have anyone presenting at these two positions looking for assistance. On this basis, my policy as the Service Desk Manager of not eating whilst working on the desk seems to me to be reasonable. They are able to have drinks and snacks so no breach in Human Rights there, however talk about rocking the boat…… Even though all my Team have done some form of SDI Training Course so they are well versed in “not chewing gum on the phone” and “breaks being a good stress relief” the cry of “it’s unfair as other member of ICT can eat at their desk” is still ringing in my ears, my response of “well yes but they are not working on the Service Desk” has not produced the desired peace treaty.

So I’m open to thoughts, opinions and guidance with this one. My point of view is I don’t want a Customer turning up for assistance to be greeted by an Analyst with a mouth full of Burger. Is this too much to ask these days for a function that has the word “Service” in it.

PS: We have a kitchen and a canteen that serves food.


Thanks in advance ]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:12:35 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=147 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=146
We have recieved a Benchmark Buddy request from an SDI member who would like to discuss and share ways to improve their average speed to answer time. Some information about the desk:

14 members of staff (Desk is staffed 7am - 7pm Mon/Fri)
6000 calls per month
89% fix rate

If anyone would like to help with this request please post a reply or contact us by e-mail: research@sdi-e.com or on 01689 889100

Thanks

SDI]]> Thu, 15 Oct 2009 06:07:25 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=146 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=145
We currently pay 10% for covering 0700 to 17.30 Monday to Saturday, our salary are reasonable when compared to others in the area. Our staff retention is good with the average service for call taking staff being 4.5 years.
]]> Wed, 14 Oct 2009 05:53:13 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=145 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=144 I would like to get feedback from the Forum on guidelines for following:-

Open calls that have already a) gone out of SLA or due to go out of SLA whereby the customer (end user) is on leave. Such calls mainly arise whereby the call is assigned to a Support Group and more information or contact is needed with the customer.

I am interested on how you would deal with this type of situation.


Many thanks in advance.]]> Tue, 13 Oct 2009 04:57:31 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=144 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=143
Our Learning and Development team are looking into introducing SFIA to the IT team to map roles and create a skills matrix.

I was wondering if anyone has been through this process. It's seems like it is going to be a large scale piece of work, but I can see the benefits of doing it. What I am wondering is do the eventual benefits outweigh the effort involved in applying the SFIA framework.

Any feedback greatfully received.

Regards

Karen]]> Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:57:15 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=143 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=142
Thanks for any input you may have

Ralph]]> Wed, 07 Oct 2009 06:27:27 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=142 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=141
I am continually asked to support more and more stuff within the service desk, from the odd random i-phone (we use blackberry mainly) to the latest addition (skype). How do you measure the cost of adding to your already cluttered service catalogue? I have tried saying no and this is not really a business tool, but as your "competitors" start to use technology, so your users push for more and more stuff.

I think the only way I can puch back is by showing a cost associated with adding a service, so for example, with skype, can I suggets that there will be 10% of users calling up for an average of 30 mins per month for support, then equate this into a cost on the desk.

I have not used this approach before but wondered if anyone else had and with any success?

thanks in advance

Dave]]> Wed, 07 Oct 2009 04:58:57 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=141 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=140
I would be very interested in hearing people's experiences with live chat, especially in regards to how it affected customer satisfaction and whether it was beneficial or a hindrance.

Thanks in advance

Ralph]]> Tue, 06 Oct 2009 07:57:35 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=140 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=138
We have had a benchmark buddy request from an SDI member who is currently going through the process of buying new Service Desk software. They would like to liase with others to share experiences and bounce some ideas around.

Please post a reply if you think you might be able to help, or send an e-mail to research@sdi-europe.com

Many thanks

SDI]]> Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:35:06 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=138 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=137
Do any other Service Desks use special facilities for disabled customers, such as TypeTalk? We only have 2,000 internal customers and I'm wondering how cost-effective it would be to implement these for a handful of people (I work for local government and have to account for every penny).

I've also been asked to record information about our disabled users. Does anyone else already do this and, if so, is the information about the person or about the equipment they use? I am wary of storing information about individual users' disabilities, in case it causes offence or contravenes any disability legislation. Any advice you could offer would be very welcome.]]> Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:20:51 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=137 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=136 I am enquiring as to the mechanics of perceived "Best Practice" in tracking the life cycle of a call. In particular I would like to ask the Forum the recommended process or guidelines for following up on calls that have gone "Out of SLA".

]]> Sun, 27 Sep 2009 08:55:51 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=136 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=135
We're thinking about adopting ITIL but are undecided as to what route to take. Pragmatism suggests we should go for v3 seeing as it is the latest version, but most companies we have spoken to who have v2 seem to have no intention of upgrading (if indeed it is an upgrade!). v2 seems to work well for them so perhaps it is the better solution.

Would be interested to hear your opinions and very grateful for any feedback.

Thanks

Ralph]]> Wed, 23 Sep 2009 04:20:28 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=135 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=133
Does anyone have a process in place for following up on out of SLA calls? After an incident has breached it's SLA do you have agreed time frames for follow up? Do you escalate to the team lead then or deal with the team member that the incident is assigned to?

Thanks.]]> Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:12:47 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=133 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=132
There are many good systems out there that do one side of the coin or the other but I can't find anything that does both without some form of compromise from either party. Has anyone come across a system that might fit the bill?]]> Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:31:59 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=132 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=131 Benchmarking Survey 2009

We would be very grateful if you could take 10 minutes to complete our Benchmarking Survey. The Benchmarking Survey 2009 is designed to give participants a key insight into the structure, metrics and composition of the Service Desk industry. We believe that it will be an invaluable survey as it will provide a real overview of the Service Desk industry and highlight emerging trends and developments.

The survey is a joint venture between SDI and Avocent/Landesk and the results will be made available to all respondents free of charge.

Thanks

SDI]]> Fri, 11 Sep 2009 09:23:03 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=131 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=130 Mon, 07 Sep 2009 10:45:36 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=130 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=129
At SDI we are passionate about providing practical and relevant IT service management events for our members and the wider ITSM community. Therefore, we are asking you to complete a short survey to tell us what subjects you would like to be included in the 2010 Event Calendar.

Tell SDI what you are interested in!
We have produced a survey of potential topics; please fill in the survey and let us know which subjects would be most valuable to you!

Access the survey at: http://www.keysurvey.com/survey/269761/4095/


Thanks ]]> Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:06:03 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=129 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=127
Many Thanks,

Ciara.]]> Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:44:56 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=127 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=123
Would like to share experiences with other SDIe members in due course.

Neil Smith-Jones
Wesleyan Assurance]]> Tue, 11 Aug 2009 08:39:13 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=123 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=121
I have a team of 10 extremely hard-working and customer service focused Service-Desk Analysts. We resolve 70% of Incidents ourselves without the need for further escalation. Incidents that do need to be escalated are passed to a relevant Support team based on geographical location in UK.

My problem being that i feel that the Support teams these calls get passed to do not have the same customer service culture as ourselves and invariably if users call and complain that someone hasn't got back to them it is almost always from a 2nd line support person. At worst, the Service-Desk maybe feel like they are constantly making excuses for poor service from 2nd line colleagues and does little for inter-departmental harmony. There seems to be little pride in certain individuals keeping their worklist up to date and users informed (something that cannot be said for ServiceDesk staff).

We've tried job-swap type initiatives, and have messenger tools so analyts can speak to each other quickly and effectively.I've now implemented a 'Back-Desk' function which effectively means an even smaller % of Incidents get passed to 2nd line.
I have engaged with 2nd line managers and escalated individual examples of poor service but all this really does is improve things for a very short amount of time and people slip back into old way (not updating calls etc..)

I'm guessing others will have experienced similar and i'd be interested to know how people think i can turn this relationship with 2nd line around.
Thanks

Mike.

]]> Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:50:13 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=121 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=120
He was interested in finding out about the following metrics for desks of a similar size:

- Number of calls per month

- Number of users

- First contact resolution rate

- First resolution rate

- Contact routes used e.g. telephone/online/Administration Form

We had a terrific response from the members we asked and thought we would open this up to SDI Forum members. It would be great if you could post your responses against each of the items above.

Many thanks]]> Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:17:06 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=120 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=118
SDI is calling all IT service desks and support teams across the UK and Europe to get involved in IT Service Week 5-9 October 2009 and to promote the excellent service you provide your customers, whether internal or external.

How often do your customers ever say thank you? Well, here's the perfect opportunity for them - tell them about IT Service Week and how they could say thank you for the great service they receive.

Invite your customers to nominate your service desk team for IT Service Week's top 'IT Service Desk' and 'IT Service and Support Superhero'.

