Course Description:

DESCRIBE AND EXPLAIN TECHNOLOGIES USED IN THE SUPPORT ENVIRONMENT

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Describe how to stay current with industry developments.

Describe how to use the Internet to access support resources.

Explain the evolution of support services.

Describe the role of support services.

Describe the goal of support services.

Describe some of the common technologies used in the support environment.

MASTER THE ROLE OF THE HELP DESK ANALYST

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Explain common active listening principles and uses.

Explain principles of speaking clearly and optimizing talk time.

Speaking concisely and managing the call.

Explain concepts of matching the caller’s style.

Explain components of an organizations standard greeting.

Explain the importance of using the customers name during the call.

Explain why and how to inform customers of progress/status.

Describe some inappropriate telephone practices.

Explain the importance of logging every incident and request.

Describe the information that should be logged.

Describe basics of concisely documenting complex information (the call).

Describe the correct use of grammar and spelling, also using software tools.

Explain the meaning and implications of a service attitude.

Describe empathy using empathy statements.

Describe how to encourage and/or praise problem solving attempts by the client.

Describe basic steps to close a call.

Describe the effective use of mentoring a caller. Identify signs of conflict.

Describe appropriate intervention techniques to lessen the impact of the conflict.

Describe basic negotiation techniques.

Describe techniques for establishing effective relationships with other parts of the service organization.

Describe basic creative thinking techniques.

Describe the ability to multitask, and handle multiple priorities in a dynamic and changing environment.

Describe actions to take when situations are not covered by documented procedures.

Identify roles and responsibilities of the help desk and customer.

Explain the difference between assertiveness and aggressiveness.

Describe effective ways to keep customer's attention and focus on resolution.

Describe ways to handle and redirect issues related to non-supported items.

Explain why demonstrating confidence to the customer is important.

Describe how one would demonstrate confidence.

Explain the impact of language barriers when handling calls.

Describe when to obtain language assistance.

List some options for language assistance.

Describe techniques for communicating cross culturally.

Explain basic concepts about teamwork.

Describe typical individual roles and responsibilities in a group or team environment.

Describe basic group processes and skills.

Explain appropriate use of paid time off and punctuality and the impact on the team.

Describe the purpose of mentoring peer to peer.

Describe the characteristics of a good leader and how it relates to working within individuals, groups, teams, and management.

Explain the concept of providing consistent service.

Explain how to encourage customers to follow standard procedures.

Explain typical service needs of organizations and the needs of the customer to find mutually beneficial solution.

Explain personal accountability.

Explain the importance of commitments to customers, team members and organizations.

Explain the importance of confidentiality.

Explain concept of protecting and enhancing image of the organization while servicing customers.

NAVIGATE THE HELP DESK ENVIRONMENT

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Describe characteristics of a friendly and supportive workplace environment.

Explain the importance of access to documented processes and procedures.

Explain formal and informal communication for the workplace.

Explain expectations of shared versus private workspace environment

Describe the role of the support organization in request or problem management process.

Describe the basic components of a request or problem management process.

Explain the purpose of a Service Level Agreement

Explain the Metrics:

· Abandonment Rate (ABA)

· Average Speed of Answer

· One Call Resolution (OCR)

Describe the impact on the customer of ABA, ASA, and OCR measurement on the help desk.

Explain how attendance and absenteeism affects service levels.

Describe the importance of time management practices and how it impacts service levels.

Determine the appropriate priority based on the impact of downtime on different customers.

Define knowledge management and why it is important within a support organization.

Explain how Knowledge Management systems work.

Describe common quality assurance practices.

Explain how call monitoring benefits the company and the customer.

Identify some mechanisms for call monitoring.

Explain how ticket monitoring benefits the company and customer.

Identify some mechanisms for ticket monitoring.

Describe the importance of security policies.

Give examples of some types of security policies.

Describe different levels of access rights.

Explain the importance of reporting security compromises.

Describe the purpose of a change management process.

Describe the role of the support organization in change management.

Describe the basic components of a change management process.

Describe appropriate interactions between change management and problem management.

Describe the potential impact to the Help Desk of the roll out of new technologies.

Describe the purpose and capabilities List the advantages and disadvantages.

Describe the components.

Define outsourcing.

Define insourcing.

Describe the importance of customer satisfaction surveys and the analyst's impact on this measurement.

Describe some of the more popular types of surveys and the importance of surveys

UNDERSTAND HELP DESK TERMINOLOGY

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Define components (hardware and software) of a desktop, laptop, and handheld systems.

Define standard platforms (hardware and software) for their environment.

Explain remote dial-in processes.

Explain what is a peripheral device.

Describe common peripheral devices.

Describe what self help technology is in a support environment.

Describe the purpose and capabilities of self help technology.

List advantages of self help technology.

List disadvantages of self help technology.

Describe some common examples of self help technology.

Describe knowledge, use, and benefits of using desk-side support.

Explain the differences between telephone support and desk-side support.

Describe the benefits of using remote access tools.

Describe remote access tool limitations.

Describe on-line, chat, instant messaging help.

Describe the basic responsibilities of network administrators.

Describe the basic components of a network.

Describe the most common interconnectivity.

Describe some of the basic administration functions.

Describe most common types of problems.

Describe basic troubleshooting techniques.

Describe the different backup types and purpose.

List advantages.

List disadvantages.

Describe Computer Telephony Integration (CTI).

Describe the different components of CTI.

Describe general ACD/telephone functionality (features) and the purpose

Explain how the telephone is tied to other technical tools.

Describe some common features and benefits of CTI.

Describe the common problems and limitation of CTI.

Explain the importance of common policies relating to data security, personal backups and fail safe/redundant configurations for support.

Describe the purpose of hot, warm, and cold contingency sites.

UTILIZE PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS

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Describe the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning.

Explain basic critical thinking skills concepts.

Explain basic logical problem solving skills concepts.

Describe the different forms of reference documentation that exist and how each is used.

Define root cause analysis and explain its benefits.

Describe the importance of creative thinking.

Describe when it is appropriate to take risks in order to find viable solutions.

Describe appropriate grammar and terminology for specific customer knowledge level.

Provide examples of open-ended questions.

Provide examples of closed-ended questions.

Describe appropriate use of open-ended questions to gather necessary problem data.

Describe appropriate use of closed-ended questions to gather necessary problem data.

Explain possible circumstances under which escalation is appropriate.

Explain the importance of keeping the customer informed by relating to current status of the problem and the next steps that will be taken.

TROUBLESHOOT HARDWARE PROBLEMS

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Computer won't boot.

Disk problems.

TROUBLESHOOT PRINTER PROBLEMS

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Printer won't print.

Loading printer drivers.

TROUBLESHOOT OS PROBLEMS

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Changing desktop.

Create shortcuts.

TROUBLESHOOT APPLICATION PROBLEMS

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Install applications.

Importing documents.

Application limitations.

TROUBLESHOOT USER PROBLEMS

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Login Problems.

Password problems.

Problems with rights assigned.

Problems locating documents.