anatomy of the service desk_final_lo

7/31/2019 Anatomy of the Service Desk_Final_LO

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Written by Daniel Wood

Head of Research

Service Desk Institute Sponsored by

Anatomy of the Service Desk


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Published bySDI Europe

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United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0) 1689 889100

Fax: +44 (0) 1689 889227

Website: www.sdi-europe.com

E-mail: [email protected]

DisclaimerWhile every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this

report, the results, estimates and opinions stated are based on

sources which, while we believe them to be reliable, are not

guaranteed. No liability can be accepted by SDI, its Directors or

Employees for any loss to any person acting or failing to act as a

result of anything contained in or omitted from this report, or

conclusions stated.

Publishers NoteCopyright 2012 by SDI. All rights reserved. No part of this

publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or

by any means, without the prior written permission of SDI.


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Table of ContentsKey ndings 4Introduction 5Team 6

1. On what day of the week do you feel that your service desk is most productive? 6

2. At what time of day do you receive most of your calls? 7

3. How far do you agree with the following statements 8

1. We have enough resources to deliver the level of service that we aspire to 8

2. We need to be more efcient 9

3. There are not enough hours in the day 10

4. Do you believe that the service desk team all work equally as hard? 11

Personal 12

5. Do you think that the rest of the service desk team work as hard as you do? 12

6. Do you feel guilty for the rest of the team when you take a holiday? 13

7. Do you ever take your allocated lunch break? 14

8. Do you often nish work on time? 15

9. Do you have a good work/life balance? 16

10. Do you feel under pressure at work? 17

11. Do you feel stressed at work? 18

12. How many industry events do you attend per year? 19

13. Do you plan how you will spend your time? 20

14. Do you stick to these plans? 21

15. Do you prioritise your work? 22

16. What do you think is your biggest time drain? 23

17. How many hours (roughly) do you spend on your biggest time drain (per week)? 24

18. What percentage of your time is spent on re ghting versus strategy? 25

Conclusion 26


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Key ndings

67%of a Service Desks

time is spent onre-ghting

Team 41 percent stated that there was no difference in their teams productivity across the week

Most service desk calls are received between 8-10am

52 percent said that they did not have enough resources to deliver the level of service

that they aspire to

93 percent agreed or strongly agreed that their service desk needs to be more efcient

60 percent agreed with the statement that there are not enough hours in the day

58 percent felt that the service desk team did not all work equally as hard

Personal 38 percent dont believe that the rest of the team work as hard as they do

49 percent feel guilty for the rest of the team when they take a holiday

Only 14 percent always take their allotted lunch break

55 percent often or always nish work on time

Only 28 percent stated that work did not encroach on their personal life

79 percent said that they felt under pressure at work

65 percent feel stressed at work

34 percent of respondents do not attend any industry events

86 percent plan how they will spend their time, but 39 percent rarely stick to these plans

98 percent prioritise their work

People management was identied as the biggest time drain

67 percent of a service desks time is spent on re-ghting

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IntroductionSo how do todays service desks spend their time? It was this question that formed thecatalyst for this report, as we wanted to discover just how service desks were spending

their time, and whether they were spending it efciently. We all know that service desks

can be places of stress, anxiety and constant tension due to the unpredictable nature of

the work (and by extension, the vagaries of IT itself) and its important to understand

how people are dealing with these pressures, and the impact that this is having. In the

rst report of its kind in the UK, the ndings contained in this whitepaper were both

illuminating and somewhat troubling and should make for interesting reading for anyone

involved in the ITSM sphere.

This report was created from the responses to an online survey sent out to over 10,000

ITSM senior professionals during November and December 2011. From their candid and

open responses we have been able to create a rich and full picture of the service desk

industry, and can offer some telling insights into how and why time is such a big issue for

todays service desk professionals.

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Team

1. On what day of the week do you feel that your servicedesk is most productive?

0

10

20

30

40

50

Monda

y

Tuesda

y

Wedne

sday

Thurs

dayFri

day

Nodiffer

encea

crosst

hewe

ek

Percentage

As the graph shows, 38 percent of respondents felt that there was no difference inproductivity across the week, which suggests that the volume of work remains fair ly

constant and employees are engaged and productive. Wednesday and Friday appear to be

the least productive days, and Monday and Tuesday the most productive which is probably

an accurate reection of most peoples workplace. Service desks are productive when they

are xing incidents and answering calls, so the results suggest that most calls come through

on a Monday and Tuesday, but for the majority, the calls are spread evenly across the week.

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2. At what time of day do you receive most of your calls?

