Why Google and YouTube will never replace the service desk

Will self-help found through Google and YouTube negate the need for a service desk? This was the question posed by ServiceDesk360, with research indicating that young people prefer to consult social media and video tutorials when trying to fix IT issues, rather than contacting the support department.

While it is certainly true that the delivery of support has and will continue to change, businesses will always need an efficient service desk. This is true for several reasons. Firstly, the self-help route is fallible - there will always be issues it cannot solve. No matter how good an FAQ facility or public forum is, there are always problems which occur outside the expected parameters that require the intervention of a service desk. Secondly, if staff embrace the DIY approach to IT support too eagerly, there will be an increase in demand for support to fix bad advice.

Thirdly, driven by an increased reliance of IT in the business world, the remit and importance of the service desk has grown significantly in recent years. On the technical side: procurement of, and advice about, equipment; requests for increased network storage; altering user write; are all issues that demand human intervention. In addition, as service desks increasingly encompass functions such as facilities management, HR and new starts, the demand for support is likely to grow rather than diminish.

It makes perfect sense to automate many of the processes previously managed by calling the service desk - resetting passwords, downloading print drivers and simple user support etc. Doing so helps deliver a faster, more efficient service to customers, and it also gives service desk staff more time to be proactive (using email or social media to warn of service outages), while affording them more time to help customers with more complex problems.

The issues which once preoccupied the old IT helpdesk (how can I print this document, how do I quit an application that has crashed) are history; customers are too tech savvy and can use Google to find quick answers to basic problems. But as the complexity of IT grows, particularly as more people use and rely on multiple devices and channels of communication, the service desk will adopt a more advisory role, helping customers get the best from the technology available and solving the challenges unique to each business. And despite its complexity and intelligence, this is something that Google will never manage.