Managing User Support Requests (A4)

   Thomas Mortimer - Task 4 (Unit 20 - Managing and supporting systems)

Managing User Support Requests

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Task 1:

Support Request Reporting Systems

Countless web-based software solutions allow an organization to support requests and report system faults. However, there need to be a team that can support calls, the calls which go through to that team are logged and allocated. This is why a web-based application can be used to automatically support these requests online and allocated to a support member which can review that ticket and support the user.

There are plenty of software solutions that assist in supporting tickets for example; Google data studio is a great solution with a good web-based reporting tool and allows both the user and the team to track their tickets. Google Data Studio also allows the support to track incoming and outgoing user tickets and support requests.

Some other good alternatives to Google Data Studios are:

SQL Server Reporting Tools
SAS Web Report Studio
IBM BigFix
Web Help Desk

User Support Request Database

Another important step in assisting users with service requests and other types of support is needed when managing and supporting computer systems. Technicians often receive countless service tickets each day, when receiving these tickets technicians can receive manually made tickets requesting help but lack of information in that tickets can take mass amounts of time tracking that information. This can cause a major uptick in requests and an overwhelming overload in workflow due to the number of ticket requests.

Solution Knowledge Base

A Solution Knowledge Base is a platform which is a database that includes a collection of Questions, Answers to Users Questions, Guides on solutions and Documentation on Fixing and Preventing errors from occurring preventing backlogs of user request tickets and troubleshooting solutions to those tickets. These databases allow users to type a few keywords into a search bar and find relevant information to those questions asked by other users about the product.

A good example of a Solution Knowledge Base would be websites like Tom's Hardware which have users answer various questions about a variety of topics and experienced users answer them for the user to try out. Alongside that, there are also private Solution Knowledge bases that allow technicians to find solutions and save time allowing them to be more productive.

Analysis of Supporting Requests Data to Identify Issues

Finally, the Analysis of Supporting requests data to identify issues has support requests identify various issues like:

Training Needs: When new staffing is required to handle more ticket requests this can require the need for more training to either integrate more members into a workforce or even update the training of existing employees with a new computer system or other change has been made and requires more training to allow them to support user request tickets.

Problems with Software and Hardware: When having a user support ticket service in place allows companies to identify problems with hardware and software because of ticket requests sent by users about those systems.

Scheduling of resources (Time of Day/Night when the most problems occur): It is always best for a company that runs a service to schedule resources depending on the number of service requests are received throughout the day or night and allocate resources at whatever time is most active.

Staffing Issues: Finally, Staffing issues can be an issue if not enough staff is either trained or present to handle the number of requests that allows them to remain productive whilst handling the number of tickets and if that workload is too high then more staff is needed.

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Task 2: Justification.

Justification of the activities and tools to manage and support tools that manage and support an IT system

• When managing and supporting IT systems a variety of tools, systems and procedures are put in place to secure and ensure the longevity of computer systems whilst keeping them productive and efficient. For example, determining the business requirements required for IT systems and their associated tools. The business requirements for IT systems cover many requirements like managing employee assignments and supplying tools for their use. For example, tools like office 365 tools contain applications like Word, PowerPoint, excel which give access to tools to create spreadsheets and others. Another set of tools that are responsible for managing and supporting IT systems are managing IT costs and budgets, 
• Another set of tools that are responsible for managing and supporting IT systems are monitoring and safety and compliance, Another set of tools that are responsible for managing and supporting IT systems are controlling system and network security. Another set of tools that are responsible for managing and supporting IT systems are implementing new software, hardware and data systems, Finally, the set of tools that are responsible for managing and supporting IT systems are providing technical or help desk support.

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Task 3: Evaluation.

Evaluate the different activities and tools used to manage and support an IT system, reflecting on their impact on the security, usability and performance of the system.

When evaluating the current support requests we need to assess 4 tools and 4 activities to get a better understanding of what needs to be done when managing and supporting user support requests:

Activities:

• Consulting is one of the many tasks which are used when managing user support requests. Dedicated teams are responsible for supporting user requests, using remote software and changing their system. Sometimes both systems can be at risk when connecting them however, steps are put in place to protect their systems.
• Data Analytics is another responsibility when supporting user support requests. This responsibility entails analyzing incoming and outgoing requests and the reasons for those requests. Data analytics are time-consuming but are minimal in the terms of security and performance.
• Communications are another responsibility of a support team. Communicating between the customer and the team are vital. The quality of the communication between customer and support represents the product, the general knowledge of the support staff will help the customer move through there issues faster.
• Data Information Management is finally the other responsibility from managing use support requests managing data information like support tickets and the subject of those tickets, managing that data sees web developers priorities the most important issues and troubleshoot and resolve those issues.

Tools:

• SQL Server Reporting Tools like many other tools are built with the specific purpose of supporting user requests and processing their requests linking them to operators through the software. SQL server reporting tool also contains documentation that supports administrators in troubleshooting errors on a system with the availability of an operator through a web chat feature built into the software. SQL Server Reporting Tools is a low priority and low power tool which is installed when installing applications that can be unstable and can risk a system, this software will show the user workarounds to protect their system. This software is also not intrusive and does not put risk to the user's system.
• SAS Web Report Studio, The web report tools which are built into this application are a tailor-made software reporter tool that is designed to scan the web application to diagnose errors and report them back to the developers which then troubleshoot and patch the error. 
• IBM BigFix is unlike other reporter tools and is built specifically to operate within a system supplying documentation on a variety of subjects all of which are on the internet and supplied by other users who have encountered the same errors and found workarounds to allow operations to continue. When using this software there is minimal risk to the system due to it being a third party and gathering no data except what is given by the user about their report.
• Web Help Desk is like other web help workspaces and contains a reporter tool that is sorted by importance and frequency and gives developers of the software error reports which can be resolved remotely or through official patches to the software. This is received through the software and this will also be patched through to an official support representative which is there to support the user. When using this help software it connects the user's systems through an IP which can have support connect to the user's system putting it at risk.