\nYou also need to consider the possibility that there may be no clear distinction between\ntheresponsibilities of the help desk and those of IS. This needs to be taken into account\nbyestablishing guidelines for what to do in those cases when the clear line cannot be drawn. Onthe\nother hand, the clear separation of responsibilities is possible provided they are used for\nreference. For example, it is perfectly reasonable to give the help desk the responsibility for\nreceiving and processing all problem reports. In addition, the help desk can also be responsible for\nsolving application-related problems. For example, how to connect to a network printer may be the\njob of the help desk, whereas figuring out why he you can\u2019t print to that same printer is a\nresponsibility of IS.<\/p>
Also, keep in mind that continuity in problem solving is a benefit for\neveryone concerned. <\/p>
When problems are passed from help desk to IS, information can be lost.\nTherefore, you might want to consider having the help desk be the first line of support and have IS\nbe the one to solve harder problems. <\/p>
For me, the most efficient solution is to have a\nclearly defined separation of responsibilities while maintaining the attitude that no one should\npass the buck. This means that both sides should try to solve problems to the best of their ability.\nIn support of this, I feel it is important to identify the cases where problems should <\/i>be\npassed to the other team, not so much passing the buck as ensuring the problem is not immediately\npassed back to the first group and wastes everybody\u2019s time.<\/p>
The problem of defining\nresponsibility and keeping people from passing the buck also showsitself if you have more than one\nsupport group working on the help desk. In many companies, one group would be responsible for\nnetwork and system issues, for example, and another group is responsible for applications problems.\n<\/p>
What do you do when a user cannot print from a specific application? If it is a network\nproblem, it should be solved by the network group. If it is an application problem, it should be\nsolved by the applications group. How do you know where the problem lies until you start working on\nit? Here is an example of clearly defining your goal as being to help the user. This means trying to\nsolve a problem no matter what group you\u2019re in. If during the course of evaluating the problem, the\napplications group determines that it is a network problem, one alternative would be to have them\nquery the network group themselves and not have the user do it. This provides continuity for the\nuser and at the same time saves time by not passing the problem back and forth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
You also need to consider the possibility that there may be no clear distinction between theresponsibilities of the help desk and those of IS. This needs to be taken into account byestablishing guidelines for what to do in those cases … Continue reading