The top performing IT service team will win a truly scrumptious mega basket of muffins. Yum, yum!

The top nominated IT Service 'Superhero' will receive a £75 gift voucher.

Nominations open on Monday 1 September and run until Friday 9 October.

For more information please click here.

]]> Thu, 06 Aug 2009 10:28:17 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=118 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=117
I am wondering if anyone can help with the following.

I manage a small team of under 10 people. Over 6 months ago we recruited a new person who has unfortunately been placed on a performance review due to performance issues - this is all well documented, managed jointly by myself and HR and the unions are involved.

The problem is this individuals direct line manager, who reports directly to me. This line manager has been accused of bullying, which has been cited as one of the reasons for the performance issues.

I have spoken directly to the line manager who is unrepentant (!) and also adamant that this is not true. Knowing the individual I am sure that there probably is some truth in it but without evidence I am unsure of what the next steps are.

I really don't want another member of my staff being dragged through some sort of misconduct review (morale will crash through the floor), however if this is true I don't want other staff being bullied.

Does anyone have any advice on managing such a situation - I don't want to incentivise the line manager as I feel this is rewarding the pushy behaviour nor do I want to send her on another management training course (which fails to do anything).

Thanks in advance for your advice...

End of tether!]]> Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:22:56 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=117 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=116
So, I decided to do some research (i.e. talk with my buddies at work and search online) to see what really improves morale and what does not work. I figured that since we were never managers, we would be void of management’s misconceptions and skewed perspectives of what boosts morale.

Without further ado, here is what I found out that does NOT boost morale or only boosts morale for an insignificant amount of time.

* Seminars: Seminars and meetings to discuss why employees are pessimistic, sarcastic, and have generally poor attitudes does not address the real problems.

* Parties: Who in their right mind thinks that company parties and picnics, with the people you already see too much of, would help morale? These types of morale improvements only last as long as the free booze and food. Furthermore, attending parties outside of regular working hours are typically a drain to morale.

* Entertainment: If I wanted to see a particular movie, I would have already seen it, and I’d rather see it with my wife and friends. If it is a movie that I did not want to see, then it will only make me annoyed or upset. Same thing for mini-golf and bowling activities.

* Meals: Team lunches and dinners were split about half way. Almost everyone agreed that free food improves morale, yet there was an inconsistency if it helped in the long term or only in the short term. Since this activity may or may not work depending on the person, I don’t think this is a very good way to boost morale.

* Gambling: Office pools and lotteries eventually brings some discontent to the work place.

* Humor: Jokes are quickly forgotten. Any manager who is continuously humorous is not taken seriously. Humor only masks real problems.

* Awards: Useless pieces of paper are a poor method of giving recognition. Some people disagreed with me here, but a lot more people agreed with this opinion. You decide for yourself.

* Drinks: Free coffee and water is expected in any office. Don’t think this will boost morale unless you've never had it before. And if so, it will quickly be taken for granted.

* Toys: Office toys and games, such as stress balls and puzzles, only provide momentary pleasure that quickly become boring and do not improve morale.


As for some real ways to boost morale, try these suggestions.

1. Recognition: Having managers and fellow employees really recognize good work, long hours, and dedication improves morale. A few good words is all some people really need.

2. Money: Despite how well or poorly business may be, financially reward your star employees, otherwise they will leave. Whether it is a yearly pay increase, a cash bonus, or extra days off with pay; just do something that adds real value to employees.

3. Dress Code: Let employees dress casually as much as possible. I know of several offices that force employees to wear suits and ties when there is no need. My golden rule is if I do not have a meeting with upper management or clients, I dress casually yet never unprofessionally.

4. Communication: Be very clear on requirements, tasks, expectations, goals, and duties for each person, yet do not micro-manage. Define what is necessary for promotions. Open doors are a must, and managers must appear approachable. This leads me to my next recommendation..

5. Attitude: It is very contagious if management has a bad attitude. Smile and be friendly.

6. Leadership: A good/strong leader should be rewarded. A weak/bad leader must be removed as soon as possible.

7. Alignment: Align the goals and prioritizations of the company or department with the individual goals of each employee. Show employees how they fit into the big picture.

8. Schedule: Allow flexible hours and telecommuting when possible. Personal life is more important for most employees, so be flexible.

9. Training: In the IT world, engineers love learning new things that may or may not help them in their current jobs.

10. Miscellaneous: Random free foods (donuts or bagels in the morning), specialty drinks (soda, juice, etc.), free laundry service, and other unexpected perks are great morale boosters.


I hope these suggestions are taken seriously in hopes that they improve morale and spirits where you may work. And remember, someone does not need to be a manager or owner to help boost morale, so if you think your fellow employees are depressed then please try something.

by Phil B.

http://www.philforhumanity.com/Boost_Morale.html

]]> Mon, 27 Jul 2009 05:31:05 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=116 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=115
Please feel free to post anything (no matter how mundane it may seem!). We are genuinely interested to hear your views.

Please post your contribution below, or alternatively please email SDI at tessat@sdi-e.com

Many thanks

The Service Desk Institute]]> Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:34:18 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=115 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=114
Recently I blogged about professional telephone skills for the helpdesk here
http://www.helpmasterpro.com/community/blo...e-helpdesk.aspx

I was surprised to see so many people be voice very strong opinions about the article - many of the comments indicated that the telephone etiquette I put forth was old-school, and management oriented. I would be interested in getting further feedback from members of the SDI. I would like to improve the article. I know the SDI runs a telephone course, so I'm hoping some that may have attended this course would be able to give some constructive feedback on the article.

Best regards,
Rod]]> Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:54:01 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=114 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=113
Just doing some basic research around employment and I would like to know what the forums preferred method for finding new starters is?

Also do you have any comments or experiences of using these different options?

Thanks

Rob]]> Fri, 24 Jul 2009 09:25:49 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=113 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=110
Time to unwind and escape from the daily grind, but is that true? Do employees today really switch off when they go away? Or, do they prefer to keep in touch with the workplace and take their BlackBerrys and laptops with them?

Hornbill would like to find out what impact this has on the IT service desk, in particular:

• what are the most common requests your IT department receives during the holiday period?
• what are the biggest challenges for the IT department in supporting employees during their holidays?
• can you share your most interesting real-life scenarios with us?

Help us to find out what really goes on by taking part in our 5-minute survey and be entered into our prize draw to win a Red Letter Days experience voucher. Deadline for entry: Friday, 31st July 2009 ...start the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=prZ8...Ndwv_2fxg_3d_3d

If you have any queries about the survey, please contact me on 0208 582 8233 or email: fran.buchmann@hornbill.com

Thank you

Fran Buchmann
Marketing Executive
Hornbill Systems Ltd

]]> Wed, 22 Jul 2009 04:20:30 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=110 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=108
Looking to redraft our current job descriptions/responsibilites for Service Desk Manager, Service Desk Team Leader, Service Desk Analyst and Problem Manager.

I know there is a wealth of information out there but as a starting point do you have de facto descriptions for the above?

Many thanks

Vinny]]> Tue, 21 Jul 2009 10:44:29 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=108 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=107
We are planning to provide training on the differences between 2000 and 2007 for 100 'super-users', followed by access to an e-learning portal for the rest of our customers. Unfortunately, the culture here is not one of 'self-help', so we anticipate that many users may not bother with looking at the portal until it's too late.

I would be interested to hear from anyone who has recently upgraded from 2000 or 2003 to 2007:

Did you roll out to everyone at one, or take a phased approach?
What increase did you see in the number of fault calls?
Did you put extra people on the Service Desk?
How long did the impact last?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks.]]> Tue, 21 Jul 2009 09:09:03 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=107 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=106
We are reviewing a number of Service Desk Tools and one of the ones that has been recommended to me is ServiceNow. I've not heard of this application, nor met anyone who has used it.

If anyone there is using ServiceNow I'd love to hear from them and discuss their experiences.

Regards

Karen]]> Mon, 20 Jul 2009 10:44:29 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=106 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=105
I run the Service Desk for a large multi national Financial Services organisation, supporting around 130k internal customers across the world with something in the region of 150,000 customer contacts per month.

I wonder if any of you are in the same position as me? Doing a great job, implementing impressive efficiency projects, good customer feedback etc. But wanting to look outward for some comparison and more importantly to share some good practice with others.

If you are interested in this then respond! I am thinking that we could create some kind of self help group , regular Audio conferences etc and maybe reciprocal visits to share all we are doing. If you fancy it, either drop a reply on here or contact me directly. Afterall, in this industry, we all need a friend!


