Technical support

The support ( anglicism v. engl: support = the support; to support = support. ) Is a solution-oriented consultancy, for example, in a call center or help desk. Especially in the IT industry is "Support" is a common synonym for customer service. Within companies that operate more sales and marketing oriented without own development, provides the support and technical expertise in the formulation of product specifications and for fairs and similar specialized presentations. The mutual support of those affected within self-help groups is called peer support.

The activity is sometimes roughly into two areas " customer service " (English: " customer service", mostly non-technical issues ): divided and "Technical support " ( "technical support" English).

Goal is the processing and resolution of inquiries (tickets) internal or external customers on site, via e- mail, live support system, telephone, remote control or other means of communication. Many software manufacturers offer products for the organization of work processes in customer support, so-called " trouble ticket systems."

The temporal availability of the service may be granted in different stages, for example " 12 × 5" ( for twelve hours to five working days ) or "24 × 7" (24 hours a day, seven days a week ). Outside local working hours of the service may need to be implemented by staff on call in other time zones or.

Priority

For the assessment of the priority there is no uniform system. In ITIL - range strategic priority for the damage caused to the company by a fault or could arise. There should be realistic for the participants and accepted definition of priority between the service provider and the recipient will be developed for the service, which is used in disorders as a guide. For more complex calculations often urgency, impact and calculated values ​​to be specified " service codes " included.

This definition is often used in a maintenance contract (English: "Service Level Agreement " ) set out in writing and linked to corresponding expectations. An example:

The help -seekers will eventually also asked to assign his problem a personally perceived urgency, so that the customer service time measures at competitive occurring disorders can plan the same priority better.

The time to first reaction is called the reaction time and the time to correct the problem Deglitch. These times can be part of a maintenance contract.

Skills - sharing

Differentiating competencies of customer service is often divided hierarchically. In most cases, a three-stage system is used:

• The first- level support (also: Helpdesk) is the first point of contact for all incoming support issues. The employee is responsible for its complete coverage including all necessary additional information and processes them largely independently according to his knowledge. The aim is to pre-select the problems and the rapid release of a large number as possible, which can be made ​​possible by the help of knowledge bases. Support received by the first- level support by the second-level support.
• The second- level support supports the first- level support, both through training in the workplace (English: training- on-the -job ) as well as through the acquisition of more complex queries. Newly developed solutions be entered into knowledge bases, to make the knowledge of the first- level support available. Exceeds the complexity of a request, the know- how or the technical possibilities of the second- level support, they passed on to the third-level support ( " escalated " ) is. Also, tickets, require the solution of an intervention in the program logic or data in the database are forwarded to the third-level support.
• The third -level support consists of specialists of individual departments or the manufacturer, thus ensuring the highest level of escalation; within a support organization

A two-stage model could be divided, for example, in Frontline / Front Office and Back Line / Back Office.

Long Term Support

A special form of technical support is the so-called "long-term support " (English: long-term support, in short: LTS). This is used in the software industry and is used there to - to each individual - beyond the usual measure beyond supply of software with updates, which are usually thought to resolve safety-critical bugs. Specifically, mean that these updates are still being developed and offered himself as a more recent version branch.