Service Desk
BSG's Service Desk portfolio offers the provision of a Support Centre that can be structured as a simple call logging facility, a technical 2nd tier escalation facility, or any combination in-between.
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The Services
BSG have invested considerably in this vital area of IT support - in technology, in people and in focussed management. The result is demonstrated in our own Support Centre that actively manages the throughput of work generated by our clients and technical staff alike. Through this growth BSG has extended its expertise and Support Centre's capabilities as outlined in the table below:
| Focus Area |
Outcome |
| Call Flow |
Developing staff behaviour, processes, training, call control and management software |
| Intelligence |
Developing self-help and knowledge databases |
| Telephone |
Installing “smart” systems offering flexibility and growth. Automated call distribution offers efficiency, although this is constantly reviewed in the light of the on-going debate of automation versus human involvement! |
| Escalation |
The ability to set automated alerts, together with technical and management escalations, for virtually any incident - whether tied to an SLA or not |
| Reporting |
Tailoring meaningful operational and management information on any aspect of the work, from logistics through to trends. |
| Accessibility |
Giving users and technicians the ability to record, track and monitor incidents |
| Resilience |
The flexibility of the staffing structure facilitates changes in shift work, call volumes and staff absence, whilst the telephony offers permanent availability and accessibility. The data is backed up and secured, ensuring continuity of service at virtually any time. |
| Remote Management |
Remotely viewing and controlling users' desktops to resolve issues. Network administration tasks and resetting passwords can also be handled remotely. Hardware can be monitored for equipment/component degradation, and service calls logged, long before the equipment shows signs of becoming dysfunctional. |
BSG have developed and fine-tuned our service and strategy over a number of years. BSG realise the value in providing this service to its clients so that they too can establish a facility to drive their IT solutions forward.
In establishing a Support Centre for a client, the service does not end there. BSG extend to all of our clients the corporate service arm of BSG, together with the complete spectrum of our diverse IT skills, support and experience, making our relationship a true one-stop solution.
How does it work?
BSG asks you to talk to us about your particular needs and views so that it can offer a bespoke service around them. However, the type of support centre provided as part of the Service Desk service can be divided into three broad categories:
- Local: where a support centre responds to one site and perhaps its annexes - usually offering 1st line support
- Centralised: where a support centre responds to all sites in a region/country - usually offering 2nd line support
- Virtual: where a support centre responds to the support desk of all offices in several/all countries - usually offering escalation to the manufacturer's own support centres.
The following gives an idea of the type of considerations
necessary when making the decision about what type of centre is
needed:
Local
If a local centre is to be part of a centralised structure then commonality
and standardisation become vital:
- Common processes and procedures that mirror the central centre.
- Compatibility of hardware, software, databases and network infrastructure.
- Common escalation, alert and management philosophy and practice.
- Common SLAs and structure such as severity, priority and status criteria.
- Common statistical and management reporting structures.
- Possibility and feasibility of sharing of skills and utilisation across the different local sites that make up the centralised matrix.
Central
When operating a Centralised Service Desk, benefits can include:
- Reduced operational costs
- Consolidated management processes and overviews
- Improved use of human and technological resources
- Application and standardisation of common culture, approach and methodology
- Greater staffing resilience and pool of knowledge/experience
Virtual
A Virtual Centre offers all of the above benefits, but to a greater degree, greater depth and greater economies of scale. In addition, it offers the possibility of third tier support through manufacturers. To some degree this is offset by the operational restriction of not being able to send the relevant expertise to a local site unless the issue is extremely severe.
In designing the required Support Centre, the client has the option to base the facility at their appropriate premises, or at BSG's London offices.
The following diagram shows the relationship between the three types of centres:
BSG's involvement with the client is usually contractual, but all contracts are living entities and need to be flexible, to develop and change in line with the dynamics of the clients business, staff group and technology. Working in close co-operation with the client, BSG take the view that it is the agent and BSG's structure, skills, service-led culture and drive will help the client achieve its commercial goals and strategies through effective implementation of I.T. around the following structure:
Short term and Reactive goals
- Fix the problem.
- Promote positive and confident response to requests and incidents.
- Address the “quick wins”
- See the user's point of view and understand through communication.
- Communicate progress/schedule/completion/problems/follow-up actions.
- Live up to promises.
- Set user expectations through quality of service.
Longer term and Proactive goals
- Identify and lower the client's true cost of supporting their IT infrastructure.
- Provide a focal point for change and a central source for management information.
- Drive that change and improve service.
- Increase productivity by efficient use of technology and resources.
- Develop confidence in the support service that constantly grows, enabling both the clients and BSG's management to focus on their goals.
- Provide long term client satisfaction.
How will your business benefit?
By outsourcing its Support Centre to BSG, the client will benefit from cost and management savings:
- Software: No initial investment in the software: researching, buying, learning, modifying, licensing, updating, developing and designing reports.
- Staffing No more time consuming investment
in recruiting, training, managing unplanned absence, backfilling,
and staff benefits.
When considering where to house the centre, whether on the client's
own site or at BSG House as an extension of BSG's Support
Centre, different considerations come to the fore:
- Telephony Overheads on existing system; demands created by the need for permanently accessible support lines.
- SystemsDevelopment of knowledge database; Network and Communications overheads; Support Centre system management such as business continuity and backups.
- Staff Pros and Cons of site awareness and the lure of expensive but effective desktop visits, familiarity with users versus “faceless” remote call operatives.
The following diagram represents the reactive and proactive approach taken by the BSG service desk:
