1. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
Tools and techniques used for technical support (P1)
Software Diagnosticand MonitoringTools
whenpeople ringupandsay there isa problemwiththeirPCthere isusuallyasimple answer,but
thismay notbe simple forthe usertodo, so there needsto be some sortof programthat allowsthe
customersupportfix the problemforyoufromthere end.
WindowsVirtual NetworkComputing
thissoftware canbe loadedontothe userscomputersothat the customerservice teamcanconnect
and remotelyaccessyourcomputer.Itisoftenusedinremote diagnosticsandsometimesto
facilitate repairsthroughaVPN.Inthissituationthe service teamwill be able totake control of your
machine,theywouldthenbe able toconfigure andmanipulate the PC.
Control Panel
the most commonwayof accessingset-upandcustomisationoptionsforoperatingsystemsis
throughcontrol panel.Itgivesusersopportunitiestochange the appearance of the userinterface
and change functionsonthe system. Throughthe control panel the behavioursof awhole range of
devicescanbe changed
BIOSPOST
The firstthingthat the BIOS doeswhenitbootsthe PC isto performwhatis calledthe Power-On
Self-Test,orPOSTfor short.The POSTisa built-indiagnosticprogramthatchecksyour hardware to
ensure thateverythingispresentandfunctioningproperly,before the BIOSbeginsthe actual boot.It
latercontinueswithadditional tests(suchasthe memorytestthatyousee printedonthe screen) as
the boot processisproceeding.
EventLogs
eventlogscontaina listof activitiesoractionsthathave beenexperiencedwithinasystem.The logs
are categorisedintothree types:
 Application
 Security
 System
The informationcoveredinthese categoriesmaybe storedinaset periodof time (e.g.lastmonth)
thisisbetterthan justshowingwhathappenedinthe pastdayor two.A techniciancanoftenselect
whichitemsof informationare storedinthese logsand how regularlytheyare happening.
CPU-z
CPU-zIs a software monitoringtoolswhichshowsinformationaboutthe mainthingsinside your
computersuchas, CPU Usage, heat,Fans, OS,Ram usage,Hard drive usage,etc.whena engineer
looksat thissoftware anddetectssome unusuallyresultssuchasCPU usage highlightedinRED,
Problemscaneasilybe fixed.
Speccy
thissoftware isverysimilartoCPU-zbut italsomakesit easierforthe userto understand,CPU-z
showsyouyour full CPUspecand clockingdata whichisreallyonlyunderstandable byPC
professionalists.Speccyhowevershowsyouitsname anditsheatand usage witha percentage

2. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
gauge.It will alsoshowsome aspectsof the systemitselfsuchaswhat isactuallyusingupall the
memory,whatoperatingsystemisrunningandisitthe beston to have on yourPC?
Techniques
One of the fundamental principlesof beingable toprovide high-qualityadvice andguidance is
havinga good understandingof the probleminthe firstplace.If youthinkaboutit – how can you
hope to offera solutiontoanyproblem, if youdon’tfullyunderstandwhatthe problemis?
DirectQuestioning
Thisis probablythe mostimportanttechnique usedininformationgathering.Thisisbecause an
engineercanaskfor clarificationorcanask furtherquestionstoensure thathe or she hasa good
understandingof the problem(thisiscalled‘probing’).Incontrast,withawrittenfault
questionnaire,answersmaybe giventhatare thennot sufficientlyexpandedtogive the technician
the level of informationthatisneeded
If someone hastoldan engineerthatthe mouse isn’tworking,thisisnohelptothe engineer,it
couldbe anythingfromsimplynotbeingpluggedinorthe driversmaybe incompatiblewiththe
operatingsystem.
An engineerwouldhave toprobe the statement‘mouse notworking’furthertoestablishinwhat
waythe mouse isn’tworking.The mostcommonwayof gatheringthe informationistouse a
checklistasa guide to ensure thatthe rightquestionsare askedatthe outset.Here are some of the
mostobviousquestions:
1. What is the fault?
2. What were youdoingwhenthe faultoccurred?
3. When the faultoccurred,were there anyerrormessages?If so,whatwere they?
4. Is anythingelse affectedwhenthe faultoccurs?
5. Is the faultconstant or intermittent?
There are differenttypesof questionsthatthe engineercan ask, Openquestions,closedquestions
or probingquestions.
