Date Published May 2, 2023 - Last Updated February 20, 2024
Let’s suppose we can take a look at the world map of IT business - did you happen to notice the new country everyone in the service management industry is talking about?
The new land is called the "United States of the Service Desk," and it is like no other country! The service desk team is the government, the constitution is ITIL standards, and the end users are the citizens.
The service desk operates as the government overseeing the service desk operations and ensuring that all citizens receive the necessary support. This country consists of several states built over a solid technical infrastructure foundation. The citizens have an up-to-date information technology infrastructure to support their needs. The government's top senior officials always support the infrastructure. They call them Level Three government officials. The senior team ensures the infrastructure stays operational and meets citizens' demands. The country also will require security tools to protect its borders from external or internal threats.
The country should have a defined budget that supports the government to continue delivering reliable services to its increasing population. The budget should take into consideration headcount vs. the increasing number of end users to keep up with demand, IT asset capacity planning and refresh cycle, license, and subscription renewals for the ITSM tool.
The United States of the Service Desk comprises seven states that work together to deliver excellent service:
State of communication
The citizens in this country have communication channels that help them to request services and report incidents to the government in return. These channels will help the government to deliver excellent customer service to citizens.
Citizens can select the communication method they prefer - a self-service portal, and walk-in visits by visiting any service desk center in the country, call center channel, chat support channel, or after-hours support.
State of innovation
This country's government knows innovation is vital for better service delivery and customer experience. The government representatives implemented tools such as chatbots and AI agents, introducing new tools that could improve the service desk's operations. Having operational AI agents would help government members to focus on more high-priority items and speed up the service delivery for citizens. It might probably guarantee that the government gets elected for a second term!
State of customer service
The government employees would be trained to provide exceptional customer service to ensure all customers receive a positive experience. The service desk members of the government should be skilled in all aspects of technology related to the government environment. They should handle all customer inquiries and complaints, ensuring issues are resolved promptly and efficiently.
State of training
The government is known for its yearly strategic plans to train government representatives in modern technology and cross-functional training. The government knows that ongoing training programs will help its representatives maintain their skills and knowledge.
State of performance
This country's citizens care a lot about their government's performance and the services they provide. This government is subject to quarterly performance reviews and regular audits. These quarterly reviews will maintain frequent touchpoints between the government and citizens, allowing the government to evaluate its performance, look for gaps, and work on closing them.
State of change management
The United States of the Service Desk would have a change management process which guides environmental changes. These changes are managed and implemented with minimum to no risk impact on its citizens and infrastructure. Prior to any new change, clear communication is sent out to citizens ahead of time, updating them about the change, and there is a change management rollback plan that is used in case any changes in the change roadmap fails.
Our ITIL constitution will provide the government with guiding principles that will govern the government's operations:
- Focus on value.
- Start where you are.
- Progress iteratively with feedback.
- Collaborate and promote visibility.
- Think and work holistically.
- Keep it simple and practical.
- Optimize and automate.
These principles will allow the government to oversee the service desk operations and ensure that all citizens are treated equally and respectfully.
The United States of the Service Desk is a truly unique country with a government qualified to provide exceptional IT support to its citizens. This country sets a service delivery example for other countries to follow the trained and skilled government employees and the seven states working together in communication, asset management, innovation, training, customer service, performance review, and change management. All these states working together with the government will ensure that the country will provide a consistent productive environment for their citizens.
Moe Suliman is Information Technology Help Desk Manager with Wajax Limited.