Why IT support can no longer avoid the service revolution

IT teams are being warned to improve customer service or risk losing their grip on business technology, with a study from Rackspace finding that 69 percent of organisations have ended relationships with tech providers in the last year because of poor after-sales service and support.

Whereas once, workers were forced to use the IT equipment and services prescribed by the business, cloud, consumerisation and peer-support through social media mean they can bypass corporate technology.  The study found that nearly 40 per cent of staff are losing six hours per week attempting to resolve issues with supplied software or services. This frustration means workers are turning to more ‘user-friendly’ consumer computing, and preferring to ask their colleagues for support for these devices.

This means that the IT support ‘customer experience’ - previously of secondary consideration after internal SLAs such as cost-per-call - has become vital for ensuring the service desk remains a business asset.

To focus on the service piece, IT support teams need to use root-cause analysis, automate rudimentary processes and build self-service to reduce the day-to-day burden.  With lower call volumes, more time can be spent training, fixing long term issues and building metrics which drive improved customer service.  Richmond Systems has been helping service desks meet these challenges for 20 years, so if you need some help or advice, please get in touch.