8am

-10

am

10am

-12

pm

12pm

-2p

m

2pm

-4pm

4pm

-6p

m

Percentage

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Following on from the rst question, this chart establishes that most calls are received atthe start of the day. The reasons for this are that customers might have problems logging

on as they have forgotten their password, or that they need something to be xed before

they can start their working day. It may also be the case that customers have the foresight

to anticipate which IT services and software they will need to use later that day, and thus

log the call early to give the desk time to offer a resolution.

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3. How far do you agree with the following statements1. We have enough resources to deliver the level of service that we aspire to

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Stro

ngly

agre

e

Agre

e

Disa

gree

Stro

ngly

disagre

e

Percentage

This question produced some interesting results. For some, the question will have

been answered from a position of knowledge, where metrics reveal that calls are going

unanswered and SLAs are being missed which points to a lack of resources. For others,

they will have answered this question from a gut feel perspective. Whatever way they have

answered it, the results show that overall slightly more (52 percent) do not feel that they

have enough resources to deliver the level of service that they would like to.

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93%agree or stronglyagree they

need to be

more efcient

Stro

ngly

agre

e

Agre

e

Disa

gree

Stro

ngly

disagre

e

Percentage

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

This question produced a clear result that shows that the vast majority (93 percent)

believe that they need to be more efcient. A possible reason for this answer is that

service desks have heavy workloads and feel under pressure to deliver results, and

therefore need to be more efcient to meet the demands. Efciency is derived from

many different sources including hardware and software and human resources.

Efciency gains can also be realised through having the correct processes and procedures

to ensure consistency and that the correct result is achieved each and every time.

2. We need to be more efcient

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3. There are not enough hours in the day

Stro

ngly

agre

e

Agre

e

Disa

gree

Stro

ngly

disagre

e

Percentage

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Intrinsically related to time management and efciency, this question shows that the

majority of respondents feel that there is not enough time in the working day to achieve

everything that they want to accomplish. There could be numerous reasons for this, but the

most likely answers are those that have already been identied in that service desks need

to be more efcient and need more resources to handle their every-increasing workloads.

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Yes

No

79%

21%

This was a contentious question, and one that could be based on tangible or intangible

factors, or indeed a combination of both. The answers could also be subjective some

employees will be perceived as not working as hard as others simply by the way they conduct

themselves and the way that they approach their work. However, the chart does clearly show

that there is a perception that the service desk team do not all work equally as hard.

4. Do you believe that the service desk team allwork equally as hard?

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5. Do you think that the rest of the service desk teamwork as hard as you do?

The previous question demonstrated that only 32 percent of respondents felt that the

service desk team all worked as hard as each other. However, for this question a much

larger percentage (62 percent) felt that their colleagues matched their own efforts at work.

Yes

No

62%

38%

Personal

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Given what we have learnt about service desks issues with time (namely lack of resources, lack of

time, and a need to improve efciency), this question determined whether respondents felt any

guilt when taking a holiday. Given how stretched service desks appear to be, losing a member of

staff could have a marked impact. The result for this question was vir tually split down the middle,

which shows just how involved and invested people are with the ser vice desks that they work

on. For many people, taking a holiday is a guiltless pleasure, but this is clearly not the case for our

respondents, as they are conscious of the increased workload that will be inicted upon the rest

of the team.

Increased workloads do not have to be the status quo when people take holiday, as pragmatic

resourcing of personnel can help to minimise the impact of absent people. Some ideas to help

manage holidays include making sure that there are not too many people off at the same time;

resourcing people from other teams to help on rst line; and ensuring that people book holiday

in advance so that the necessary plans and preparation can be put into place.

6. Do you feel guilty for the rest of the team whenyou take a holiday?

Yes

No

49%51%

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7. Do you ever take your allocated lunch break?

0

10

20

30

40

50

Yes,a

lways

More

often

than

not

Rarel

yNe

ver

Percentage

This chart provides more compelling evidence that service desks are stretched and thatresources are at a premium. Taking an allocated lunch

appears to be a rare occurrence, with only 14 percent stating that they always take their

allotted time for a lunch break. These results suggest that people are working through their

lunch breaks (or at least part of them). It could also be a case of business culture, and that

in the whole organisation lunch breaks are not routinely followed and it is expected that

employees will work through some or all of their lunch break.

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0

10

20

30

40

50

Yes,a

lways

More

often

than

not

Rarel

yNe

ver

Percentage

This was a neat comparison to the lunch break question. That result showed that mostpeople did not take their allocated lunch break, but the chart above shows that most

people (55 percent) nish work on time. There are some possible reasons for this. One

could be that, as shown in the lunch break char t, people are working through their lunch

hour to ensure that they are able to leave work on time. Another reason could be that

people are starting work ear lier, again to make sure that they can leave on time. For some

of course, leaving work on time is not negotiable due to personal commitments.

