Help desk plays a crucial role in the success of many service-providing organizations. The ineffectiveness of a help desk could result in customer loss or dissatisfaction. The question often arises: what defines an effective help desk? In this document, we aim to address whether the most senior IT personnel ought to staff a help desk, as well as highlight the requirements of a successful help desk. According to Bayan (2003), a successful help desk must have a well-defined mission, proper budget allocations, and quantified service targets. Additionally, physical considerations such as proximity, ergonomic environment, and workflow should also be taken into account.
Creating an environment that is not too crowded is one aspect of proximity for support personnel. Additionally, neatness and proper arrangement of cubicles can alleviate the stress that help desk personnel face. It is important to
...have a workflow that allows for smooth transitions between technical support teams who maintain PCs and networks and those providing general support. These physical factors make it difficult to place information technology experts, even those with seniority, in this environment. All of these details affect the success of a help desk, highlighting the need for individuals who can manage in such a high-stress setting while balancing proximity, ergonomic design, and workflow. Although information technology expertise is crucial for help desk support, it does not necessarily mandate that only senior information technology experts need be on staff.
The level of expertise needed for a task is determined by the goals and knowledge of the customers involved. Initially, a senior IT professional may be necessary, but with proper training, specific tasks can be handled by other competent individuals ove
time. To provide effective assistance, it is important to distinguish between situations that require highly proficient agents versus those that only need access to resources without extensive knowledge, as advised by Bayan (2004). Therefore, if expert interactions are necessary for the help desk goals, skilled support is required.
It is possible for the help desk to connect a person outside their team who is skilled in a particular area. Usually, the main function of the help desk is to provide resources and access to information, without necessarily fully comprehending them. This means that with training, the help desk personnel can learn how to access different information types without requiring a senior IT expert. It is important to consider customer understanding in deciding what level of expertise is required.
According to Bayan (2004), it is important to determine whether the help desk assists knowledge workers or process workers. If the support is for knowledge workers, the help desk can forward concerns to the knowledge support group. These concerns can also be combined and addressed by a knowledge group at once. The solutions provided by the knowledge group can be relayed back to the help desk personnel who will then convey them to the person receiving support.
The expertise necessary for help desk support does not necessarily require a senior IT individual. A trained resource provider would be sufficient. In cases where process workers require help desk support, a resource provider would suffice. Hiring the appropriate personnel is crucial in obtaining the necessary expertise. Bayan suggests that for supporting proprietary parts, it may be possible to obtain from the customer base (2004).
There are various skill sets that can be used
for generic parts, and it is usually efficient to seek out different ones and train them simultaneously. Additionally, the existence of survival kits and training options further reinforces the notion that a help desk can be comprised of trained individuals, not necessarily just the most experienced information technology staff. An example of this can be seen at http://www.
Helpdesksurvival.com and http://ali.apple both offer services for operating system helpdesk. Helpdesksurvival.com sells pre-packaged help desk survival kits that include all resources needed to set up and run a help desk.
The website at com/ali_sites/adcchd/exhibits/1000665/ is a section of the Apple Computer website that offers tutorials on establishing a help desk. Many other websites and software vendors also provide services for help desk creation. Information on setting up an effective help desk is easily accessible on the internet. Companies that offer help desk development or improvement are very reasonably priced, indicating that it is feasible to train new individuals to create a help desk.
To summarize, having a team of highly experienced IT staff is not a requirement for effective help desk management. Instead, physical factors and necessary skills suggest that software, training or survival kits can be used to establish an efficient help desk. Although skilled IT personnel may be needed during the initial setup of IT tools in the beginning stages, trained individuals are capable of managing long-term operations. For more details on this topic, please see Bayan's (2003) work.
The TechRepublic Article website at http://articles.techrepublic.com/5100-10878_11-5112459 provides information on the physical factors that are essential for creating a successful help desk.The TechRepublic Article website yielded an article titled "Setting up a successful help desk--physical considerations" by Bayan
R. on March 20, 2007. To access the article, visit http://articles.techrepublic.On March 20, 2007, the article Help Desk Survival was retrieved from the website Helpdesksurvival via the following HTML link: http://www.helpdesksurvival.com/5100-10878_11-5112459.html.The article "Setting Up Your Help Desk" was retrieved from Support Essentials website on March 20, 2007. The information is presented within a paragraph and are included.
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