It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words. Taking a look at the big picture of how your service desk functions can really improve performance, as Andrew Vloedman explains.
“To outsource a customer’s service desk, it is crucial to consider the big picture of what they currently have in place with an assessment. We extract as much data as possible to help provide statistics to build the picture.
First, volume is broken down to determine call arrival patterns (interval, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly), so we can determine average handle time, first call resolution, average time to dispatch, and average time to resolve. We also look at desk level performance, looking at the percentage of calls that go unanswered, the average speed of answer and the percentage of calls that are answered in 30, 60, and 90 seconds. This data helps us determine the basic headcount required to successfully handle the volume.
Next we look at the products that are being supported and at what level. This includes finding out if we will support off the shelf applications at only the first level, support custom applications, or take on Level II support. The answers to these questions help us get a clear picture of the skill sets needed to successfully support the client.
Once we have the basic information and desk level data, we can apply it to the client’s performance goals or expectations for the desk. Depending on the criteria (percentages of calls answered in the determined timeframe and a limit of calls abandoned), we can determine the correct headcount and schedule to meet these targets. This allows the client to see the overall financial impact at each level of performance.
To continue to build the picture’s composition, we have a technical interview with the desk’s manager to get more information about the business drivers at the desk level. Questions we ask include:
•What does the knowledge base look like and how complete is it (if they have one)?
•What is their current IT solution, what tools are they using?
•Are there robust and defined processes and procedures to follow?
•Do they have routing tools and routing matrixes?
•What is their management to agent ratio?
•What is the average call per end user?
•How many end users are there?
Not all of these answers may be available, especially with a less defined or less mature internal service desk, but any of this additional data we can gather helps us further round out the picture. It’s valuable information to have even if you are not outsourcing; but it is critical if you do want to build a strong outsourcing solution.”
Once you see the big picture, you can make better decisions to improve your service desk. Have you taken a look at your service desk’s big picture?
Contact Andrew Vloedman by email at AndrewVl@vmc.com or 877.393.8622.