Regards

Neil]]> Mon, 20 Jul 2009 10:43:27 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=105 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=104 I recently read an article by David Mainville which I found incredibly interesting and right-on-the-button in regards to some of the recent developments in the ITIL World. It would be interesting to hear SDI Forum members views on this article and whether they think that ITIL is becoming more commercialised.

Like most good things, the development of IT service management (ITSM) processes was born out of necessity. Back in the early 1960s the computer started moving out of the lab and into the heart of mainstream business. Back then only the largest and wealthiest firms could justify having a computer due to the immense costs associated with purchasing, maintaining and operating these behemoths.

These early computers were as finicky as they were expensive. The hardware, operating systems and programs of the time were still in their infancy and “uptime” was measured in hours. The business, which was footing the bill for these systems, was becoming ever more dependent upon these machines and started demanding a better return on their investment (and they haven’t stopped since).

The sheer volume of outages demanded that a methodology be developed for managing incidents, getting to the root cause of problems and for mitigating the impact of making changes to the system. And thus an entire industry was born. Enterprise Systems Management or as it is now known, IT Service Management evolved to meet this challenge. This multi-billion dollar industry launched a whole suite of jobs, processes and tools all designed to improve the reliability, availability and serviceability of the computing environment.

And it worked! The people, process and technology helped nurture computing from its infancy to a mature adult where data centers became fully automated “lights out” environments with “uptime” measured at 99.999%.

And most of this happened before ITIL was even conceived.

As most of the readers know ITIL was first published in 1989 by UK government’s Central Computer & Telecommunication Agency (CCTA). Like all good work it stood on the shoulders of those who came before―it didn’t actually invent the processes―but it collected the best practices already in place and documented them into a framework all could freely access.

Access to these best practices was becoming increasingly important due to another development in the IT industry, the introduction of distributed computing. By the early 1990s the mainframe environment could be described as the mature, reliable and boring “grown-up” of the IT industry. The mainframe got the job done but with it was a degree of bureaucracy that the business had to accept. Things changed radically when distributed computing burst onto the scene.

Distributed Computing

Distributed computing was everything the mainframe wasn’t. It was fast, bold, exciting and promised lower costs and faster implementation times. Distributed computing was a young rebel; and a rallying cry against the stodginess and bureaucracy of the mainframe. It was the latest celebrity. Well, celebrity has a way of fading. We quickly learned that while distributed computing had a lot of promise it was still very immature. There were very few tools to manage the environment and the support processes developed in the mainframe era were viewed as old fashioned and as roadblocks to getting the job done.

George Santayana once said: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. Well, the IT industry not only forgot its past, but it went out of its way to ignore it. Support costs for distributed computing skyrocketed. Without the right tools and processes, the people costs went through the roof as duplicate IT departments were formed to manage this new environment.

Once again, out of necessity, the IT industry responded. New support tools were developed, organizational structures were rationalized and once again process was in vogue. Except now, we were able to leverage the documented frameworks such as IBM’s IT Process Model, HP’s ITSM model, Microsoft’s MOF and, of course, ITIL.

ITIL’s role in communicating the value of process to a new generation of IT professionals cannot be ignored. The fact that we now speak a common service management language has helped the industry pull together in a common direction. The fact that vendors have developed tools that can support and automate the processes has helped improve efficiency while reducing support costs. Now that senior management are aware of ITIL, well, this is both good and bad, but more on that later.

ITIL Backlash

So, how can I say that ITIL’s success may result in a backlash against ITSM? Because I believe that ITIL is turning its back on the past. This public domain collection of best practices built by dedicated volunteers is now on the fast track to becoming an overly commercialized, complex, bureaucratic and expensive endeavor.

This may sound hypocritical coming from someone who is an ITSM advocate and a partner in a consulting and training company that leverages ITIL best practices. But it’s my very passion for service management that is at the root of my argument. I have learned over my 30 years in IT that it’s fairly easy to design a process or buy a tool. If you want success in ITSM you have to do the hard work.

It’s not enough to design an incident management process and install a tool to support it. You need the dedication and governance to make sure people understand why they have to enter an incident; that they enter the right information into the incident record; and that someone uses the information for continual improvement. The same could be said for any of the ITIL processes.
The commercialization of ITIL is taking focus away from doing the hard work and is placing it on certifications, compliance schemes and on taking something relatively simple and making it overly complex and bureaucratic. The introduction of ITIL v3 has placed the focus squarely in the stratosphere with the introduction of dozens of new processes, roles and CMDB-like data-stores. Schemes are being designed to “certify” a vendor’s tool compliance to ITIL. What does that even mean―other than a chance to impose additional cost on the vendor?

I made a comment earlier in this article about the fact that senior management’s awareness of ITIL is both a good thing and a bad thing. It’s always good when dedicated IT executives place focus on improving IT services; it’s good for IT and it’s good for the business. But if these same executives see additional bureaucracy, exercises in empty process design, added costs for training and re-training … well, they may just come to the conclusion that ITSM is just another management fad straight from the pages of a Dilbert cartoon.

It wasn’t long ago that the mainframe, and the people who managed it, were ostracized because of their perceived bureaucratic and process heavy approach. The business took a detour into distributed computing because it offered the promise of freedom and better time to market. Will the business look at ITIL as the right path or just another road block put up by the IT department? Will the business feel the need to take another detour away from the bureaucracy?

I’m not knocking process at all. Effective and efficient processes are required to manage the complexities of today’s computing environments. But I think its time that we take our heads out of the clouds and focus on the core of what makes an it organization run. A successful IT organization needs to fix incidents and provision service requests and they need to do it faster, cheaper and with a focus on customer service. To do that requires only a handful of well designed processes, the necessary tools to automate and a focus on execution.

I believe there is a real danger of an overly-hyped and commercialized ITIL leading people down the wrong path having them focus on the wrong things. This of course will result in failure and lead to a backlash against the very thing that can help IT be more effective in supporting the business. Let’s not repeat the mistakes of the past. Let’s learn from our mistakes and apply process in a practical, lean and pragmatic way. Let’s focus on our customer, namely the business, and help them do things faster and with better quality.

The last thing any IT professional needs is a backlash against the very thing that will improve the delivery of services to our clients.

David Mainville is CEO and co-founder of Consulting-Portal, an ITSM consulting and ITIL training company focused on helping Fortune 500 and mid-size companies assess, design and implement robust IT Service Management processes. Consulting-Portal also offers a full curriculum of ITSM education including: ITIL, ISO and CobiT.

]]> Mon, 20 Jul 2009 03:51:33 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=104 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=103
We are looking to formalise some office rules within the Service Desk following some complaints from analysts around current rules, and I was wondering if anyone has anything we could start with? Not looking to dictate but would like some "this is what others desks/offices do" type suggestions.
Any help/advise would be appreciated.

Cheers
Marie]]> Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:41:31 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=103 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=102 Can anyone point me in the direction of some really useful and cost effective dashboard software? Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:00:38 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=102 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=101
Thanks
Selena]]> Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:42:31 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=101 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=100
Interestingly whilst looking into Service Desk software I have asked various vendors to show me how they use their own product to support faults in their own software and how they liaiase with their developers, not many have been able to show me how that works.

]]> Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:39:14 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=100 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=99
The idea is that by being able to comment on products or services online, customers will have the opportunity to resolve their own issues and collaborate with others. This is seen as a great opportunity for most businesses with the outcome being a growth in brand awareness across the web.

A number of articles have highlighted how important it will be for Service Desks to monitor the comments posted, so that they can track and feedback on any major issues. For example, if there is a fault with an application or a repeated product error.

More often that not the Service Desk will be silent, but when necessary they will have to post a response. It is understood that staff will need rules when doing so, informality is the norm on social websites but not when you are representing your company.

Do any of your Service Desk staff monitor your Businesses activity on social media sites? If not, do you see this as inevitable responsibility of the first line staff?

I am sceptical.]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:52:58 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=99 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=95 Does anyone have this role in their team, and what are they called?
thanks]]> Tue, 30 Jun 2009 09:09:34 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=95 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=94
I would appreicate people's views on whether you feel that users should contact the 3rd party direct or whether they should go via our internal Service Desk and also should it then be our Service Desks responsibility to contact and manage the call with the third party.

Personally I think for consistency purposes all calls should come via us but would appreciate peoples comments on how you manage these types of calls.








]]> Thu, 18 Jun 2009 03:25:13 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=94 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=93
Our leaver/starters process is in a bit of a mess - it's a laborious process whereby managers have to complete a form requesting access and send it to the Helpdesk. We find that we often don't receive the requests until the staff member is practically at the door.

