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Home > Information Technology > Helpdesk > Projects and Honors > Chancellor’s Customer Service Award > Future Developments

Future Developments

In line with the philosophy of continuous improvement, the Valdosta State University Information Technology Helpdesk has already put together a list of improvements and an action plan to achieve these improvements during the next fiscal year. Listed below are three of the major projects, though a number of additional projects and sub-projects exist.

Fig. 3-1: Expanded Training

Due to the success, both statistically and in terms of employee satisfaction, of Effectiveness Training for Valdosta State University Information Technology Helpdesk student employees, the Helpdesk plans to continue the expansion of this form of hybrid training to the following groups:

• Helpdesk Full-Time Staff - As more Helpdesk full-time staff members are hired, they will be prepared through formalized training developed by other experienced Helpdesk full-time staff.
  • Helpdesk Production - Helpdesk Production is the side of the Helpdesk responsible for direct dealings with clients, handling both client service and technical support.
  • Helpdesk Development - Helpdesk Development is responsible for the research and development duties associated with the future development of the services the Helpdesk provides.
• Other IT Divisions - As the Helpdesk is a sub-group of Information Technology, we have provided our training course templates to other areas of Information Technology to help them develop their own training materials.
  • Distance Learning - As Distance Learning played a major part in the initial development of Effectiveness Training, they have likewise developed their own Effectiveness Training courses for their student employees. This training is directed more towards online course support through WebCT.
  • Service Center - Another primary area of Information Technology that can benefit from this form of training is our Service Center. While the Helpdesk provides support via e-mail, phone, and walk-in, the Service Center deploys technicians on-site to repair VSU-owned equipment IT equipment.
• IT Constituents - IT constituents are other groups that are not part of the Division of Information Technology, but are responsible for providing technical support in different locations on campus.
  • Print Initiative Support - This course focuses on training lab monitors and support staff to address general inquiries and provide initial on-site support for multi-function printers as part of the Campus Lab Print Initiative.
  • ServiceDesk Plus - This course focuses on training IT student employees and staff as well as technicians from our constituent groups to access and utilize our new work order tracking system.
• Public Resources - Likewise, we hope to continue to extend training opportunities to the public, as keeping the public as informed as possible will help us continue to handle an increasing number of clients.
  • Disinfection and Acceptable Use - This course walks clients through protecting their computer from malware, basic malware removal using anti-virus tools, how to surf the internet responsibly, and how to stay compliant with the Information Security Acceptable Use Policy.
  • Wimba Live Classroom - This course walks clients through the configuration and use of Wimba Live Classroom, a system that can be used within WebCT to facilitate text and voice chat, webcam streams, and online presentations. This course will act as a bridge between the client and the Helpdesk, allowing the representative to chat with the client and verify whether or not a technical issue arises.

Fig. 3-2: Expanded Support

The Valdosta State University Information Technology has, since its founding, continued to expand the number of services it provides to meet clients' needs.

With the implementation of Jive, Valdosta State University's campus instant messenger, as well as the GA Voicemail system, Helpdesk has expanded its ability to receive and handle help requests. Jive has been implemented as a backend for the Help button on our main page. If a representative is available, a client will have the option of text chat with the representative to attempt to resolve the issue immediately instead of waiting for a callback or e-mail. In addition, the GA Voicemail system allows us to forward our voicemails directly into our work order tracking system, preventing delays while waiting for someone to check for new voicemail.

Another area we plan to continue to expand is the number of services we support. In Fall of 2008 alone, the Helpdesk has introduced support for:

• Peoplesoft Finanacials Expenses Module - This module of Peoplesoft allows Valdosta State University employees to place online requests for travel reimbursement.

Finally, to handle an increasing client volume without a degradation in quality of service, we are planning to implement a system of client self-service.

 

Fig. 3-3: Client Self-Service

The Information Technology Enterprise Infrastructure Services branch is making progress towards the integration of the ServiceDesk Plus work order tracking system with Microsoft Active Directory, allowing us to automatically populate clients into our ServiceDesk Plus server. This will allow clients direct online access to their help requests including functionality such as:

• Placing Requests - Clients will be able to place a help request directly into our work order tracking system.
• Updating Requests - Clients will be able to update these requests if changes, including corrections to the location, a list of office hours, or a notice that the issue resolved itself.
• Verifying Request Status - Clients will be able to determine what IT is doing to resolve the request, whether it waiting on an order for parts, deploying a technician on-site, or rebuilding an account.
• Reviewing Request Resolutions - Clients will thus be able to tell what step corrected the issue.
• Reviewing the Knowledgebase - Finally, clients will be able to look at solutions within our knowledgebase to attempt troubleshooting when the Helpdesk is not open.