8. Doyouoftennishworkontime?

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9. Do you have a good work/life balance?

0

10

20

30

40

50

Yes,w

orkdo

esno

t

encroa

chon

my

person

allife

It'sgo

odbut

couldb

ebett

er

Work

often

encroa

ches

onmy

perso

nallife

Work

ismyli

fe!

Percentage

Again, much in keeping with what has been demonstrated thus far, work appears not to spill out into our

respondents personal lives. Indeed, only 28 percent said that work did not encroach on their personal life.What we can draw from these results is a validation of what has already been shown, but also that, such is

the nature of service desk work, its very hard to separate work and personal life. There will doubtless be

instances (perhaps regularly) when our respondents have had to work at weekends, or take support calls

out-of-hours.

Work encroaches on peoples lives away from work despite the fact that, as the previous question

demonstrated, the majority of respondents invariably nished work on time. Thus, there must be other

reasons for respondents stating that work impacted on their personal life it might not just be out-of-hours

work that is an issue here, but perhaps respondents nd it difcult to leave the pressures and stress of work

at work and instead take them home with them, thus never fully leaving work behind.

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This was the question that the results of the survey thus far have been leading towards.

Given that service desks seem strapped for resources and have indicated a clear

problem with a lack of time, it is perhaps unsurprising that these factors have manifested

themselves in tangible pressure being placed on the service desk to deliver and meet

expectations. Pressure is of course subjective, but in the world of service desks there

is never such a thing as a typical day, and thus competing with the various challenges

and problems that are thrown their way becomes more pressurised when there is a

lack of resources available to handle them. Still, despite the fact that there are numerous

reasons for service desk employees feeling stressed, it is still disconcer ting that such a high

percentage feel under pressure at work.

10. Do you feel under pressure at work?

Yes

No

79%

21%

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11. Do you feel stressed at work?

In light of what the results have revealed so far, it is clear that the service desk is a highly

pressurised environment, but discouragingly this pressure creates a stressful place of work.

Stress is largely negative and can have an impact on mental and physical health. That nearly

two-thirds of respondents stated that they felt stressed at work is an important nding and

demonstrates that there is a real need to alleviate some of the causes of stress before they

have long term and longer lasting impacts. Stressful environments are evidently not positive

places to work, and this can have wider reaching impacts including staff morale, the desks

performance and efciency.

Yes

No

65%

35%

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In keeping with the trends seen throughout this paper thus far, it is perhaps not surprising

that 34 percent of respondents do not attend any industry events. As the comments

below highlight, time is a major factor in being unable to attend, but budget features

prominently as well. The number of events attended steadily declines across the char t,

with only 7 percent attending more than 5 events this year.

It is a little disappointing that so few respondents manage to attend industry events,

as they can prove an invaluable resource in learning from others; networking; and

considering new approaches and ways of working. Sometimes its just impor tant to spend

some time away from the desk to see things in a new perspective. However, until the

problems of lack of time budget are overcome, then it is likely that this trend will continue.

12. How many industry events do you attend per year?Please note that for conferences, each day counted as a separate event.

Percentage

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0 1 2 3 4 5 More

than 5

Comments:No budget for these thisyear. Lots of changes takingplace, still identifying whichstaff are appropriate toattend which conferences.

Dont seem to have thetime to attend.

No nancials in the budget.

Management dont seem

to take the desk seriously.

Funding and time.

Dont have the time.

No free time.

There is rarely any timeand even if there is, no

budget is allocated.No interest frommanagement in improvingService Desk quality.

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13. Do you plan how you will spend your time?

With all the tasks that service desks have to tackle on a daily basis, its important to plan

how the day will pan out. This question is really looking at how well service desks plan

their time, and is the follow on question from if there are enough hours in the day. It is

clear that time is an issue, but interestingly 86 percent do plan how they will allocate their

time. Evidently, unforeseen issues are drawing time away from allocated tasks, or the time

supposed to be spent on each task has been miscalculated.

Yes

No

14%

86%

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As shown 86 percent plan their time, but 39 percent do not stick to these plans. A couple

of reasons for this have already been suggested (the unpredictable nature of the service

desk, miscalculation of the time needed for each task) but there are doubtless many

many more. Still, 61 percent always or often stick to their time plans, which demonstrates

that plans are effective and are a vital tool in managing an ever-increasing and daunting

workload. In such a pressurised environment, time management is an indispensable tool,

as without it the most important tasks would not be completed.

14. Do you stick to these plans?

Always

Often

Rarely

59%

39%

2%

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15. Do you prioritise your work?

