Service Desk - The First Port of Call for IT Services

The importance of Service Desk in an IT support model cannot be emphasized enough. It is the first port of call for any issue the users face. As such its role really spans across various support teams - be it application, system or network support. Be it a nagging Blackberry issue or a slow application, users always call the service desk first and form an opinion of the quality of support by the quality of response they get. One could have the smartest guys in the L2/L3 teams but if the user facing L1 team ( the service desk team) does not inspire that confidence and ability to handle various user issues then, the IT support is always questioned.

It is always a challenge to find smart, motivated team members for the service desk. Those who are good will not stick ( sounds familiar?) and those who stick would want to move into something more technical after few months. Key to handling this team is to build a good career plan and take care of aspirations of these team members.

In an outsourced environment, this is the team which will see the maximum attrition too and so there is the risk of losing client information and knowledge. Since this team goes through a natural learning curve - these acquired latent knowledge of the client's environment is key to a successful continuous improvement program.

While the issues in the Data Center or Enterprise Network will impact a large part of the organization, most users get ticked off with the service desk for what are typically Sev3 or P3 incidents ( Severity 3 or Priority3, which impact just a single user in the organization - like a broken keyboard or a mailbox issue). So, while all efforts in running the show should focus on issues that impact a large set of users (reducing Sev1s and closing them faster), for managing the perception of service the users have - there is no better place than the Service Desk.