I want to tie this into the HR starters process, whereby managers specify access requirements at the point that they inform HR of their new starter. I'd also like to have some sort of automatic update from Oracle to AD that creates a skeleton account as soon as the HR record has been created, and deletes it when the HR record expires.

I'd be really interested to hear from anyone who has an automated process that involves HR and doesn't require the manager's to liaise with IT seperately.

Thanks

Karen
]]> Wed, 17 Jun 2009 04:21:15 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=93 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=92
Has anybody any experince of SM7 from HP? If so feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Phil]]> Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:18:02 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=92 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=91
I have recently been tasked with improving our call closure process. To give you an idea of scope and throughput, we close approx. 100 incidents per day. We have a team of 5 service desk analysts. The current system works in that when a call is closed the user is emailed the final comments in the ticket. This has caused us quite a few problems with calls being closed when the user has complained that their issue is not fixed. So, they are either not fully understanding the closure details or (more commonly) the issue has not actually been fixed to the users satisfaction. This may account for 5% of tickets, the rest are generally ok, but this small number does bring with it a certain amount of disatifaction, as highlighted by a recent survey to the users. what methods do you use and what suggestions do people have in making this process most effective. I am wary of calling back over 500 incidents per week due to the resource intensity of this - leaving voicemails when people are not available, etc.

Would welcome any feedback/suggestions/

thanks]]> Thu, 04 Jun 2009 06:52:56 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=91 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=89
The scenario I am considering is about supporting a small overseas outfit where there will be language crossover somewhere in the process . The majority of the support they need would be done locally but sometimes they will need our assistance. One option is to have some bi-lingual Service Desk technicians, another is to insist everything is done in English and leave the overseas people to deal with language translation. That doesn't feel very accomodating.

Have you done anything with language presentation or translation within your incident management tool?]]> Mon, 25 May 2009 11:19:48 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=89 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=88
Service Desk is classic ITIL Virtual, with 3 in London and 1 in each of the US locations. One number SPOC, and one email address. The desk is very technical approx 80% calls are solved at the desk with about 5% going to 3rd line and the other 15% being managed by Application teams with 3rd parties.

We are professional services organisation (financial in the City), taking approx. 2000 calls per month (average of approx. 3.5 per user per month (extremely high). Desk is now beyond capacity and struggling to cope with call volumes and demands. Where do we go next? Would welcom fellow SDi members thoughts and experiences with managing team structure. If anyone works in a similar environment, how have you structured your teams.

Thanks]]> Tue, 19 May 2009 09:08:09 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=88 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=87
As always, thanks for the input.

Terry
]]> Wed, 13 May 2009 03:51:43 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=87 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=85
It seems to me that customer service is largely measured in terms of customer satisfaction and so therefore it is about making them happy. She seems to be suggesting that there is some objective standard of 'good service' and that as long as we follow the procedures we will meet that standard regardless of whether the customers are happy with it or not.

What are your thoughts on this? Am I missing something or misrepresenting her views?]]> Fri, 08 May 2009 06:08:45 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=85 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=84
Does anyone else record chase up calls and if so, how do you go about doing so?




]]> Thu, 07 May 2009 11:09:17 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=84 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=83 Thu, 07 May 2009 10:48:39 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=83 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=82 Following a restructure within IT support procedures are being amended and created but don't appear to be joined.
Any help or views on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks]]> Thu, 07 May 2009 09:44:16 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=82 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=81
We currently have an overhead projector in the 1st line servicedesk which displays the analysts that are logged into the phone system and how long they have been on call , wrap etc. It also displays other call statistics such as number of calls offered , abandoned , GOS etc.
I find it invaluable as a instant picture of whats happening and so do my team, however I was considering maybe moving to LCD monitors around the room as it may look more professional when we have visitors.

I am concerned that with up to 20 1st line guys logged into the phone system and the call numbers displayed that the smaller screens maybe more difficult to read with all that info , there is also the expense.

What do other people use ?]]> Wed, 06 May 2009 10:27:46 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=81 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=79
We're looking at how to further develop our use and we would benefit from sharing knowledge and practice information from other sites.]]> Tue, 05 May 2009 07:35:42 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=79 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=78 Do you give customers access to the same process documentation used by your IT function?
Do your customers ask to see process documentation?
Do you produce rich pictures an presentations for your customers?

Any thoughts ideas would be appreciated, we are thinking of putting together some pages on our intranet that explain how SW requests etc are processed to give our customers and end to end view.

Steve Dobson
Atkins
stephen.dobson@atkinsglobal.com]]> Tue, 05 May 2009 07:30:45 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=78 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=75
As a result of the recent increase in SPAM being posted on the site all new members signing up to the Forum will now be personally validated by SDI prior to accessing Forum content.

If anyone has any questions please don't hesitate to contact SDI.]]> Thu, 30 Apr 2009 11:00:36 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=75 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=73 We measure the things you would expect, ASA etc but I also have a measurement for the “Average length of time spent on a call” currently set at an average of 5 minutes. The reason for this is that my Service Desk which has 4 Analysts and about 50-60 calls per day are starting to do more technical fixes and can get so wrapped up in them that we end up with 2 or 3 people waiting in the queue which is poor service at that end. Now from my point of view, and following ITIL V3 Incident Management, a single attempt should be made to resolve the call using either their own knowledge or the knowledge base, which if they are unable to progress then gets escalated to my 2nd liners, however my Team believe that and average 5 minutes is not long enough to do this. From a Service point of view I don’t want customers waiting 5 minutes to get through to speak with my Team about their problems, so we go around in circles. So my question is this……do you measure the average time spent on a call within your own Service Desks and if you do what time line have you set. We run standard desktops with industry standard remote access software.

All thoughts welcome.

Terry]]> Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:56:44 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=73 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=71
Steve Dobson
Central Services Manager
WS Atkins
stephen.dobson@atkinsglobal.com]]> Mon, 27 Apr 2009 03:53:33 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=71 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=68 Fri, 24 Apr 2009 08:22:15 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=68 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=67 We are looking to re-record the greetings on our service desk phone system and I'm wondering if anyone has ever used voice talent services from a 3rd party company for their greetings? If there are any recommendations we'd be grateful to receive them. Thank you kindly.]]> Tue, 21 Apr 2009 06:00:58 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=67 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=66
I was hoping that someone could suggest a good alternative to the Centennial Discovery CMDB package?

Many thanks]]> Tue, 21 Apr 2009 05:36:51 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=66 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=65
I've got the SDI definition of a Service Desk as a starting point, but can't seem to move any further.
('Service Desk n.
- resolves 60% or more of incoming incidents and requests without any escalation
- improves customer satisfaction significantly, when first level resolution is at 50% or more
- reduces costs and time to fix incidents
- keeps businesses running efficiently')

Can anyone add to this, to help me to explain the differences between the two titles?
]]> Thu, 16 Apr 2009 09:44:57 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=65 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=64 ]]> Thu, 16 Apr 2009 08:05:48 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=64 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=62 but I would like to know what other people think or what experience they have had in a similar situation.

Our IT team is part of the Core Services Division, which also includes the Finance team and the Facilities team. At the moment we run an IT Service Desk. The Facilities team have their own 'service desk' which is basically a mailbox.

Suppose we create a centralised Core Service Desk? Does anyone have any thoughts or practical experience on how this would work? It would probably reduce the number of first time fixes (for IT at least) - but we are not counting these at present anyway. Would we in effect be running two separate desks under one number, and if so, is there any point?

Your comments are welcome! ]]> Wed, 08 Apr 2009 08:51:36 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=62 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=61
Fuelled by the coffee, enthusiastic peers and the presentations, I came away with a number of ideas to revolutionise our organisation

Sadly, today, I am decaffinated and alone and the brave new world seems a long way away. All my grand schemes seem like so much whistling in the wind (all together now - aaarrrrhhhhhh!)

Thanks again however for the reminder that Customer Service is a goal worth striving for and that there are people out there who are striving to do it. This customer is certainly happy with the service!]]> Fri, 03 Apr 2009 08:42:46 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=61 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=60
Just wondered if anyone had any experience of open source Service Desk systems and their benefits and costs.

We are considering such systems and doing some research - I just wondered if anyone had any experience.

Regards
Carl]]> Thu, 02 Apr 2009 06:13:25 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=60 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=59
I am developing a new service desk and have a core of users who have been given personal service by local support teams in the past. I need to implement a new ticketing system so that I can measure (and improve) our performance and report back to the business. There is an understandable reluctance to use a new system which will prevent folks walking up to their favourite IT guy and getting instant service.

Does anyone have any experience and/or advice on how best to tackle this issue?

]]> Thu, 02 Apr 2009 04:46:08 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=59 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=58
I understand that the number of service offered will impact these ratios, but I am looking for a general guideline for a typical Service Desk (if there is such a thing )

Thanks in advance.

