It’s reassuring to reach an actual human being when calling the help desk. It’s even more of a comfort nowadays, when automated menus are standard and pressing “0″ often loops you back to the beginning of the options menu.

It sounds simple, but some companies do not understand the concept.

That’s one of the main takeaways from a recent commentary piece by Mike Schaffner published on Forbes.com, and it’s something we hear all the time from our customers. In fact, one of the most common bits of praise we get in our quality assurance surveys is not that our consultants are amazing software ninjas (which they are, by the way), but that “real” people answer our phones.

In Schaffner’s piece, he lists the four basic requirements customers have of IT:

• To know whether IT is working on the issue, or at least where it stands in the queue;
• how long it will take to resolve the problem;
• periodic status updates; and,
• to do what they promise, or say so when they cannot.

It sounds simple, but some companies do not understand the concept. They give it a stab with pricey help desk ticket systems that promise to produce valuable data for trending analysis. But, Schaffner points out, “although efficiency and systems to track issues are great, they don’t mean anything to our customers.”

Indeed, they don’t. A caller’s main concern is his job, and how quickly — or slowly — he can get back to it.

How’s your help desk’s motherboard-side manner? Tell us in comments.

MORE INFO IN: 5 Lessons to Learn Before Outsourcing | Desktop Application Support | Hidden Demand | Contact PC Helps

Jenny Sweeney Customer Service automation, Forbes.com, Help Desk, ninjas

In an earlier post, I brought attention to the buzz surrounding automated software support and its possible impact on companies. Now, I want to ask an important follow-up:

Do you consider software support from a live technician a luxury in the current economy? If so, think again. Without it, your company may be inviting chaos. Read more…

Jenny Sweeney Excel, How To, ROI, Worker Productivity automation, Excel, Help Desk, Outsourcing, recession, ROI, self-help support, software support, Worker Productivity

It sounds too easy: Click a button and your problem is solved.

That’s because it is.

Tech publications have been abuzz lately about automated software support, due in part to Microsoft’s soft launch of Fix-It in late 2008. The product, which is still in its early stages, promises uncomplicated, automated fixes for common Microsoft software issues.

It’s a commendable effort. How much it helps the average corporate user, however, remains to be seen. In general, self-help software support does not work as well as assistance from an actual person. Knowledgebases are tech-jargon beasts, and make little sense to computer novices. Read more…

Jenny Sweeney How To, ROI, Worker Productivity automation, CIO, recession, ROI, self-help support, Worker Productivity