Saturday, March 1, 2014

Making Good Use Of Your IT Support Department In Your Company

By Susana Galvan


In the early years of people using computers in the business environment the IT support was very limited. It usually comprised of a technician whose main task was to make sure that system backups were made. They would be located in a small room surrounded by broken computers and spare parts.

It was quite common in most companies for users to attempt to solve any problems themselves. This was usually quicker and easier than trying to get the attention of a team member to come and help them. Over time, this habit has changed. The introduction of networks, and server-based software, requires that the engineers supporting the system have to be specialists.

As IT systems started to become more complex, the number of people needed in the dedicated service team had to increase. A number of different skill sets were required within the team to be able to cope with technologies such as web development, network systems, and the installation of hardware and software, to name but a few. However, even though some companies are investing in sophisticated technology, there will always be legacy equipment to maintain, and that also comes within their remit.

IT support procedures have had to change to keep pace with the new ways in which businesses work, especially as a great many are spread over different time zones. Departments have to be on call 24-hours a day, and it is usual for a company to have a team based on one site, and only one member of the service team at each location. Any faults are generally reported via the company intranet using a ticketing system.

It might seem a little bit extreme to have to raise a ticket when you just believe the fault is on your own computer. However, the type of fault that you report will determine who will be tasked to solve the problem. It might be that they can use the information you have given them to prevent other similar incidents. This is where prevention is better than the cure, and a lot of system downtime can be avoided.

Taking what appears to be a simple e-mail problem as an example, many scenarios could be involved. It could be caused by a poor configuration on an individual's computer; a server might have a problem and needs to be taken off-line, or a number of users have reported the same fault and there is a problem with the software. Each of these scenarios would need investigating by a specialist.

Due to the complexity of the information technology systems that need supporting these days, a lot of companies choose to outsource the task to external consultancies. These companies call on specialists to work on particular problems on a freelance basis. There are benefits to working this way; however, the ability to make use of services like these depend on the size of the company and the budget available.

There have been a lot of changes within IT support over the years. Companies now see it as a necessity, and users don't attempt to fix faults themselves. The people who man these departments need to be aware of various technologies, and have to keep themselves up to date in them.




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