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Chapter 7 - User Support Management
Objectives
• The mission of a support group and the parts of a mission statement
• The steps in staffing a support position
• The contents of a training program for support staff
• How to manage a user support project
• Which software tools help with project management tasks
• The industry certifications that are available to support professionals
• About professional help desk and user support associations
• Ethical principles that guide the professional behavior of support workers
Lecture Notes
Managerial Concerns: Mission, Performance, Staffing and Training
User support management encompasses a variety of positions. The managers
of larger support groups may oversee one or more supervisors or lead
workers who in turn supervise a team of support specialists. When the
support staff understands the big picture it enables them to improve
customer satisfaction and help the support team to be successful.
A managerial perspective also helps prepare entry-level staff to advance into
positions with more responsibility and a higher salary.
Support groups often develop a mission statement, which is a list of guiding
principles that communicate support goals and objectives to staff, users, and
management.
Help desk managers often use performance statistics and measures of
customer satisfaction to document and justify the value of user support
services.
Performance statistics are objective summaries of information about the user
support or help desk operation. Some examples of common help desk
performance measures include average response time to calls (sometimes
wait time), percentage of calls that were abandoned when the user hung up
before support staff response (abandonment rate), average resolution time
for calls that require problem solving, percentage of problems that cannot be
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resolved and number of problem calls currently in an unresolved status.
Subjective evaluations such as a user satisfaction survey that attempts to
measure how satisfied users are with the support services they have
experienced can also be used to measure the performance of user support
services.
User support and help desk managers face a great challenge when
determining how many support staff members are needed to meet the service
level’s requirements. The mangers must strike a delicate balance between
having too many staff, which can lead to idle employees and a poor
productivity to staff ratio, and having too few staff, which can cause
frustration among support staff and long wait times for users. A calculation
called an Erlang unit is often used to calculate the staff needed. An Erlang is
a unit of traffic (user calls in the case of support groups) processed in a given
period of time. Managers may use trial and error, rely on previous
experience or use a sophisticated calculator to help make staffing decisions.
Most user support positions require a combination of technical skills,
business skills, and communication skills.
Managers often start with a Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA)
assessment of the mission statement to determine the qualifications needed
for a position. These qualifications spell out the level of proficiency required
with hardware, operating systems and application software, technical skills,
network experience and skills, Internet and Web skills, troubleshooting and
problem-solving skills, communications, listening and telephone skills,
working in a project team and understanding business information systems
and business perspectives. From the KSAs list, a support manager can then
write a position description.
From the position description, the support manager or the Human Resources
Department places an advertisement in the newspaper. The search for a new
staff member my not result in applicants that completely match the profile,
however, managers may select the applicant that most closely matches the
desired skill set.
During the interview, managers may include a knowledge and skills test that
measures a prospective employee’s knowledge and problem-solving ability.
Another tool that can be used is a scenario question, which gives the
applicants a specific problem (or set of problems) representative of the kinds
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of problems that user support actually encounters. There is an example of a
scenario on page 181 of the book.
Support staff training includes both new employee orientation and ongoing
training for staff to keep their knowledge and skills current. Managers will
occasionally assume that support staff will simply pick up information about
new products in their everyday work. If one goal of a support group mission
is to provide high quality services, support staff members need time to learn
how to be productive with new technology. Training for new support
employees often includes orientation to the organization, payroll and
employee benefit information, specific job skill training, support group
policies and procedures and performance appraisal criteria and procedures.
Training programs for user support employees should help keep support
staff current with changes in computer technology and how those changes
affect their customer base.
Support managers should also communicate with support employees about
when and how job performance will be evaluated. A performance appraisal
is a process to evaluate a user support employee according to established
criteria.
Quick Quiz
1. True or False: Every decision a help desk manger makes affects the
people who work there.
2. A list of guiding principles that communicate support goals and objectives
to staff, users, and management is known as a(n) __________.
3. A unit of traffic, user calls, processed in a given period of time is known
as a(n) _________.
Managing a User Support Project
User support work can be divided into routine operational tasks and special
projects. Most of the work of a support group falls into the category of
routine operational tasks. A special project, however, is a support task that
does not happen regularly and that may be based on less well-defined steps
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and procedures. Special projects might include developing or updating
computer product standards or support policies in an organization, planning
and implementing a new training facility or developing end-user
documentation or a user training session for a new software package.
