Imagine driving on a busy highway when suddenly, your vehicle breaks down. Unless you're equipped with the mechanical skills and tools to fix it yourself, you're entirely reliant on expert resources to get moving again. From an end-user perspective, the experience of waiting for assistance can be incredibly frustrating. It not only wastes time but also creates stress, disrupts the flow of the day, and potentially leads to costly delays. Similarly, in the realm of business IT, a poor IT presence can have a comparable impact on employees.
What would happen if your IT infrastructure was ill-supported and faulty, resulting in a breakdown? Would you know what to do to recover and get your employees and company on the road again?
IT is Influential
Your workforce is your biggest asset and is at the mercy of the IT system you have in place. Users feel the brunt of a system outage, a slow network, or applications that can be frustrating. If work stalls, management can lose patience quickly.
A blog posted on LinkedIn discusses that five things are most impactful on the employee experience (EX) within the workplace, with IT amongst them. The writer explains: 'The quality and accessibility of technology solutions directly influence employee productivity and satisfaction. A company that provides user-friendly collaboration tools, such as instant messaging and video conferencing, enables seamless communication and teamwork, regardless of location, enhancing efficiency and promoting a sense of connection among colleagues, positively impacting EX.
The blog goes on to explain that in general, IT 'is perceived as a support function rather than a strategic partner, leading to underfunding critical projects. To overcome this perception and secure adequate resources, you must demonstrate how IT initiatives not only directly contribute to business objectives but you should also include their impact on EX.'
Enlisting the expertise of a remote IT Service Desk is an effective solution in providing reliability, timeliness, and efficiency. Having professionally trained staff with the expertise and knowledge to resolve issues quickly and accurately is vital. Partnering with an IT provider who delivers quality, dedicated customer service and keeps resources updated can help employees feel supported, impacting the productivity of your entire company in a positive way.
It is important that your workforce feels heard and supported by their IT presence. To encourage this, the service desk environment must involve:
- Solid communication - Information exchange is vital and depends on both the technician providing the assistance and the environment in which they are working. Having a noisy workspace, with an inadequate headset, for example, may result in poor audio quality, frustrating the end user. A technician who seems distracted or is less than communicative regarding the issue at hand may escalate an already stressful moment, reflecting in a poor user experience.
- Readiness and availability - Remote is the new work motto and signifies anytime and anywhere support. A 24/7/365 model is critical for more businesses than ever before.
- Timeliness - An IT team is one of investigative troubleshooting and their work needs to happen quickly. End users are at a halt until their issue is resolved. Technicians need to react as if their own productivity is stalled. They must approach their service from an internal level of understanding.
- Courtesy and empathy - Feeling heard and understood is at the core of what customer service promotes, and the service desk is a customer-oriented entity. IT personnel must understand the stress and inconvenience the end user is experiencing. Technicians require an innate sense of empathy alongside encouragement and positivity.
- Continuous modernization - Regularly upgrading your tools and software isn't just about having the latest tech; it's about empowering your employees and showing them you're invested in their success. When your workforce has access to up-to-date products and programs, they benefit from enhanced functionality, improved security, and streamlined workflows. This also signals that your organization values their productivity and provides them with the best possible resources to do their jobs effectively.
Remote Services Provide Benefits
When IT isn’t the core function of a company, partnering with an expert service provider offers a solid solution with several benefits and advantages including:
- Convenience for the end-user: Your workers can remain at their desks while the technician performs the task or service remotely.
- Employee interaction: Your employees engage in conversation with the tech and feel involved in the process, learning tips and tricks for improved maneuverability.
- Extended service hours: Remote IT technicians are available beyond normal work hours and within multiple time zones to assist someone working early, late, or in another location.
- Metrics and monitoring: Your IT partner utilizes metrics to monitor multiple aspects of the remote system, providing you with knowledge regarding areas of improvement.
- Preemptive approach: Issues and trends are documented and tracked, allowing for preventative measures and the opportunity to fix things before they get worse or fail.
- Access to resources and knowledge: Enlisting the help and guidance of an IT services provider immediately gives your business access to years of tenure and experience within the IT realm. From storage solutions to cybersecurity, your IT department will have continued resources for you and your team.
- Heightened security: Internal IT technicians are immediate problem-solvers. Businesses have a ‘bigger picture’ for their technological positioning, but initiatives and efforts often get overshadowed by the here and now. Enlisting a team of experts that covers the help desk tiers and possesses a strong knowledge base significantly enhances your business’s security and competitiveness.
- Decreased overhead: The elimination of hardware, workspace, workers’ compensation payments, salaries, recruitment, and retention are just a few items removed from the budget in an outsourced relationship. Maintenance of licenses is also handled by the partner provider.
- Scalability: Remote services are flexible and allow for scaling up or down as your business dictates, making sure that your company is aligned in the best way possible.
- Various models: Remote IT comes in several shapes and sizes, and offers different aspects of support, timing, and cost. Onshore and offshore models are often compared for pricing and timing. Tiers offer support that is specific to the issue, and its level of intensity. Remote IT is a vessel for open resources with solutions that are tailored to your business.
Roadside Assistance
An effective IT support system is vital for your overall business functionality – from managing infrastructure and user issues to the overall attitude and productivity of your employees. It allows a company to focus on its core business and achieve its goals more efficiently and effectively.
Rather than being stuck on the side of the road waiting for help to arrive (and potentially without all the needed tools), a remote IT Service Desk can help your business remain positive and productive. If an IT setback occurs, your employees know to make one call, and they will get the help and support they need, no matter where they are or when they need it.
Learn more about our services and how Cayuse can help your business with its IT presence.