Parminder]]> Tue, 31 Mar 2009 07:01:29 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=58 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=57
Could anyone advise on how they deal in the support of their own IT functions?

Thanks

Nik]]> Mon, 30 Mar 2009 08:33:57 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=57 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=56
Yes, as a Service Desk, we should be demonstrating to our organisations that we are not a cost centre that absorbs large quantities of budget, but a value-added resouce that should be improving productivity - and that can certainly feel like striking back! We may feel that often we are unjustly criticised - and being attacked can frequently cause us to want to respond by attacking in return. It may seem that we are the gallant champions of truth, justice and the 'proper' way of doing things in the face of institutional indifference to processes and procedures.

But it is equally true that if we start 'striking back' we may well cause hackles elsewhere to rise! A more productive approach may be to attempt to coax and wheedle the other business units into seeing the evident justice of our cause, to try to win them over by persuasion rather than to bludgeon them with the force of our argument. We should seek to demonstrate that we are colleagues working together for the common ends of our organisations, not rivals for a bigger chunk of the budget!

The "Service Desk Strokes Back" anyone?]]> Mon, 30 Mar 2009 06:51:33 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=56 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=55
One of my problems is that I am the only person who talks to him about this - I can't escalate it because every time I get close to the formal disciplinary process (which would involve my manager), he pulls it back and the problem goes away. When I challenge him, he says he wishes he could just be appreciated for doing his job - he doesn't think all these other issues, such as his contracted working hours, are part of the job! (Before you ask, yes I have explained to him that the job is a full package and not just a 'pick-and-mix' of the parts he wants to do.)

These issues happened every 3-4 months last year. So far in 2009, we have had two issues - one in January and another in March. I am running out of ideas and I don't want this year to be a repeat performance of the last. can anyone offer advise on how to nip this in the bud once and for all? As an added complication, our HR department won't let me challenge him on a pattern of bad behaviour, as it isn't fair to go back two years when addressing issues!]]> Mon, 30 Mar 2009 06:25:10 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=55 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=54
As the issues are nothing that the Service Desk can do anything about, we simply log a ticket and then feedback to the relevant business user, who in turn then feeds back to our external clients which often actually adds delays if there are queries from the third party that need answering before they can investigate and resolve.

Does anyone have experience of this type of support and if so how was it managed as we seem to be providing more of an admin function than anything else which I am keen not to get into and may suggest that the superusers themselves (who deal directly with our clients) log the tickets??

Many thanks]]> Mon, 30 Mar 2009 04:32:12 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=54 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=43 Benchmark Buddy Request

On behalf of our members SDI run the benchmark buddy scheme. This means that if an individual needs specific advice or guidance on an ITSM topic we will send the request out to all possible members in the hope that they can offer some real-life solutions.

Below is a recent request from one of our members in the South West. If you think you might be able to offer advice please add your comments. Alternatively if you are experiencing similar issues, are based in this region, have SDI membership and would like to meet up with the person who made the request please contact SDI at research@sdi-europe.com

Here is the request:

I'd be interested in speaking with anyone who has recently started to use Heat with Frontrange in the last 2 years. Can you help? What are your experiences of the product and the company?

Please post your advice below!
]]> Wed, 25 Mar 2009 03:52:07 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=43 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=42
I am looking to improve how our IT dept reports on major incidents and how this feeds into the problem management process.
Currently, the responsibility of reporting a major incident lies with the service owner.
Unfortunately there are a number of gaps in this system and not all incidents are captured.

Can ask how your organisations report on major incidents?
How is the service disruption conveyed internally to the rest of the IT department?
Does your Incident Manager act as the SPOC in conveying information to the rest of the dept?

Any feedback/advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Lorraine
]]> Mon, 23 Mar 2009 11:45:54 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=42 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=41
Half of SDI would like to keep the current name and the other half would like to change it.

The SDI Forum is meant for you so please register your vote.]]> Fri, 20 Mar 2009 09:06:51 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=41 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=40 Customer Satisfaction Survey

The purpose of conducting customer satisfaction surveys is to determine user perception of the products and services the IT organisation and the Service Desk deliver, and to determine whether they are meeting user expectations.

The objectives are to:

• Identify what users feel is important
• Identify areas for improvement
• Benchmark and trend customer satisfaction
• Assist in developing new products and services based on user needs


Customer Satisfaction Survey Methods

There are a number of ways organisations can survey its users. These are:

• Ongoing (i.e. follow up email after the call is closed)
• Annual or periodic (i.e. surveys planned and scheduled on a periodic basis)
• One-time or One-off (i.e. undertaken for specific reasons such as a change in service provider)
• Focus Groups (i.e. select group of users discuss predetermined issues)
• Round Tables (i.e. users raise and discuss issues or concerns)

Web-based surveys are becoming increasingly popular because they are easy for users to access and the results can be collated online and then downloaded. This is much easier than a manual paper based method which would require someone to sift through all the responses.

Focus and Round Table Groups can be set up by you and monitored in the same way that a standard meeting would, these can be minuted and individuals can be polled on the day.

SDI offer a Customer Satisfaction Survey service whereby we develop, implement and host the survey online and then report the results. Beforehand we discuss the areas the organisation wants to focus on, for example in a recent survey on behalf of a large public sector organisation we focused on the performance of the Service Desk in regards to the outsourced aspect of that service. Each survey is tailored to the particular requirements of the company.

If you are in the process of setting up your own survey you will have particular aspects that you wish to report on. You will also have standard requirements that you will want to incorporate in your survey year-on-year, enabling you to benchmark your progress.

Some of the standard questions you may ask your users will be:

Is there a clear and easy mechanism for reporting and escalating issues to the Service Desk?
> Strongly Agree
> Agree
> Disagree
> Strongly Disagree

Can you usually get support when you need it?
> Strongly Agree
> Agree
> Disagree
> Strongly Disagree

When your call is answered are you dealt with courteously and professionally?
> Strongly Agree
> Agree
> Disagree
> Strongly Disagree


The ultimate aim of any survey is that 100% of users respond. For example if you send a follow-up email to 10 people in 1 day you want all 10 people to respond. Similarly if you have 2,000 users in your organisation you will want all 2,000 users to respond. Realistically this may not always be possible and it may help if you offer your users an incentive to participate.

If you do not have a 100% response you must clearly state in your results that this is not the case. For example, if there are approximately 508 possible respondents and only 182 respond you must clearly state that there was a 35.83% response rate.

The amount of time the survey runs for depends entirely upon your own requirements and resources. At SDI we run external customer satisfaction surveys for a fixed period of 7 days.


Scoring

There many ways in which data can be scored and it completely depends upon what you are trying to show and the size of your sample and the number of respondents. When SDI host Customer Satisfaction Surveys for external customers we choose to weight the data to give it an average score.

For example:

Strongly Agree = 4 points
Agree = 3 points
Disagree = 2 points
Strongly Disagree = 1 point



1. Multiply the number of respondents who indicated that they strongly agree by 4, the number who indicated that they agree by 3 etc.

Strongly Agree = 40 x 4 = 160
Agree = 119 x 3 = 357
Disagree = 17 x 2 = 34
Strongly Disagree = 6 x 1 = 6

Total 557

2. Then add the total number of points together = 557

3. Then divide the total number of points by the total number of respondents, so 557 / 182 = 3.06

The overall score for that question would be 3.06. This gives an average weighted score for all the results for that question.

Over time these average scores can be compared for each question.

This allows organisations to monitor progress and focus on areas for improvement. It is also a good benchmark with which to share with other organisations or as a base level to come back to.

If organisations are planning on undergoing a SDI Site Certification Audit evidence that Customer Satisfaction Surveys have been set up is required and a report of the findings for at least 6 months will need to be provided.


Take part in the SDI Customer Survey

Does your organisation conduct Customer Satisfaction Surveys?

SDI are attempting to gather as much information as possible on this subject for a Report due to be published in May. We would be grateful if you could take 5 minutes to fill in the Survey, please click here.]]> Fri, 20 Mar 2009 08:11:18 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=40 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=39
1. Incorrect Staff Recruited
Service Desk Analysts who lack the pre-requisite skills and attributes of the role.

2. Poorly Motivated Staff
Management have failed to manage the expectations of the staff. Management have failed to create variety and interest in the role.

3. Lack of Respect from Internal IT Colleagues and Peers
Technical support staff think that the Analysts are just 'phone answerers'.

4. Lack of the Respect from the Business
Users/Customers think that Analysts are just 'phone answerers'.

5. Incorrect Measurement of Activities
Management insist on measures that can contradict quality service performance e.g. upholding a maximum time limit for a call.