Openquestions - are questionswhere the user hascontrol overhow muchinformationisgiven.In
answerto ‘whatisthe nature of the fault?’ the response couldbe anythingsuchas“my mouse is
working”whichisn’thelpful or“mycomputerdoesn’tseemtobe compatible withthe mouse
drivers,whatdoI do?”
Closedquestions –a closedquestion issomethinginwhichthe usercanonlyansweryesorno, these
are purposelyusedif the situationforthe engineerisn’thelpful asthe userwill have givenuseless
informationatfirst.
Probingquestions - Probingquestionssuchas‘whatelse canyou tell me aboutwhathappened?’
wouldencourage the respondenttothinkmore generally,sometimesthese canbe uselessathe
usermay respondwith“Idon’tknowwhat happened”orsimply,“no”.

3. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
FaultLogs
In some organisations,particularlywhere thereare roomsof computersthatcan be usedbymany
differentusers(e.g.inaschool or college),itiscommontohave a writtenfaultlogthatisregularly
checkedbytechnical staff whowill identifyandtryto fix anyfaultsthat have beenreportedby
users.Clearlythisreliesontwoactivities:
 Users identify the faultsandthembeingrecordedontoadatabase.
 Technical staff makeingregularchecksonfaultlogs andfixingthe problemsthatkeep
occurring.
Solutionsdatabase
A solutionsdatabase is productthatstoresandorganisescommonsystemfaultsandtheirsolutions.
A technicianwouldbe able tokeyerrormessages;errorcodesorsymptomsintothe database andit
wouldproduce areport containinglikelycausesof the faultandwaysinwhichtheycan be fixed.
Solutionsdatabasestendtobe extensible–allowinganorganisationtoaddtheirown‘local’faults
and solutionstothe knowledge.
The Importance of Fault Logs (M1)
Faultlogsare horrible whenyouhave tofill themoutbuttheyare a helpful technique thatcanhelp
yousolve many problems.Faultlogsare keptformanyreasonsthe mainreasonthat theyare keptis
to keepa recordof all faultssothat youwill be able tolookat themat a laterdate.Faultlogsare
keptbecause theyare a good wayof identifyingreoccurringfaults,if youhave afaultthat keeps
occurringit isveryeasyto lookat an oldfaultlogto see whattype of informationisthere sothatit
can helpme come up withsolutionssothatI can fix the problem.
Whenyour software orhardware keepsbreakingdownfaultlogswill helpyoukeeparecordof them
and inturn the problemwill be gettingfixedfasterandfastereachtime youdoit.Anotherreason
that faultlogsare keptisthat the more and more faultsthat are recordedmeansthat youwill be
able to getproblemsfixedfasterandfaster,thismeansthatyouwill have more time tofix more
problemssoitgivesyourcompanybetterproductivity.If youhave aconstantproblemthe faultlogs
will allowyoutokeeparecord of themhappeningandthismeansthatyou maypredictthe problem
before ithappensagain.
One otherreallygoodreasonthat faultlogsare keptis tolog the performance of technicians,
loggingthe performance of the technician'smeansthatyouwill be able tocompare themandsee
whois doingbetterthanothers.Fromthe faultlogsyouwill be able tosee whichtechnicianisa
weaklinkandif there isany weaklinksyoucan take the employeeforatrainingcourse.Fromthe
faultlogsyoucan alsosee thatsome people couldbe takingiteasyif thisisthe case thenyoucan
put disciplinaryproceduresinplace sothattheypickup the pace. Faultlogshighlightcommonfaults
on recurringmachinesandfromthe faultlogsyouwill be able tofindout whyitis happeningand
whatyou can do to fix the problem.

4. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
The impact of organisational policies and procedures on the provision of technical
support (P2)
TerraTechhave many policesandproceduresinplace andsome of themcan affectthe It Tech
Supportside of things,foreachstatementIwill explainhow theyaffectedTerraTechTechnical
support
 The workingweekforthe IT supportdivisionis08.30 to 16.30 Mondayto Friday.Any
requestsforadditional timemustbe submittedtwoworkingdaysinadvance.
