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University of Hartford Builds a Better Help Desk
5/20/2004
When it comes to computers, Murphy’s Law prevails: anything that can go wrong will, and usually at the worst possible time. Systems freeze, viruses attack, printers misbehave and Internet connections go on the blink, seemingly on cue as project deadlines near. As the University of Hartford discovered, creating a centralized help desk and equipping personnel with automated systems to record, prioritize and track trouble calls can make an enormous difference in the ability to respond to these emergencies efficiently.
With two help desk dispatchers fielding phone calls and Help Desk Technology Corporation’s HelpSTAR software managing service requests for the university’s computer technicians, UofH has simplified computer troubleshooting for users and technology staff alike. SOS calls now come to a central location for screening and assignment to a technician, and all information related to each service request g'es into a common database for easy reference and reporting.
Result: faster fixes, fewer lost requests, better use of technical resources, greater technician accountability, a complete audit trail on all service work, and less computer-related downtime for end users.
Help Desk Setup
Until 2002, UofH accepted computer malfunction calls from some 8,000 faculty, staff, and full-time and commuter students at six different support numbers. Users called any or all of these numbers hunting for a technician, sometimes leaving voicemails at each location. This led to problems ranging from lost or ignored messages to duplicated effort as multiple technicians unknowingly responded to different voicemails by the same user.
Beyond those issues, there was no system for prioritizing requests, assigning jobs by technician specialty, entering calls into a database for tracking and accountability, or documenting job status and details. If a technician who began work on a given request was unavailable, no one was able to determine what work had been completed.
To eliminate these deficiencies, UofH established a help desk with a single phone extension, two full-time dispatchers answering the phones from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and student workers filling in at night and during limited weekend hours.
Faculty and staff can contact the help desk to remediate problems with university-issued computers, home machines unable to access the university’s Internet dialup service, or departmental hardware or software. Students can ask for help if they are experiencing virus or Internet connectivity problems with their own computers.
The two dispatchers screen all requests, resolve simple problems directly with the requester, and assign more difficult issues to technicians. Student workers document all service requests they receive for later handling by dispatchers.
Help Desk Management Software
With a current average of 600 service requests per month at UofH and an increase expected when telephone and administrative system problems are added to help desk responsibilities, automation is essential to ensure that no requests fall through the cracks, technicians can instantly see the work in their queues, and so on.Recommended Reading
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