6. Incorrect 'Tools-of-the-Trade'
Software capability that does not match expectations of the role e.g. incident log that has insufficient fiedls for relevant data capture.

7. Insufficient Knowledge Available
Analysts put on the front line without access to relevant data sources e.g no change management schedules or knowledge base.

8. Lack of Involvement in Operational Meetings
Service Desk not represented at key 'knowledge-based' meetings such as the Change Advisory Board.

9. Poor Physical Working Environment
Noisy and crowded office space with no relaxation area.

10. Insufficient Training
Service Desk Analysts put on the front-line without knowledge of the service used by the customers or knowledge of the technical support structure.


What are your thoughts? Let me know.

Ken Goff
KGM Ltd
ww.kgoffm.co.uk

]]> Fri, 20 Mar 2009 06:52:05 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=39 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=38 We have identified that one of our top 5 call profiles each week related to forgotten or locked SAP accounts. These are mainly driven by our store colleagues and I am keen to understand if anyone knows of any tools that they have implemented to allow self management of these types of calls or implemented methods to reduce / remove these contacts to the desk. Thu, 19 Mar 2009 08:47:58 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=38 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=37
I would be interested to know what others think - should we be wrapping our little darlings up in cotton-wool or should we be exposing them to the realities of life to develop mature responsible adults?

Thanks.]]> Wed, 18 Mar 2009 06:48:22 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=37 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=36
Thanks
Selena]]> Tue, 17 Mar 2009 09:08:40 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=36 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=35
I have been tasked with looking into a number of proposals for restructuring support services at my university and for part of this I want to gauge what other institutions are doing already. If you manage support in an HE or FE institution, I would really like to hear from you about…

1. Where customer facing IT Support sits within your institution – e.g. part of IT services, part of Student Support services

2. What form does your service take? – E.g. do you have a Service Desk? Do you offer telephone or face to face support? Are you ITILised?

I am also interested to hear from any institutions that have either bought in a managed service or have outsourced their IT Support to hear about your experiences.

Any help would be gratefully received.

Philippa Molloy
Service Support Manager
University of Cumbria]]> Tue, 17 Mar 2009 05:34:06 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=35 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=34
APM Group is the official accreditor for the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) who own ITIL. APM Group will now be offering accreditation and endorsement for ITIL software products. Basically APM group will be assessing ITSM vendors software to make sure their products are ITIL compatible. I believe there are 3 tiers of compliance - bronze, silver and gold.

I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has anymore information on this i.e. what will the criteria be? how much will APM Group be charging vendors so that they can say their product is officially OGC and ITIL accredited?

Thanks]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2009 10:19:20 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=34 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=33
Compiling CI items and CMDB's seems like an insurmountable task to me. Does anyone have any experience of this? ]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2009 09:43:19 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=33 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=32
Cloud computing has been reported on a lot lately and I have often filed it in the 'other' part of my brain i.e. doesn't really effect me/unlikely that we'd replace our infrastructure etc. So, it is interesting that a significant UK charity, which to many people is an institution, is now sharing headline space with such a new concept.

We all know what cloud computing is, to simplify, it is an external web based infrastructure which provides IT related capabilities as a service to both business and private consumers. Phew! Key words here are external, web based and infrastructure. It is predicted to be the future of all things IT.

The point here is that Comic Relief have capitalised on the cloud computing services available to them. Instead of running 15 server racks all year round they will now be running 6 for half the amount of time. The flexibility and scalability of cloud computing means that Comic Relief are fully geared up to expand or reduce the service as necessary. With Red Nose Day expecting to generate at least 25% of Comic Reliefs annual revenue in one night I am assuming they won't be reducing their requirements any time soon. By hopping on the computing cloud Comic Relief will be cutting energy usage as well as costs. Costs being the crucial element here. And with all these extra savings they can invest in more call centres, more volunteers, more charitable fundraising pursuits.

It will be interesting to see how this Red Nose Day works out. One of the charges often levied at cloud computing is that it is less secure than the typical onsite infrastructure model. Problems with hacking, malware, viruses etc are all cited as reasons why external hosting is not particularly secure. There are also concerns about availability and uptime, will the high volumes of donations expected tonight topple the system? Apparently last year, at its peak, the transaction system was taking 54 donations per second.

I for one will be tuned in, with my breath held and my fingers crossed.

What are your thoughts?

If you haven't already donated or if you would like to find out more about Comic Relief please click here.]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2009 08:58:07 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=32 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=27 Any advice appreciated.
]]> Tue, 10 Mar 2009 09:17:47 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=27 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=26 I’m hoping that others who have/are using LANDesk ITBM 7.6 (used to be Touchpaper ITBM) would be willing to share their experience of it. I’m particularly interested in those little tweaks that you will have made away from the normal “out of the box” solution. I’m currently focusing on “Incident and Problem Management” but of course we shouldn’t overlook any hints or tips about “Configuration Management” Sun, 08 Mar 2009 10:48:30 -0500 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=26 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=25
Just re-reading the article on Cloud computing that SDI have published and I wanted to know how popular SaaS is?

Part of my job is to look after the vendors that SDI speak to so this would be a great help to see what you guys think of Saas.

Rob Bez]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2009 09:32:13 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=25 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=24
I am performing an evaluation of Service Desk solutions and amoungst the obvious market leaders I have also been asked evaluate this product.

I would appreciate feedback from anyone else who uses this application, or who has used it in the past, or even evaluated it for their own service desk.

Thank you in advance for your help.]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2009 06:03:25 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=24 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=22
I was hoping someone could help me.

I have been tasked with finding a Service Desk that can handle out-of-hours calls. In my organisation we have recently consolidated 2 Service Desks from 2 different companies and we are now looking for a third desk to take care of the calls that we can't. The third desk will only need to handle less than 20 calls per week.

Does anyone know of any companies who provide this type of service?

Thanks for your help.

]]> Tue, 03 Mar 2009 09:35:34 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=22 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=21 ]]> Tue, 03 Mar 2009 07:31:31 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=21 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=20
We are reviewing our leaver process as the current process leaves potential for security breaches.

Any advice would be fab.

L. ]]> Mon, 02 Mar 2009 09:24:11 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=20 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=18
I manage a progressing Service Desk and although we have identified that the room that currently houses our Service Desk is not adequate (new locations are being looked at) now that we have grown but I was wondering what other measures people haev implemented to combat noise issues as this is causing some concentration problems for my team.

]]> Mon, 02 Mar 2009 07:58:39 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=18 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=17 Should we have a full time Service Level Manager who works within the Service Desk? Or should the Service Level Manager work separately from the Service Desk? Mon, 02 Mar 2009 06:43:22 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=17 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=16
1. Keeping the remaining colleagues motivated
2. Maintaining current performance levels
3. Improving both of the above.

Any advice would be welcomed]]> Mon, 02 Mar 2009 05:56:36 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=16 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=15
So what is CSI? In the workplace CSI goes on all the time, if a new system is implemented, if a new methodology is employed, if there is a change in targets/strategic direction/departments. Often these changes take place and CSI is never mentioned, changes happen and teams react to the changes. It is as simple as that. But is that Best Practice? Wouldn't it be better to improve a service continuously instead of on a reactive basis?

CSI works in complete opposition to the tired-out, old, 'you'll make this change because I tell you' attitude inherent in a lot of organisations. It is the organic growth of ideas from the people who know the company the best, the staff. Ideas are supported by management because the vision and the strategic direction of the company are clear and the staff are encouraged to contribute because management know what they want and where they are going. Essentially Service Improvement processes are always on the agenda because there is a constant cycle of improvement throughout the organisation.

The ultimate aim is to make service improvement sustainable. It should eventually sit at the heart of the business and be part of it's culture. It is not an easy concept to deliver because buy-in is needed not only from management but also the staff. In any organisation there will always be resistance to change and this can sit at all levels, not just direct reports.

If you are about to embark on the CSI journey and you have decided on the best methodology (LEAN, ITIL, ISO etc) but are still struggling to get buy-in then the following 'quick wins' might be useful:

The staff are involved, they are willing to contribute and make positive changes - however they have no outlet for their ideas.
Solution: Set up an MS Sharepoint for all CSI suggestions which is monitored on a regular basis. Make sure someone takes ownership and that whoever contributes is thanked for their time. Acknowledge individuals when they make a suggestion.

The staff are demotivated and use any opportunity to criticise recent changes or initiatives.
Solution: Ban any type of criticism that does not lead to a solution. Make this clear at the start of meetings. People can raise concerns and offer solutions but they cannot rant and if they do it is limited to less than 1 minute. This shouldn't be dictatorial but lighthearted, basically encourage individuals to only discuss solutions.