TerraTechmay have many problemstodeal withandmore time isneededsotheyneedtoworkout
whenthese faultsare cominginthe most.For example if the administratorshave forgotthere
loggingdetailsat7am ona morningeveryTuesdayastheyare hung-over.There needstobe time
allocatedsothat there issomeone there toanswerthe calls.Alsosome problemsmaybe bigand
have a certaintime lengththatit needstobe fixedby.Thereforetwodaysmaybe too longto wait
so there isextratime to fix the problem.
 Hardware underguarantee mustbe returnedtothe manufacturerinordernotto invalidate
the warranty.
Somethingwithawarrantyon can be easilyvoidif youtryand fix the faultyourself.Openinga
systemyourself andtryingtofix it yourself voidsthe warranty.Companiesthoughdon’tliketosend
brokenhardware backto the manufacturerandthiscan be verytime consumingandfrustrating
especiallyif the systemisvital tothe organisations.Onthe plusside thoughtheyare gettinga
replacementorrepairfree asitis still inwarranty.Takingthe riskof fixingityourself canleadto
more problemssuchas voidwarranty,Extracosts and a fullyfaultysystem.Thispolicythough
strictlymakesitso the manufacturergetsthe product firstand no-bodyelse tamperswithit.
TerraTechhowevermayneedthe hardware 24/7 and cannot affordto senditaway,but underthe
policytheyhave nootheroptionbecause the warrantywill be voidif equipmentistamperedwith.
Thisthencan create a constrain.ForTerraTech to lose suchhardware wouldbe a significantloss.
 All otherhardware will be repairedonsite if possible,otherwise itwillbe senttoa
recognisedspecialist.
Thiscan be a great helptoan organisationif the rightprocedures are takenouton the site.Itsaves
time andmoney,the time if itis fixedonsite andthe moneyif aspecialistisn’trequired.Asthe
warrantyhas ran out there isobviouslygoingtobe a cost if itcannot be repairedonsite.Obviously
there islegislationinvolved.The computermisuse actonlyallowscertainthingstobe touchedso
that the computerisn’tabuse.If a specialistisrequiredtodothe jobthe costwill be different
dependingif theyare there 24/7 inwhichtheyare on the payroll or if it justa call out whichwill just
be a one of paymenteachtime.Alsoif more time isneededtofix the computeronsite,notice
neededtobe handedintwodaysin advance whichwill be difficultnotknowingwhenapcwill
break,butalso couldbe time consumingalso.TerraTechbeingsuchabig companyshouldhave a
recognisedspecialistoncall if anythinggoeswrong,theycannotnotaffordlossesthatmightleave
the companyoffline tothe publicoremployees.

5. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
 Hardware replacementwill take place onafive yearrollingprogramme.
Againlike the twopoliciesabovethisisverytime consumingforanorganisation.If computersare
startingto breakdownafter1-2 yearsthenthe warranty will coverthisproblemanditshouldbe
fixable.Butduringyears4-5computerare more than likelytostopworkingperformance wiseand
therefore somethingneedstobe done.Butwaitingforthe new computerstocome isso time
consumingandwarrantiesdon’tlastverylong.Sothe onlyfix possible istryingtofix themyourself
or spendsome moneyontemporarysystemstofix this. Usuallythere are debateswhensigninginto
these contractsare beingwrittensoaskingforwarrantyfor 5 yearsis goingto be more expensive in
the agreement. TerraTechwill be usingthere hardware24/7 throughoutthe 5 yearsso the
equipmentwill come worse quicker,certainlyquickerthanthe 5 years.Thiscouldcause constrainsif
theyhave to waitfor newequipmenttocome afterone hasbroken.Thiscan have a badaffect
dependingonhowlongitisuntil the nextcomputersare released.
 All documentationsuppliedwithnew hardware orsoftware istobe keptinthe IT manager’s
office.
Whennewhardware or software isboughtnotspecificallyinorganisationsjustgenerallyitalways
has documentationsuchasinstructions,warrantyandsupportmanuals.Mostpeople inthe world
try and setthese itemsupthemselvesbutif itissomethinggoeswrongtheyheadstraightforthe
instructionmanual.Butina organisationif the policysaysthatthe documentationneedstobe kept
inthe Managersoffice thenpeople have towaitforthe doorto be unlockedsothe documentation
can be retrieved.Thisistime consumingandawaste of employee’stime.If thishardware issoftware
isvital for the companythen it iscrucial and can affectmanyother thingssuchas systemdowntime.