Project management is a step-by-step work plan and process designed to
reach a specific goal. It usually follows five distinct steps listed in Figure 7-2
on page 184.
Step 1 is project definition. Early work on a project serves to define the
project, including its goal(s), a tentative project calendar (beginning and
ending dates, important due dates), a project budget, and the project
participants. A project goal is a specific, measurable result that is the
ultimate target or outcome of a project. It is important that the project goal
be specific and measurable even if the budget and calendar are tentative at
this stage.
Step 2 is project planning. After a project is defined, the bulk of the project
planning activities include dividing the project into specific tasks (or
objectives), estimating the length of time (or duration) for each task,
identifying available resources and the cost of each, and assigning resources
to tasks. A project task is a specific action or objective that must be
performed to meet the project goal. A project plan complies a list of all
project tasks into a documentation that answers the questions: What tasks
will be accomplished? Who will perform each ask? How long will each
task take? What will each task cost? The project plan generally includes an
assessment of the project’s risk factors, which
are an analysis and assessment of the problems that can arise during the life
of a project.
Step 3 is project implementation. The implementation phase of the project is
where the real work gets done. The project manager’s responsibility shifts
from project planning to project coordination and support staff members
work on each task or objective according to the schedule in the project plan.
Step 4 is project monitoring. Project monitoring involves assessing the status
of all project tasks to learn whether they are on target as compared with time
and budget estimates. Because each task of a project seldom comes in on
time and under budget, project monitoring is necessary. Project managers
need to regularly evaluate each project task to determine how much work
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has been completed, what remains to be done, how staff or other resources
should be adjusted or reassigned and what impact task changes will have on
the completion date. Scope creep is the tendency for a project to grow or
change in unexpected ways that increase the time frame, resources, and cost
to complete the project.
Step 5 is project termination. The final stage in a project may include
communicating its completion to stakeholders, preparing a final project
report, and analyzing and evaluating the performance of the project and its
participants.
Project termination activities help project managers learn from mistakes of
past projects and use their knowledge to improve performance on future
projects. Figure 7-3 on page 187 is an example plan for Outlook Express
training.
As projects become more complex, more resources including additional staff
members, more resources, a bigger budget, a larger time frame, and also
additional risk factors, a one- or two-page project plan is not sufficient.
Fortunately there are software tools, which assist with all aspects of project
management. Project management software tools, however, are no substitute
for careful project planning. A Gantt Chart, in the right pane in Figure 7-4
on page 189, is a common project planning tool that shows the basic
information about each task in a project as a horizontal bar on a graph. The
left pane, in spreadsheet format, shows the input information that resulted in
the Gantt Chart.
“What if…?” questions are often easier to answer with a project
management software tool. Figure 7-5 on page 189 shows a modified draft
plan. First, it shows a more detailed breakdown of each task into subtasks.
Second, it shows that some subtasks are predecessor tasks for other tasks. A
predecessor task is an activity that must be completed before another task
can begin. Third, instead of one trainer being assigned to the project, as the
first draft plan, a second trainer is assigned to select subtasks that can be
accomplished at the same time the first trainer is working on another
subtask.
The Gantt Chart shows certain tasks in as solid black horizontal bars. These
bars are the project’s critical path. A critical path is the sequence of project
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tasks that must be completed on time to meet the project’s completion date.
The critical path can also indicate where in the process more resources will
have the best impact on the project’s completion time.
Project management software can assist with project tasks, task time
duration, assignments to staff members, what-if analyses, the critical path
and estimated completion time. It can also complete other important project
management tasks by using features to monitor partial completion of
projects tasks and periodically update the Gantt Chart. Also, it can identify
project tasks that are behind schedule and where additional resources could
be used effectively. This software can also aid a manger with assigning
resources such as personnel, facilities, equipment and supplies. In addition,
it can track overhead costs to prepare a project budget, define report formats
that are alternatives to Gantt Charts (including project calendars, budget and
variance reports, PERT or network diagrams), individual staff assignment emails, and other project management output options.
