Companies and organizations strive to solve various problems and challenges through a Service Desk function.
In the journey towards a well-functioning Service Desk with satisfied users, many identify a number of issues that need to be addressed.
Here we list the most common issues you need to know and keep in mind when setting up an effective service desk function.
Issues and how they can be addressed:
Long response time:
If users experience long waiting times before receiving a response or support, this can lead to frustration and dissatisfaction.
- Ensure a fast and structured approach to managing and resolving incidents, which is crucial to reduce downtime and impact on business operations. Prioritize and manage incidents by identifying and addressing the most critical and urgent issues according to your priorities.
Unclear case management processes:
If case management processes are not clear and users do not understand how to open or follow up cases, this can lead to frustration.
- Ensure a user-friendly and efficient process for managing and resolving IT-related problems and incidents to minimize business disruption.
Unclear communication processes:
If communication from the Service Desk is unclear or ineffective, it can create misunderstanding and frustration among users.
- Ensure a centralized place for communication and reporting on IT-related problems and solutions to increase transparency and understanding for users and stakeholders.
Insufficient escalation of cases:
If cases are not escalated correctly or if they are not given sufficient priority based on their severity, users may become dissatisfied.
Unresolved issues:
If issues are not resolved satisfactorily or if they recur regularly, this can lead to dissatisfaction and loss of user confidence.
- Ensure that the Service Desk is responsible for handling incidents and escalating to more specialized levels of support if needed. This ensures that even complex issues receive the right attention. Furthermore, incident reporting and proactive analysis of incidents needs to be carried out to identify patterns and trends, which can be used to improve overall systems and processes.
Poorer performance at high loads:
If the Service Desk is unable to handle large volumes of support requests during peak periods, it can affect service levels and create dissatisfaction.
- Ensure your organization efficiently manages its IT resources and allocates them based on user needs and priority tasks. Through centralized support and resource management, the Service Desk helps optimize the use of IT resources. It can prioritize and allocate resources based on user needs and emergency situations.
Lack of technical skills:
If the Service Desk does not have sufficient technical expertise to solve users’ problems, it can create frustration and uncertainty among users
Insufficient knowledge base:
A lack of knowledge base with information and solutions can lead to users not finding answers to their questions themselves, which can cause irritation.
Lack of user training:
If users do not have sufficient training or information on how to use IT resources, it can increase the number of support requests and create dissatisfaction.
- Ensure that the Service Desk builds and maintains knowledge bases containing solutions to common problems. In addition, provide training and guidelines for users to reduce repeated support requests. Providing users with effective training and access to a knowledge base helps to reduce support requests and increases user autonomy. Furthermore, the Service Desk has an important role in supporting and facilitating the implementation of IT changes by handling user questions and problems related to the changes.
Lack of security measures:
If users feel that their security concerns are not taken seriously or if there are shortcomings in Service Desk’s ability to deal with security incidents, this can lead to dissatisfaction.
- Ensure that the management and reporting of IT security incidents is a high priority task to maintain a safe and secure IT environment.
Summing up
Taken together, the problems described can lead to low user satisfaction and increased support costs.
Maintaining high user satisfaction is crucial. Companies want to ensure that their users receive prompt and competent support to keep them productive and satisfied. By providing a structured and efficient support process, companies can reduce support costs by optimizing resource usage and reducing unnecessary support requests.
In summary – a well-functioning Service Desk is a centralized unit that aims to resolve and prevent IT-related problems and challenges, while ensuring a positive user experience and efficient IT operations within the organization.
