Technical support professionals form the frontline of many businesses, vendors, and IT teams. To remain competitive, they need to be aware of how the sector is evolving and where it’s going ...
Tag(s): workforce enablement, supportworld
Date Published - Last Updated February 26, 2016
Do you ever lay awake at night wondering, “Billy’s my star performer, but what if he doesn’t come in on Monday (again)? Am I going to have enough staff? If I’m short-staffed, how will I cover the workload, projects, and contact volumes?” In my capacity as an instructor for the HDI Support Center...
Tag(s): metrics and measurements, people, workforce enablement
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
For this issue, HDI invited influential members from across all segments of our community to provide a snapshot of key imperatives that will guide 2013 initiatives. This unique collection of essays offers a rare glimpse inside technical service and support organizations, spanning healthcare,...
Tag(s): business of support, desktop support, customer service, practices and processes, service management, trends, IT service management, outsourcing, byod
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
Technological advances have made relationship building easier than ever. Nonetheless, it’s crucial to remember that although these advances provide us with tools to assist us in what we call Relationship Architecture™, these tools, in and of themselves, are not what building a business...
Tag(s): people, customer service
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
One of the biggest challenges managers face is hiring new team members. It’s like placing a bet on red at the roulette table in Vegas: Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don’t. Sometimes a new member picks up the job functions quickly but never acclimates to the team concept, and thus never...
Tag(s): people, professional development, team building, teamwork, employee engagement, leadership
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
Support center analysts have a tough job. Maybe a customer (whether internal or external) has just received a new product and can’t understand the installation directions. Maybe the customer’s network connection is not working properly and it’s just one week over the computer’s warranty. Or...
Tag(s): people, customer service, practices and processes
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
It’s no secret that customers really want just two things from their interactions with the service desk: speed and accuracy. They want someone to answer the phone quickly, someone who can help them with their problems, and someone who can provide solutions that are correct and helpful. So, if...
Tag(s): customer experience, service desk, staffing
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
While the total number of incidents/service requests, the potential impact of restricted access, and ease of automation will all vary by service, type of support, company, industry, etc., automation is subject to the greatest variability. Executing on a vision is certainly easier said than done,...
Tag(s): automation, self-service, service desk, outsourcing
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
In any service and support situation, the relationship between service providers and consumers is mechanically bounded by the service terms and conditions and a set of agreeable payment terms. What’s often missing in outsourcing-based provider-consumer relationships is a set of business rules...
Tag(s): cloud computing, outsourcing, business intelligence
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016
I’ve coached hundreds of individuals in customer support and in blended sales-service environments, and, as a coach, I’ve experienced success and failure. Invariably, when coaching is successful, it’s because of a human or emotional connection to the team member and the team member’s emotional...
Tag(s): coaching
Date Published - Last Updated February 25, 2016