TerraTechemployeeswillnotall have accessto the manager’soffice andif he hastook the weekoff,
access isn’teasy.Chasingfellow staff forkeysisverytime consuming. Thiscouldcause aconstrain
but alsoTerraTechstaff shouldhave the knowledgetoset-upnew hardware andsoftware without
manuals.
 No unauthorisedsoftware istobe installedoncompanymachinesunlessproof of a licence
isavailable.
Thisis a policythatshouldbe includedineveryITcompany.Installingcounterfeitsoftwareisan
illegal andcriminal offence andactioncanbe taken.If thiswas to be installedontoacompany
computerthiswouldcommittingacrime whichcouldleadto the companyclosingdown,itisthat
serious.Thispiece of policythenmeansthatall companieshave legitimatesoftwareInstalledon
theircomputers.Itmay costcompanieswhentheyneedtobuyextraproductkeysandsoftware
whentheyhave ran out,,but thisis a much betteroptionthanhavingafine to payand a possibility
of yourbusinessgoingunder.TerraTechare aprofessional companyandfake orcounterfeit
software shouldbe usedinsucha companybut itmay still happen,there are some doubtsas well
though,if proof of licence islostand software neededupdatingwithproof of validation.Thisiswhy
proof always needstobe kept;inmy opiniontheyshouldbe storedwiththe instructionmanualsin
the manager’soffice.

6. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
 Internetuse isrestrictedtopermittedsitesatall times.
Thispolicycan sometimesbe alittle bitof apainand alsobe a real advantage to businesses.When
surfingthe webanorganisationswantstomake sure than usersof the networkaren’tabusingtheir
internetaccessand blockingwebsitesisawayof makingsure thisstopsthem.Butsometimesthis
can be a problem,forexampleinschools.Pupilshave limitedaccesstocomputersbutteachershave
a little extra,but still there isaproblem.InmostbusinessesandorganisationsYouTube isblocked,
but if a demonstrationsthatcanbe usedfor classuse,thisthenisa little bitannoyingwhenIcomes
to unblockingthe site foracertainamountof time. ThispolicymayaffectTerraTecha little more
than the others.Whenpeople ringwithproblemsandconcerns,TerraTechwill needsitestolookfor
resourcesinsolvingproblems.Sometime thoughitisnotneededasfaultlogsandsolutiondatabases
are used.
 Anymemberof the technical teamwhocannotresolve aproblemmust referitto theirline
managerwithin24 hours of startingworkon the problem.
Thisis a great policyinwhichproblemscanbe fixedassoonaspossible,reportingaproblemaweek
laterispointlessasthe problemwill have gotworse andworse.The line managerhasdifferent
optionshe can take to fix thisproblem.He canhand itto the experts,ringupthe manufacturer
whose faultyequipmentitis.Ortake itto the nextstepwiththe mainmanager.Thisagain isa very
strickedpolicyinwhichdeadlines cannotbe gone over,suchas referringthe problemtoyour
managerafter24hours & 1 minute thiswouldleadintodisciplinaryactionforthe companyfromthe
governmentandalsothe Technical teambythe companymanager.For TerraTech24hours isallotof
time forthemto refera problemtotheirline manager,especiallyif it’saproblemtheycannot
resolve overthe phone,theycansimplyhandthe customerovertothe line managerina matterof
minutes. If itisa biggerproblemsuchasa company’sserver,forthisproblem24hoursisa short
amountof time,butthe policyisthere tomake a deadlinesothe userknowshow longisshould
take.
 Requestsmade bythe managingdirectororaccountant mustbe giventoppriority.
Evenif the policywasn’tin place we alwaysputdirectionforamanageror directorbefore anything
else.If the directorwantsa 2nd
serverto be put up butat the momentthere neededtobe scheduled
maintenance onaPC, youwill obviouslysetupthe secondserver.Sometimehowever itcannotbe
giventoppriority.Asinthe lastheadingthere isa 24hour deadline toresolve aproblem.Thisis
goingto become toppriorityovereverything. These requestswouldonlyhappenif the managing
directorisseeingadrop inprofits,ora drop in users.Requestmade wouldusuallybe price
reductions,more equipmenttobe more stable oremploymore staff.TerraTechshouldalready
knowthat requestsmade bythe bigmanagerof theircompanyshouldalwaysbe dealtwithbefore
anythingelse,unless there isadisastrousmattertofix before.

7. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
 All currentlegislationmustbe compliedwithatall times.
All the headingsIhave justexplainedare alwaysoutlinedwithlegislationwhichhasbeenputin
place by the government. Thisthenmeansbylaw these stepsneedtobe followedcorrectly. The
heading“Nounauthorisedsoftware istobe installedoncompanymachinesunlessproof of alicence
isavailable”isamajor one to be followedwithlegislation.Itisillegal todownloadandinstall
unauthorisedsoftware evenif itisinyour ownhome.Thisiswhylegislationsaystheyneedtobe
proof of a legitimatepurchase.Thisproof withthenbe storedif someone comesintocheckif all the
legislationisbeingfollowedcorrectly. TerraTechhave nochoice butto follow legislationif theywant
to be a company.Legislationputinplace sometimeshelpsthe companysuchasonlybut mostof the
time itis a real painand TerraTechare justthe same
P3 - Identify the types of fault that can occur
Requestscolumn Advice column
Explanation of hardware and software features
User has beenaskedif theywanttoupgrade
Microsoftoffice tothe current version,theyare
thinkingof purchasingbutaren’tsosure.
Helpdeskexplainstothe userthatwhensoftware
upgradesare broughtout, itbecome fordifficultfora
basiccomputeruserto understand.Helpdesk
recommendthattheydownloadthe trail firsttosee if
theyare comfortable usingthe new MicrosoftOffice
User wantsto install more RAMonto theirPC
but theydonot knowhowmuch the computer
can take.Theyalso wantto knowif it’sworthit
upgradingtowindows8.
Helpdeskgivesuserdirectiontofindingouthow much
RAMtheirPC can take.(the userisaskedto go to
http://www.crucial.com/index.aspx whichwill tell them
there maximumallowance).The userisalsoadvisedto
stay ontowindows7,theyexplainif faultshappenwith
Windows8.There aren’tmanyresourcestohelpthemfix
the issue.
Maintenance procedures or troubleshooting advice
User explainsthattheirPCkeepstellingthem
that I have wona prize everytime theyLogon,
Have I? Or is thisa scam?
Helpdesktellsthe userthatthisisMalware,the bestway
too delete thisistodownloador buya goodantivirus.
Thiswill thenfindthe malware andaskyouif you wantto
delete it.Itshouldthenneverhappenagainasitwill tell
youif Malware or spyware isattemptingtoaccessyour
computer.

8. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
User explainswhentheyare usingdiskclean-up,
it’ssayscomplete butwhentheystartthe
program againit saysthat there isstill memory
beentookupby certainfeatures.Icleanitagain
and itstillssaysit’sthere
Helpdeskexplainsthatonce youhave done the clean-up,
restartyour computerandthenhave a lookto see if the
data isstill there,if sotheymaybe an upgrade forthe
software.If none of these issuesfixit.We recommend
downloada3rd
party piece of software toclean-upyour
data.
Explanation of hardware and software features
User has beenaskedif theywanttoupgrade
Microsoftoffice tothe current version,theyare
thinkingof purchasingbutaren’tsosure.
Helpdeskexplainstothe userthatwhensoftware
upgradesare broughtout, itbecome fordifficultfora
basiccomputeruserto understand.Helpdeskrecommend
that theydownloadthe trail firsttosee if theyare
comfortable usingthe new MicrosoftOffice
User wantsto install more RAMonto theirPC
but theydonot knowhowmuch the computer
can take.Theyalso wantto knowif it’sworthit
upgradingtowindows8.
Helpdeskgivesuserdirectiontofindingouthow much
RAMtheirPC can take.(the userisaskedto go to
http://www.crucial.com/index.aspx whichwill tell them
there maximumallowance).The userisalsoadvisedto
stay ontowindows7,theyexplainif faultshappenwith
Windows8.There aren’tmanyresourcestohelpthemfix
the issue.
