DEPENDING ON WHOM YOU TALK TO—AND that person may well have an agenda—the current trend in help desk service is outsourcing. However, some schools are finding that a focus on customer service skills and on using technology to improve self-service options carries the day. Here is a closer look at the major forces currently shaping the IT department’s front line.
Outsourcing for Anytime Help
Outsourcing isn’t always a money-saving venture. But, proponents argue, it can vastly improve help desk operations to have services available 24/7. Improving these services became an urgent need for Delgado Community College (La.) after Hurricane Katrina hit the campus in 2005. Tom Lovince, assistant vice chancellor and chief information officer, explains, “We significantly increased our online offerings to be as flexible as possible, since the students were scattered.” Being short on staff exacerbated the problem, so campus leaders had engaged Presidium Learning by 2006 to fill the gap. Campus constituents can get help by phone, online chat, or web self-service, providing what Lovince calls a complete solution.
But for most colleges and universities, outsourcing isn’t an emergency measure. Such a move can be a strategy that helps higher ed institutions manage costs, says James Rianhard, co-founder and managing director at Presidium. Arranging adequate help desk staffing can be difficult, since the number of calls coming into the help desk can fluctuate based on time of day, day of week, and point within the semester. Based on the call traffic Presidium handles, Rianhard says September and January are the busiest months and that Sunday night is the busiest time of the week.
“There have been situations where [outsourcing] reduces cost,” he says, “but it is important to realize the cost of not providing service is very high.” Rianhard suggests outsourcing part of the help desk, such as evening hours, and maintaining staff on campus for other times. Having first-tier support calls, such as password resets, handled either through a self-service web portal or a help desk service, can also free up on-campus staff for more critical projects.
Meeting the staffing levels required by Mohave Community College (Ariz.) students’ 24-hour lifestyles and the growth in distance learning enrollment were the driving forces behind the decision to change from the on-campus version of SunGard Higher Education’s Help Desk Services to the off-campus version, which provides 24/7 coverage. “The primary reason to outsource was to increase customer service and be more efficient, but mainly to serve our students,” explains Chuck Spotts, vice chancellor of instruction and student services. Spotts points out that with the large adult learner population at the community college, it was even more likely students would be accessing technology after the help desk had closed.
But it took some convincing, and a change in administration, to get the backing he needed. “After you run the numbers of what it takes to man a round-the-clock operation, you start to see the economies of scale to the service from SunGard,” he says. The switch increased help desk operations from 70 hours a week to more than 100—and in the first six months after the switch in July 2005, Spotts saw call volume jump by 54 percent.
As with most technology solutions, once the decision to change to an outsourced help desk is made, the real work begins. “We spend time with any new engagement understanding the systems and process [in place],” says Keith Myers, vice president of technical services at SunGard. “There is nothing more frustrating for a faculty member or student than to be talking to someone who doesn’t understand the institution.”
The service provider should be platform agnostic so its staff can help people regardless of whether the institution uses Banner, Blackboard, or Angel. The provider will also need systems access in order to be effective. Myers suggests regular conference calls and reviews as ways to keep communication lines open and ensure the provider is aware of any changes on campus to either policies or technologies.