There is no clear idea of job roles or responsibilities following recent changes or initiatives.
Solution: If the staff did not implement this change (or their buy-in was not sought - eek!) then something needs to be done so that they start to take ownership of their own roles again. Start by asking the people to look at what they do, if there are no clear job specifications, outlined processes etc ask the staff to write their own. Ask them to think about what they do day-to-day. Ask them to think about how they will incorporate the recent changes into their job roles.

No matter how far you are along the CSI, LEAN, ISO, ITIL path the suggestions above can be incorporated at any time. Even if you don't plan on going down this route the above suggestions should be helpful when going through any change management process. At the end of the day people come to work for lots of different reasons but you can be sure that the majority don't come to do a bad job. People want to come to work and feel like they have contributed. Involve your staff in the business, define clear objectives. If you understand and recognise staff input then the transition period when changes are being implemented could be one of relative calm.

If you have any questions on this or you are currently going through a period of change, or you have implemented some sort of CSI, LEAN, ISO initiative then please add your thoughts below.]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 10:55:57 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=15 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=14 WHY DO PEOPLE LEAVE AND WHY DO PEOPLE STAY? SDI E-POLL RESULTS

According to Stephen Harvard Davis in his keynote presentation 'The Secret to Retaining Your Best Team Members', the real reasons talented employees leave is because of:

• Poor management
• Lack of career growth
• Poor communication
• Pay inequality
• Lack of recognition
• Poor senior leadership
• Lack of trust
• Lack of training
• Excessive workload
• Lack of tools and resources
• Lack of teamwork

We asked SDI members what their thoughts on poor staff retention and great staff retention were.

Those who responded were mainly Senior Managers or Heads of Services, 43% of the total sample. The majority of respondents had been employed in their job less than 12 months so they were able to give some really pertinent feedback to our questions.

The top three reasons for poor staff retention were:

1. Lack of promotion opportunities (18%)
2. Lack of recognition (14%)
3. Pay inequality in comparison to external companies (11%)


The top 3 reasons for great staff retention were:

1. Recognition of performance (15%)
2. Opportunities for promotion (13%)
3. Teamwork culture (12%)


The results showed that the majority of respondents left their jobs chiefly because of the lack of promotion opportunities, lack of recognition and lower than average pay.

The results showed that the reason people stayed was recognition of performance, opportunities for promotion and a teamwork culture.

In these times of recession and uncertainty it might be worth thinking about your team and whether you are actually offering them enough reasons to stay. People will always find alternative work if the motivation to leave is strong enough. If, by banking on the uncertainty in the job market you are planning on keeping staff then good luck, this approach rarely works and you will inevitably lose talented people. If you have recently been through a round of redundancies, restructured departments, reduced bonuses, implemented new processes then it is crucial that staff are not alienated, morale is still high and individuals still feel empowered. For some tips and strategies on how engage and motivate your staff please view the 'Continuous Service Improvement' article in the *New* SDI Article section.

What are your thoughts about this subject? What are some of the worst and best examples of retaining and motivating staff you have seen? All comments welcomed.]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 05:53:41 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=14 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=13
In some organisations, targets are given such significance that meeting, or not meeting, an often arbitrary target takes precedence over everything else, often to the detriment of the performance of the desk as a whole. Ideally, these Service Desk targets should not be considered in isolation – but rather considered in the context of the overall performance of the desk.

Sometimes, the performance levels achieved elsewhere in the industry become accepted as a ‘standard’ or ‘norm’, and are championed as an acid test as to whether or not a desk is up to par. Such ‘norms’ can be misleading and disheartening as they do not reflect variations in the industry and differences in types of support. Also calculations are not always based upon equivalent criteria which can make comparative analysis misleading.

Although the potential benefits of fast, effective and cheap incident resolution to end-users, and ultimately their businesses, are undeniable, seemingly excellent ‘scores’ in these key metrics may have unseen side effects which create an inaccurate impression of how well the desk is actually performing from the perspective of its customers.

The figures below are examples from various sources within the industry, they cannot be said to equate to any sort of industry average and should not be taken out of context.

Average Speed to Answer
According to Tech Republic in the report Introduction to Help Desk Concepts and Skills published in 2004, 90% of calls should be answered in less than 4 seconds. Realistically though the majority Service Desk staff answer calls within 5 to 15 seconds (SupportIndustry.com 2006).

Average Cost Per Call
In 2006 the Service Futures Group found out that the average cost per call was £8.16. In a survey the year before "Measuring Up?" FMJ/Integrated FM KPI Survey the average cost per call was £5.07.

Average Cost Per Email
In 2006 the Service Futures Group found out that the average cost per email is £9.52.

What do you think of these measurements? Do they seem realistic to you? If you have a good idea of your organisations Service Desk averages please take 5 seconds to indicate what they are in the poll above.




]]> Mon, 23 Feb 2009 05:59:04 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=13 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=11
Just out of interest who is using what version of ITIL?

Bez]]> Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:09:23 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=11 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=8 Benchmark Buddy Request

On behalf of our members SDI run the benchmark buddy scheme. This means that if an individual needs specific advice or guidance on an ITSM topic we will send the request out to all possible members in the hope that they can offer some real-life solutions.

Below is a recent request from one of our members in the West Midlands region. If you think you might be able to offer advice please add your comments. Alternatively if you are experiencing similar issues, are based in the West Midlands region, have SDI membership and would like to meet up with the person who made the request please contact SDI at research@sdi-europe.com

I am currently looking at House on the Hill’s Support Desk tools and would be interested if anyone has any experience of them or their products.

Please post your comments below!]]> Wed, 18 Feb 2009 08:17:48 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=8 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=7 Benchmark Buddy Request

On behalf of our members SDI run the benchmark buddy scheme. This means that if an individual needs specific advice or guidance on an ITSM topic we will send the request out to all possible members in the hope that they can offer some real-life solutions.

Below is a recent request from one of our members in the Hampshire region. If you think you might be able to offer advice please add your comments. Alternatively if you are experiencing similar issues, are based in the Hampshire region, have SDI membership and would like to meet up with the person who made the request please contact SDI at research@sdi-europe.com

Here is the request:

I currently work as an IT Service Desk Team Leader and have recently experienced some difficulties in regards to motivating and incentivising staff. Does anyone have any advice or tips on how to do this?

Please post your advice below!


]]> Wed, 18 Feb 2009 08:07:44 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=7 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=6
I am tasked with finding out the average cost per call to the Service Desk. Do I need to just think of it in terms of how much of my staffs time it costs? Or do I need to include other aspects?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Ta
Henry ]]> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 10:40:38 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=6 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=5
Some very sound reasons for marketing are:

Proactive rather than Reactive – Taking a proactive stance and actively marketing your services opens doors within the business, helping to build relationships with customers and enabling you to address the real issues within the customer’s domain.

Move from administrative (back office) to partner (front office) – In business terms, IT can quickly move from being seen as a purely administrative function to being a strategic driver of the business by providing well received services and products and by being valued and sought after by customers.

Reduce unwanted work – It is far easier to control and stop unwanted and non-strategic work being directed into IT once customers understand who you are and what you do.

Image enhancer – The professional image of IT is greatly enhanced and clients will seek you out with their business issues, keen for IT solutions.

Below are some of the Service Desk Institutes Top Five Tips for successfully marketing your Service Desk.

TOP FIVE TIPS

1. Customer Satisfaction Survey
Set up a Customer Satisfaction Survey to find out your customers perception of service and if they require a change to existing levels of service. Survey’s can be set up in a number of different ways:

• Personal Visits
• Written Surveys
• Telephone Surveys
• Email/Online Surveys

When planning a survey campaign it is crucial that you plan how to analyse the responses before you commit to any questions. Make questions as unambiguous and simple to answer as possible. Collate, analyse and publish the results promptly.

2. SWOT Analysis
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Produce an analysis of the positive and negative aspects of the service and use this as a basis to your Strategic Marketing Plan.

3. Strategic Marketing Plan
Put together a Strategic Marketing Plan outlining what you want to achieve and how you are going to do it. Include timelines and milestones as well as how you will allocate your main resources. Include an end date so you have something to work towards. Be aware that the marketing of the Service Desk never really finishes and make sure that the people on your team are aware of this.

4. The Team
The best piece of advice I ever received was given to me by my publishing lecturer who said that “no matter where you are or how badly a project may be going – always put a positive spin on it to those who aren’t in the know”. Whether it is books or baked beans, if you want someone to get behind your product or service you have to give them a positive impression of what you are trying to sell. So next time you are in the kitchen making a cup of tea and someone asks about IT’s most recent project don’t highlight the problems, talk instead about all the great new services that IT will be able to provide once it goes live. Talk about how the customer will benefit. This is internal marketing at its most basic level.