Quick Quiz
1. A step-by-step work plan and process designed to reach a specific goal is
known as __________ management.
2. What are the five steps in project management?
3. A specific action or objective (outcome) that must be performed to meet
the project goal is a(n) __________.
4. An activity that must be completed before another task can begin is
known as a(n) __________ task.
User Support Certification
Certification is an assessment process to measure and document employee
knowledge and skills in a specialized segment of the information technology
field. There are several kinds of certification in the market today including
formal education that results in certificate, diploma or degree, vendorspecific product knowledge and skill certification in a specific area, such as
hardware, networking, or support, and certification that measures the fitness
of a support group against industry-standard criteria.
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Community colleges and vocational/technical schools have offered
certification for many years. This certification is usually an indication of
general skills. Employers are more often interested in an applicant’s specific
skills and expertise. A number of vendors now offer certificates that assess
knowledge and skills in a specific area. Some examples of certification are
described in Table 7-1 on page 227. There are also vendor neutral
certifications that are more generic. Examples of certification that is targeted
at a general, industry-wide audience of employers and employees are listed
in Table 7-2 on pages 228 and 229. Help desks and help desk staff can also
be certified. Some certifications are aimed at organizations rather than
individuals. Best practices are support industry procedures, tools, and
methods that very successful support groups employ.
For help desk and user support specialist, some of the benefits of
certification include a recognized benchmark of minimum-level job skills
and experienced worker, a justification for receiving higher pay, an
opportunity for promotion and career advancement because of documented
knowledge and skills, a way to document for an employer efforts to keep up
to date in the computer field, and a feeling of pride of accomplishment and
increased job satisfaction upon passing a certification milestone. The most
common certification expected for user support and help desk positions is
either MOS or A+ certification. MOS certification indicates that the support
specialist has a recognizedlevel of expertise in common Microsoft
applications where A+ certification demonstrates knowledge of hardware,
operating systems and troubleshooting. Individuals interested in certification
have a number of options including college or vocational/technical courses,
crash courses, online tutorials and self-study courses.
The skills needed to pass certification exams can be gain in a variety of
venues. Many college and vocational/technical schools now match the
curriculum in their courses with certification in the area covered by the
course. Another option is to take a crash course. Crash courses, sometimes
called boot camps, are intensive classes designed to prepare participants in a
short time to take a certification exam. Other options include online tutorial
courses and self study courses.
Most certifications are taken on a computer workstation. In the traditional
format of a certification test, all test takers answer the same set of questions
on a test that has a fixed-length sequence of questions. A new type of test,
called an adaptive test, is becoming common in certification. An adaptive
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test asks questions selected from a test database to try to quickly estimate the
test taker’s ability. The test questions are rated from easy to difficult and the
adaptive test offers questions based on a mathematical estimate of skill level
of the test taker based on the pattern of correct and incorrect answers.
User Support as a Profession
The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) estimates that
more than 600,000 technical support positions were open some time during
the year 2000, and that more than one-third of them went unfilled. As a
result of the growth of the user support field, there have been a number of
professional associations formed in recent years. A professional association
is a formal organization that represents the interests of a group of
professionals and provides services to its members. Professional associations
that are targeted to user support and help desk staff are listed in Table 7-3 on
page 1234. These associations offer a wide variety of services including
books, seminars, conferences, and certifications. A professional association
can also publish a code of ethical principles or conduct standards designed to
guide its members’ professional behaviour.
Quick Quiz
1. True or False: Best practices are support industry procedures that are only
employed by individuals.
2. A(n) __________ asks questions selected from a test database to try to
estimate the test taker’s ability quickly.
3. True or False: A professional association is a formal organization that
represents the interests of a group of professionals and provides services to
its membership.
Discussion Topics
Discuss the skills, knowledge and abilities needed to support an
environment that has Macintosh and PC equipment and the users are running
a basic office package.
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Discuss why it is useful to use project management software on a large
project. List the benefits that project management can provide.
