If we were to imagine IT as a building, the service area would be the basement, entrance area and caretaker all in one, because without it, nothing would work!
Hardly any area of modern IT would function smoothly if it weren’t for the helpdesks. These serve not only as a contact point for various IT-specific problem solutions and questions of understanding, but also as the first point of contact for customers from all kinds of service areas.
We differentiate between three different service levels:
First level support
The primary and direct point of contact and first point of contact for customers/users when questions and problems arise. Call centre agents are primarily, but not exclusively, used here.
Second level support
If a problem cannot be solved directly by the first level, the expertise of the second level employee comes into play. Often, no team is deployed in this area, but rather selected employees from various specialist departments.
For example, the in-house network specialist may also take on the role of helping hand.
Third level support
Third or last level support is the last major point of contact. This can be external specialists from the service provider or employees from internal IT departments, such as DBAs (database administrators) or employees from software development.
Automation? Yes, please…but
In certain instances, support can also be completely automated, e.g. via script AI. However, there are some sensitive areas, such as the financial/investment sector, where face-to-face contact is incredibly important. A major compromise that is often made is to make initial contact via a chatbot that has previously been fed a large number of FAQs.
Of course, this has clear advantages, but unfortunately also disadvantages. For example, the time saved by not having to make initial contact is enormous, but the ‘human-to-human’ method statistically benefits from significantly higher customer satisfaction.
However, what service support can and should ultimately support varies from company to company and should never be neglected in terms of organisation and planning. It should also always be aligned with the processes and the *ITIL framework.
Communication is key.
The user helpdesk also plays an enormous role in software development and in the development of our products. Even during the development process, we make sure that users/stakeholders always have a point of contact.
Although the SPOC (Single Point of Contact) is usually primarily the project manager, at an advanced stage of the project there is also a dedicated SPOC on the support side.
A central term in service support is SLA (Service Level Agreement). This defines the response times for certain incidents, problems or changes.
An important basis of every helpdesk is the ‘knowledge base’, where all current and previous cases are collected. This serves as a central database for employees to solve problems that arise and enables a more effective and efficient work structure.
This type of fast and goal-orientated communication is reflected in particular in customer satisfaction.
In conclusion…
There is much more to a good service desk/user desk than communicating technical expertise and complicated processes. It is extremely important that every support employee treats the customer with the appropriate courtesy and empathy. The ability to act in a considered and thoughtful manner makes the difference between satisfied and dissatisfied help seekers.
Let’s just talk about it: In many situations, support is the first place to vent frustration for justifiably irritated customers. Keeping a cool head even in heated situations is what characterises first-class service support and should be valued as such.
The psychological aspect associated with the technical expertise of an IT Service & Support employee is an incredible asset to any company in the industry and serves as an important cog in the wheel of smooth operations.
*ITILis a defining term for inbound or outbound communication
with the users of IT services
