What is key in helpdesk services? (need help!)

Snow.bros

Hi all,

I have been in help-desk for about two months now and my job at this moment is coordinating tickets and escalating calls, i don't support customers as yet but very soon i will be starting, as far as knowledge/qualification goes i have A+ and Net+ and i am progress of pursuing my MCSA, We support desktop, outlook, network and data backup. So i want to know from you guys what are the key aspects i should focus on or strengthen for better service delivery to customers, we also have difficult customers as well they make me nervous when i think that one day i will have to work with them and sometimes i tend to panic when someone is putting unnecessary pressure which affects my performance in a job. What should i focus on to strengthen my performance and based on your experience how do you deal with such issues?

I appreciate your advise!!!

Dakinggamer87

I would continue to work on and improve your soft skills interacting with people daily as that is just as important as your technical knowledge just something to keep in mind.

Snow.bros

Dakinggamer87 wrote: »

I would continue to work on and improve your soft skills interacting with people daily as that is just as important as your technical knowledge just something to keep in mind.

I confess that could my be one of my problem, i think i lack in that field so i need to work on that.

Bokeh

Patience, understanding, and the ability to control the call. Do not let them go off the deep end with screaming, hollering, or cussing. No one has to put up with that.

What has always worked for me in the past is to repeat what the customer says while you are filling out the ticket. "So Mr xxx you are having a problem with xyz, is that correct? Ok, what steps have you done yourself already to correct it?

coreyb80

Excellent advice Bokeh.

Nemowolf

Dakinggamer87 wrote: »

I would continue to work on and improve your soft skills interacting with people daily as that is just as important as your technical knowledge just something to keep in mind.

^^ This. One of the biggest problems both my current and previous employer have had in hiring is people who have the perfect resume and look great on paper but lack considerably when it comes to the soft skills. My current crew has a great rep in the office because we give that personal touch with each interaction. You would be amazed how far you can stretch things out when you have the soft skills to keep the situation under control.

Cleverclogs

I second Nemowolf and Bokeh's advice: I've been in my job one day shy of a year and it's my people skills that have been the most help. My last job was all phones, but this one I go out and see people so I've definitely increased my soft skills in that time. Good luck.

Snow.bros

True, i did some research on soft skills apparently they are very important skills in the working environment and for job seekers as well, they also say your technical skills alone can turn out to be useless without your soft skills when it comes to marketing yourself so these are very vital skills indeed and they can be easily be overlooked.

Thanks for advising guys i have noted that and will try and improve on my soft skills much appreciated!!!

clouder

Learn how to explain a technical issue to non-technical personnel. It's a great skill to have, and people feel better when they can understand the problem better. Also don't treat a customer like an idiot, even if they are one. They'll appreciate it big time. EDIT: Also, if you don't know how to fix something, it's okay to tell the customer that you'll escalate the issue or will go research it more, etc. Chances are, they'd rather you go research/figure it out than sit at their desk and take up their time trying to iron out the issue without a good starting point.

Snow.bros

@clouder is ITIL one of the soft skills certs?

clouder

Nah, it's more of an organizational/management cert. In my experience, many contracts follow the concepts that it describes. It's good for helping people understand how all the gears turn in an IT shop, if that shop uses the ITIL model.

Bokeh

+1 for this.

Always listen to what they are saying. The customer may not be able to "talk your talk" but with enough information, and perhaps a few specialized questions, you can get to the bottom of their issue and start to find a solution.

Crikey

One thing that can be helpful is analogy - take a tech term and try to apply it to something used everyday. For example, compare bandwidth to a highway, cars as packets, etc.

Of course, only use it if you feel the need. Not every customer will want to understand what is going on, just that it is getting fixed. That kind of skill only comes with experience.

N2IT

I always found getting thrown in the best strategy for this. For me the waiting around allowed self doubt to creep in and anxiety soon followed. Once I started taking calls and googling problems I was off to the races.

Snow.bros

N2IT wrote: »

I always found getting thrown in the best strategy for this. For me the waiting around allowed self doubt to creep in and anxiety soon followed. Once I started taking calls and googling problems I was off to the races.

Yep you said it man, that is exactly whats happening how did you know?

grave_digger

Nemowolf wrote: »

^^ This. One of the biggest problems both my current and previous employer have had in hiring is people who have the perfect resume and look great on paper but lack considerably when it comes to the soft skills. My current crew has a great rep in the office because we give that personal touch with each interaction. You would be amazed how far you can stretch things out when you have the soft skills to keep the situation under control.

soft skill was in face to face interaction with a employee in need of IT help?