Maintenance procedures or troubleshooting advice
User explainsthattheirPC keepstellingthem
that I have wona prize everytime theyLogon,
Have I? Or is thisa scam?
Helpdesktellsthe userthatthisisMalware,the bestway
too delete thisistodownloadorbuya goodantivirus.
Thiswill thenfindthe malware andaskyou if you wantto
delete it.Itshouldthenneverhappenagainasitwill tell
youif Malware or spyware isattemptingtoaccessyour
computer.
User explainswhentheyare usingdiskclean-up,
it’ssayscomplete butwhentheystartthe
program againit says that there isstill memory
beentookupby certainfeatures.Icleanitagain
and itstillssaysit’sthere
Helpdeskexplainsthatonce youhave done the clean-up,
restartyour computerandthenhave a lookto see if the
data isstill there,if sothey maybe an upgrade forthe
software.If none of these issuesfixit.We recommend
downloada3rd
party piece of software toclean-upyour
data.

9. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
Identification and choice of ICT equipment to meet user needs
User explainsshe isdecidingtosetupa
small cornershopand needtoput products
intoa database so pricesandstock can be
stored,she wantsto knowwhatspec
computerwouldsuitherbest.
The helpdeskrecommendsgettingacomputerwith
quieta low spec,if a database isall theyneedsani3
computerwouldbe goodenough.We recommends
alsogettingone thatis on offeratcertainretailersas
thiswill alsosave youmoney.
User explainshe islookingforaspecificPC
that will rungamessmoothlyandhave good
graphics.He realiseshe needsagood
graphicscard but doesn’tknowwhatother
specsneedtobe considered.
The helpdeskexplainshe isonthe righttrack will a
graphicscard and he isalsogoingto needa bitof
moneytoget a good computer.Theyalso
recommendaPC witha bighard drive andan i5 or i7
processor,the helpdesksrecommendsalienware,or
if he has the case.Makinghis owncomputeronthe
web.
Other sources of help (something that does not fit into another category)
User explainshiscomputerwill notfindhis
Wirelessrouterandhe cannotconnectto
the internet,
The helpdeskstellhimhe needstorunsthe set-up
againand recommendconnectinghisrouterandPC
withan Ethernetcable,thiswayanyproblemscanbe
troubleshootingwithanconnectionsestablished,
theyalso ask himto checkif his networkadapteris
enable,he isrecommendedtogoto a particularsite
(http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-
vista/Enable-or-disable-a-network-adapter)
User wantsto change theirdesktop
backgroundand It will notchange,they
wantit to have the company’s logo.
The helpdesksexplainsthatcertainoperatingsystem
do notenable desktopeditingsuchaswindows
starter,they explainthoughyoucanupgrade itto a
higherOSwitha product keyto use through
“Windowsanytime upgrade”,if herOSiscompatible
withdesktopeditingshe isaskedtodothe following
steps.(http://windows.microsoft.com/en-
GB/windows-vista/Change-your-desktop-
background-wallpaper)

10. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
Explain the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing technical support – M2
What is Outsourcing?
Outsourcingisthe act of one companycontractingwithanothercompanyto provide servicesthat
mightotherwise be performedinone companyitself.Oftenthe tasksthatare outsourcedcouldbe
performedbythe companyitself,butinmanycasesthere are financial advantagesthatcome from
outsourcing.Manylarge companiesnowoutsource jobssuchas call centre services,e-mail services,
and payroll.These jobsare handledbyseparate companiesthatspecializeineachservice,andare
locatedoverseas.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Outsourcing
Advantages
Cost saving- There can be significantcostsavingswhenabusinessfunctionisoutsourced. Employee
costs,office space costs,manufacturingcostsandothercosts are all eliminatedand save moneythat
can be usedonotherresources.
ImprovedQuality - Improvedqualitycanbe achievedbyusingvendorswithmore experience. An
example of thiswouldbe contractingouta cleaningservice.Anoutsideservicewould have the
resourcesforhiring& trainingthatmay notbe available if the functionwere keptinsidethe
company.
CustomerSatisfaction - The advantage of havingavendorcontract isthat theyare made to give
certainlevelsof serviceandquality. Anexample of thisisif yourIT functionisoutsourcedandthe
techniciancallsinsick,itisthe vendor’sresponsibilitytofindsomeone toreplace themandmeet
your supportneeds.
