SupportDesk 8: making IT support easier than ever

SupportDesk 8 from Richmond Systems has been built to make IT support easier than ever, with more than 60 new features including major upgrades to service catalogue and change management processes, and a complete refresh around ITIL 2011.

IT managers feel the mobile/cloud fear and do it anyway

IT managers in the UK are united in their concerns about mobile devices and cloud in the workplace, with 71 per cent worried about security issues and more than a third doubting they can centrally control such technology, according to a study by YouGov.

Exclusive preview of SupportDesk 8

Development of Richmond SupportDesk 8 is in the final stages ready for release in the next few weeks.  There are more than 50 new features, all designed to help improve your support processes and help you work more efficiently.

Helping customers deal with service desk challenges

We’re pleased to welcome Billy Fowler to the Richmond Systems team.  Billy is working alongside our sales team and his focus is learning about the challenges our customers are facing in these difficult financial times.  He is also keen to understand how IT support industry is evolving and discover innovative ways that Richmond can help improve the delivery of IT services.

Europe told to invest in ICT to save economies

European businesses could smash their growth forecasts by five per cent if their investment in ICT matched their US counterparts.

Research by Oxford Economics says that faith in technology shown by US businesses gives them a significant financial advantage over other Western economies. It is estimated that if European organisations matched this level of spending, they would pump €760 billion into the economies of their member states.

According to the research, Spain and Italy are main laggards, while the UK is closest to the US in terms of IT maturity.

“There is a dire need for Europe to improve its productivity, and investment in ICT is the trump card to achieving this. But national governments must prioritise ICT investment more effectively and focus on creating the right conditions for investment,” says Fabio Colasanti, president of the International Institute of Communications.

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.

IT services SMEs best hope for UK economy?

Software and IT service businesses are best placed to prop up a flagging UK economy, with research from ECI predicting bullish growth in the technology space compared to other sectors.

84 per cent of SME (Small to Medium Enterprise) technology companies expect to grow turnover by more than six per cent this year, with almost a third stating that turnover growth will exceed 25 per cent.

SMEs are confident they can help counter job losses in the public sector, with three quarters of those polled by ECI expecting to grow headcount this year. Overall, 60 per cent of SMEs think their turnover will double in the next 12 months.

Web and social media IT support now impossible to ignore

The pressure on helpdesks to provide support to mobile users has intensified after figures showed that almost half of all internet usage now occurs via smartphones and tablets.

A study by the Office of National Statistics shows that 45 per cent of UK internet users now go online via a mobile device, a number which swells to 71 per cent for 16-24 year olds.

With mobile web usage growing, organisations still struggling to provide effective web-based support now have to ensure that portals and help facilities also work on mobile devices.

Similarly, the need to develop a support presence on social networks is heightening, with the same study showing that 57 per cent of adult internet users - and 91 per cent of under 24's - are active on sites such as Twitter.