5. Publishing your Results
Make sure you publish your success stories as well as the not-so-successful stories. If your survey results tell you that customers think the service you provide is awful make sure this is published, but crucially include what you are going to do to fix it. Be seen to take action (in a relatively short space of time) and ensure it is positive action for the customer base.

So what are your thoughts? Do you have any tips on achieving recognition? Please add your comments below.]]> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 10:07:57 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=5 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=4
2. Ensure that these objectives are compatible with overall corporate objectives. This will reveal potential conflicts of interest at an early stage and ensure that consistency is maintained throughout the company.

3. Ensure all employees are familiar with these objectives. A well-publicized set of objectives ensures that all employees are aiming towards a common goal. This will help establish consistency.

4. Ensure that these objectives are quantifiable. Establishing a definite measure to indicate achievement of this objective will positively affect morale and encourage the taking of definite steps in order to achieve the given target, rather than ‘half-hearted’ efforts toward a ‘woolly’ objective.

5. Reaffirm the function of the Service desk. Consider the value of the Service Desk in terms of overall business performance. Company wide acknowledgement of a Desk’s contribution to wider corporate objectives will banish the widely held misconception of a Service Desk purely in terms of cost and in doing so, will raise its profile.

6. Avoid preoccupation with cost cutting measures, focus upon the customer. The main focus should be upon the demands of the customer. Placing excessive emphasis on industry best practice or industry averages detracts from the ‘service’ function of a help desk. Although ‘efficiency’ metrics are an unavoidable factor, it is essential that they should be treated with reasonable perspective and are not pursued to the detriment of the service.

7. Establish service levels according to financial priorities. Do not provide the same level of service to all users – consider the financial consequences of ‘downtime’ for certain groups compared to others.

8. Actively request feedback from users and act accordingly. In addition to orchestrating frequent meetings with end users and undertaking regular satisfaction questionnaires, provide a facility through which user suggestions and comments can be submitted. Take criticism positively and use it to initiate change.

9. Communicate with users. Provide fast and regular updates regarding the status of every problem referred to the help desk. Regularly refer to pre-defined levels of service which should be realistic and clearly defined. Notify users of significant issues.

10. Ensure that you understand the needs of your users. The service provided must be sufficiently flexible to respond to these demands.

11. Establish good internal communication. Good communication will help to establish a sense of a ‘team’ working towards a common goal. Use this avenue to ensure that everyone is aware of and understands the common corporate objectives and help desk goals and encourage bonding as a cohesive unit.

12. Create an environment that is conducive to open / free discussion. Encourage staff to discuss issues and ideas. This is not only a useful ‘tool‘ for establishing a culture of innovation and involving staff in the process of change, but is also a good method for coping with the high stress levels associated with help desk work.

13. Openly review team performance. An environment, in which staff can openly discuss less successful areas of practice, without apportioning personal blame, allows the real issues / problems to be addressed and can be an effective catalyst for change.

14. Communicate with similar organisations. Learn from their successes and their mistakes.

15. Capture and analyse relevant data and use it to your advantage: Data provides a tangible picture of actual daily processes. This objective overview is invaluable and will clearly illustrate trends, strengths and weaknesses. Identify key factors and act accordingly: Trends / patterns can be used to predict likely occurrences and thus enable preventative action:

16. Only measure relevant data. Do not waste time gathering and analysing metrics that are not directly relevant to your particular desk.

17. Provide training for end users. Ensure that all employees are equipped to deal with the normal functions of the software.

18. Provide consistent training for Help Desk staff. Training will increase staff confidence and efficiency. A well trained team will also provide consistent support to the customer.

19. Ensure that there is an email facility available for customers to log their own calls. Ensure that all end users are aware that the facility exists. Where appropriate, provide a self-help facility.

20. Ensure that First Level staff are used to their full potential. Do not waste first level resources by using them as merely an ‘answering and logging’ service. Develop a regularly updated knowledge base so that many calls can be dealt with at the first level:

21. Invest in commercial software that is compatible with existing facilities. The synchronization will reduce the likelihood of problems occurring. Commercial (rather than ‘home-grown’) software also allows users to benefit from current industry innovation.

22. Be proactive rather than reactive. Direct resources into software development rather than focusing solely on support.

23. Adapt staffing levels according to need. Ensure that adequate staff numbers are available at peak periods. Ensure that staff on-duty will possess the necessary skills for that period.

And the most important tip of all…

24. Retain your staff members. The huge cost and quality implications associated with the notoriously high staff turnover in the industry, should be weighed up against investment in staff retention measures. A well trained staff member is a valuable asset, offer incentives, recognition, good facilities and a well defined career path.


]]> Tue, 17 Feb 2009 09:49:41 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=4 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=2
If we take the idea of SaaS to the nth degree, potentially one day consumers may only need to have a basic operating system and web browser. Everyday work programs such as Microsoft Word and Excel could feasibly be located in the 'Cloud'. In fact a number of key business tools such as email, website creation and even phone support are currently offered through the big Internet service providers. The Google Apps paid subscription service (an excellent example of Cloud Computing) delivers mail, calendar, presentation applications, telephone support and storage capability for £25 per user per year. For this Google guarantee 99.9% availability of all applications per month. That is a service level guarantee of 40 minutes down time per month. No mean feat!

Examples of everyday Cloud Computing services can be seen in offices all over the UK. Look around you. In a lot of organisations the main website will live on the hosting companies server, in many cases so will the back end system and details of the e-commerce transactions. If you run surveys, as we do at SDI, the survey software and the data that is collected will be hosted by an external survey software provider. Employees simply access it and pull down the data they need. All manipulation and preparation of the data occurs in the cloud. All of these services fall under the Cloud Computing umbrella. So would you want your Service Desk operating in a similar fashion? Below are some of the positives and negatives of Cloud Computing and the SaaS model.

Positives
Some of the key benefits of moving applications out of an organisation and up into the 'Cloud' are:

Cost
Capital expenditure and investment in IT infrastructure is reduced. Including initial outlay and ongoing investment and maintenance costs (new patches, new versions of server operating systems etc).

At the CSO Interchange event held on the 4th of December 2008, Philippe Courtot, the chief executive of Qualys argued that enterprise software companies needed to evolve and put cloud infrastructure in place. In his presentation he compared the relative models of Microsoft's Outlook email program, and Google's Gmail provision. "In ten years time Microsoft Outlook will disappear and be in the cloud. It costs $84bn a year to maintain Outlook, even if it's given free. The costs of the infrastructure, servers, and software, those are the real costs [to business]. The running costs of gmail [for business] is just a few millions [globally], against billions on the enterprise software side".

Scalability
Customers can reduce or increase the amount of server or disk space they require easily. Enabling them to actively predict and respond to the demands of the business.

IT Personnel
Internal IT teams have more time to focus on long term projects. Staff resources can be allocated to areas of the business that require review. Individuals can focus on meeting the required service levels of its users in regards to problem and change management.

Remote Access
Service Desk staff can access the applications regardless of location allowing them to work more flexibly.

Access On Demand
Organisations have the opportunity to utilise on demand technologies i.e. handheld devices. An example would be a delivery company that would like to start using electronic handheld signature devices.

Negatives
Some of the concerns about Cloud Computing and SaaS model are:

Security and Corporate Compliance
Data held externally is considered less safe than data held on internal servers. Problems with hacking, malware, viruses etc are all cited as reasons why external hosting is not particularly secure. It is worth noting that security technology is going to be the key focus of some of the big players in the SaaS field. For example in 2007 Google acquired a security technology company Postini in order to focus solely on online security applications. This was at a cost of $625 million. Analysts at Gartner are predicting that spending on online security applications will treble by 2013.

Business Continuity and Uptime
Continuous availability is a standard requirement, many IT managers are concerned that working from an external server would mean no control should anything go wrong. For example, if the server goes down or if there are problems with the internet connection. This is why maintenance and support clauses in the contract are crucial. If the server does go down how long will it take for the host to fix it. What back ups are there? Guarantees are necessary and it is important to have the required level of service detailed in the contract as well as liabilities, indemnities and resolution procedures.


So what are your thoughts on this subject? Do you agree or disagree? Please post your thoughts below...

The Service Desk Institute, February 2009


]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:58:17 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=2 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=1


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Go to the documentation now...]]> Thu, 05 Feb 2009 08:15:23 -0600 http://www.sdi-forum.com/index.php?showtopic=1