Disadvantage
Language Barriers - If a customercall centre isoutsourcedtoa countrythat speaksa different
language,there maybe an extreme difficulty forcustomersdealingwiththe language barriersof
someone withastrongaccent.
QualityService - Unlessacontract specifically identifiesameasurableprocessforqualityservice
reporting,there couldbe apoor service qualityexperience. Some contractsare writtento
intentionallyleaveservicelevelsouttosave on costs.
Organisational Knowledge - Anoutsourcedemployeemaynothave the same understandingand
passionforan organisationasa regularemployee. There isthe potentialthatanoutsourced
employeewillcome incontactwithcustomersandnot be as knowledgeable of the organisation,
resultinginanegative customer experience.

11. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
Review a recent advance in support systems technology – D1
IncreasedReliance on remote support
It isclear that as organisationscome torelymore heavilyonhome anddistance workers,there will
be a significantincrease inthe demandforremote support.The numberof organisationsthat
supportthe conceptof workingfromhome isconstantly gettingbiggerandbigger.Asaresult,itis
difficulttopredictwhetherornotthere will be an increase inthisoverthe next30 years,evenif
some websitessuggestthatwe are currentlyexperiencingsomethingof ahomeworkingrevolution.
However,organisationscan,throughtheirownstrategicplanning,estimate whetherthey will wish
to increase the numberof home workers.There are manytypesof differentsupportavailablethat
can helpwithremote support,here ajusta few examples:
Skype - skype can be usedas a normal landline andcanalsobe usedforvideocalling,thiscanhelp
has examplescanbe shownthroughvideochatonhow to helpa certainsituation.Skype alsohas
the functionScreenshare whichcanshow the Helpdesksdesktopandshow the userstepbystep
howto fix a problemthroughthe computer.
Team Viewer–thissoftware isone of manyout there thatusesremote desktoptakeover sothat
someone cantake control of someone else’sPCwithauthorisationfromthe otheruser.Thiscanbe
usedso thatthe helpdeskscantake overthe user’sPCto fix the problem.Thisatthe momentisthe
leadingwaythatSupporthelpdesksfix problems,butstill doesn’thave afixedpositionineverIT
Tech supportdepartmentinotherorganisationsduestolegislationandsecurityreasons.
So industriesmaynotbe able touse thingssuch as these,companiessuchasPC world,curry’sand
cometall ask for systemtobe broughtin to specialistsandtheywillfix itforthem, thisiseasyas
theyhave multiple storesaroundthe world.WhereascompaniessuchasTerraTechdo not,as they
have a special departmentforproblemswhichiscalledITTechnical supportandsoftware likethe
twomentionedabove will givemake iseasiertofix problemsandsee where problemsare starting,
thisthenbringallotof customersatisfaction
Developmentofsystemsthat analyse and report on faults
As hasbeensuggested throughoutthisunit,historicdataaboutfaultsand faultresolutionwillbe
instrumental notonlyinprovidinginformationforthe novice technicians,butalsoforproviding
informationthatcanbe usedtodeveloptrainingstrategiesandprogrammes.The programmes
themselveswill thenensure thatuserswill receivespecifictrainingratherthanall-roundtraining,
where some of the learningmightbe of little value.Faultandreportanalysiscantherefore make the
trainingmore efficient.
Developmentof central infrastructures,contracted out and offshore services
More organisationsare seeingthatITisthe central toomany companies,notasa tool that is usedto
supportthe organisation’sgeneral activities.Therefore,itisnotuncommonforinformation
strategiestobe consideredaspartof an organisation’soverall strategicplan.Failuretodoso may
well resultinamismatchbetweenwhatasystemiscapable of doingandwhat the organisation
needsitto do.Equallyif an organisationfeelsthatthe investmentthatwill accompanyanIT strategy
isinappropriate,thenitmaywell considercontractingoutsome orall of itsIT needs,whetherthatis

12. Philip Martin 22 November 2012 IT Tech Support
payingexternal organisationstoprovide ITsupportor usingexternal organisationstoprovide some
of the back office administrationsuchaspayroll.