Additional Cases
You have just been promoted to manager of a help desk for a small
company. The current method of support for the company is informal peer
support, though each machine has full support from the hardware
manufacturer. You have been given two new support positions. Your
company currently has a mix of Macintosh and PC computer. Both
platforms run an office suite. There is a small intranet and there is e-mail
available for each employee. You will also have to do a limited amount of
repair in house or be able to follow up with warranty problems when
machines break. Write a list of knowledge, skills and abilities that are
needed for these positions.
You have been asked by to evaluate several training courses online. Use
the resources listed in the book or any resources you find online and locate
three online training courses you would recommend to your supervisor.
Compare the courses based on content, features, cost and ease of use.
Prepare a short report that lists the strength and weaknesses of the three
courses you found and a recommendation to adopt one of them. Be sure to
state the reasons why you would recommend the one you have selected.
Key terms
abandonment rate - Percentage of calls in which the user hung up before
support staff responded.
adaptive test - A method used in certification exams that asks questions
from a test database that are graded in difficulty from easy to moderate to
difficult to try to quickly estimate the test taker's ability
best practices - Support industry procedures, tools, and methods that very
successful support groups employ; often distinguish very successful support
operations from mediocre ones.
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certification - An assessment process to measure and document employee
knowledge and skills in a specialized segment of the information technology
field.
crash courses - Intensive classes designed to prepare participants to take a
certification exam in a few days or a couple of weeks; sometimes called boot
camps.
critical path - The sequence of project tasks that must be completed on
time to meet a project's completion date; establishes important milestones in
a project's calendar.
Erlang - A unit of traffic (user calls) processed in a given period of time;
used to estimate the number of support staff required to respond to a volume
of calls in a given time period.
Gantt Chart - A common project planning tool that shows the basic
information about each task in a project as a horizontal bar on a graph; it
identifies each task, its relationship to other tasks, the expected calendar for
task and project completion, and task assignments to project participants.
knowledge and skills test - A test that measures a job applicant's
knowledge and problem-solving ability
mission statement - A list of guiding principles that communicate the
goals and objectives of a support group to its staff, users, and management.
online tutorial courses - Computer-based training (CBT) or Web-based
training (WBT) formats targeted at certification exams.
performance appraisal - A process to evaluate a user support employee
according to established criteria; criteria should be related to the support
group's mission and to an employee's personal growth objectives.
performance statistics - Objective summary information about a user
support or help desk operation; usually expressed as important percentages,
such as the percentage of support calls answered in two minutes or less.
predecessor task - An activity in a project that must be completed before
another project task can begin.
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professional association - A formal organization that represents the
interests of a group of professionals and provides services to its membership.
project definition — A project management step to define the scope of a
project, including its goals, a calendar, a budget, the participants, and
coordination.
project goal - A specific, measurable result that is the ultimate target or
outcome of a project.
project implementation — A project management step during which the
work on each task is accomplished by participants.
project management - A step-by-step work plan and process designed to
reach a specific goal; includes project definition, planning, implementation,
monitoring, and termination steps.
project monitoring - An assessment of the status of all project tasks to
learn whether they are on target when compared with time and budget
estimates.
project plan - A document that pulls together all project tasks and answers
the questions: What tasks will be accomplished?
Who will perform each task? How long will each task take? and What will
each task cost?
project task - A specific action or objective that must be performed to
meet the project goal.
project termination — The final step in managing a project during which
the project results are communicated and evaluated; a final report is often
prepared to summarize the project.
risk factors - An analysis and assessment of the problems that can arise
during the life of a project that would affect the project's successful, on-time
completion.
scenario question - An interview method that gives a job applicant a
specific problem (or set of problems) representative of the kinds of problems
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user support staff actually encounter; used to measure problem-solving skills
and ability to work under pressure.
scope creep — The tendency for a project to grow or change in
unexpected ways that increase the time frame, resources, and cost to
complete a project.
self-study courses - Preparatory materials, usually in book format, that
readers complete at their own pace prior to taking a certification exam.
special project - A user support activity that happens only occasionally, in
contrast to routine activities; it requires more time, more staff members, and
a larger budget, and is more complex and less well-defined than routine
support activities.
staff training - Training designed for new support employees (orientation)
and existing support staff members (skills update and professional
development).
user satisfaction survey - A questionnaire that attempts to measure how
satisfied users are with the support services they have experienced.
wait time - Average time to respond to calls.