This was a clear result, with the vast majority of respondents stating that they prioritise

their work. With the myriad and often overwhelming number of tasks that service

desks have to contend with on a daily basis, it is perhaps not surprising that so many

prioritise their time.

Yes

No

98%

2%

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This was an interesting result. A clear majority identied people management as their

biggest time drain, which meant that actually managing the people on the service desktook up more time than any other of the available activities. Perhaps the reason for this

is that people management encompasses many different areas, ranging from training and

development to appraisals and career planning. Related to people management is the

paper work and administration that accompanies it, which perhaps accounts for its place

in second on the chart above.

16. What do you think is your biggest time drain?

Percentage

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Admi

n/pap

erwo

rk

Chasing

resolve

rteams

Problem

custo

mers

Passw

ordr

esets

People

mana

geme

nt

36%think peoplemanagement is their

biggest time drain

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17. How many hours (roughly) do you spend on yourbiggest time drain (per week)?

Over the course of a week, the range of responses here may not seem like a very signicant

number. However, this is still time that is taken away from other tasks, and

of course does not include the time spent on the other time drains listed above and all the

additional ones that did not necessarily t neatly into the categories.

Percentage

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

less

than

1hour

1-2ho

urs

2-3ho

urs

3-4ho

urs

4-5ho

urs

5-6ho

urs

6-7ho

urs

8-9ho

urs

7-8ho

urs

9-10

hours

10hours

orm

ore

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This question signies the culmination of all of the results that we have seen so far, and is

perhaps not a surprising one. With the nature of the service desk and the constraints that

our respondents were evidently operating under, there is clearly a lack of time available for

creating strategy as the primary focus is on re ghting and keeping the lights on. Actually

having the time to sit back, reect, and plan a service desk strategy appears to be more of a

luxury than a way of life.

What this ultimately means is that there is little scope for improving some of the drains

highlighted in this report (lack of time, resources, efciency) as these are very much

dependent on having the correct strategy in place. If re ghting is the primary concern, then

this explains (in part) why service desks are a stressful and highly pressurised environment.

Having the correct service desk strategy and an array of processes and procedures helps to

alleviate some of the all hands to the pump way of working and permits a forward looking

attitude that can help anticipate and prepare for certain events in advance. Whilst dedicating

time to strategizing may sound more than a little idealistic given the noted time and resource

constraints highlighted in this report, it does not mean that it is not important or indeed

achievable. There are only a xed number of hours in the day, but planning ahead and

creating the right strategy can ensure that more of those hours are spent productively and

can help to counteract the stress and pressure that are currently engulng service desks.

18.Whatpercentageofyourtimeisspentonreghtingversusstrategy?

Strategy

Fire fighting

67%

33%

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ConclusionThis whitepaper has covered a wide range of questions and activities surrounding theservice desk, but a clear trend has emerged. It is quite evident that service desks are highly

pressurised and largely stressful places to work, and there are clear issues around time and

how time is planned and managed. From this, certain questions arise. Is the service desk

unique in this respect, or are most jobs and professions stressful and time at a premium?

And, perhaps more importantly, what can be done to reverse this trend? We all know that

we could and should manage our time better, but a large part of the problem is that

there are an appreciable lack of resources, which in turn is creating more pressure and

stress. This is particularly disappointing, as it is shown that service desks aspire to delivera better service, but are being held back by a distinct lack of resources.

However, there are some positive results. There is a clear belief that respondents felt that

they could be more efcient, which if they were to make improvements in this area would

help to counteract the resource problem. The good news is that there are more ways than

ever to improve efciency (be it through technology, rening and developing processes and

procedures, training and many others) so with a concerted effort, efciency gains can be

made. Its also important that time is set aside for industry events and networking as just

one good idea can make a huge difference to your service desk operations. Additionally,

there is a perception that not all of the service desk team are producing the same amount

of effort, which will of course not only lead to a loss of efciency but also cause broader

problems such as colleagues resenting each other or general team disharmony. In this

paper we just asked for an opinion on whether the team all worked equally as hard;

to really qualify this impression a comprehensive analysis of KPIs and other key measures

would need to be performed for each member of staff. This would also allow you to see

where potential efciency improvements could be made. As the old adage goes, you cant

manage what you cant measure so make sure that people are being measured on a

regular basis to ensure that they are being managed effectively.

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About The Service Desk Institute (SDI)Founded in 1988 by Howard Kendall, the Service Desk Institute (SDI) is the

leading authority on service desk and IT support related issues, providing specialist

information and research about the technologies, tools and trends of the industry.

It is Europes only support network for IT service desk professionals, and its 800

organisation members span numerous industries.

Acting as an independent adviser, SDI captures and disseminates creative and

innovative ideas for tomorrows service desk and support operation. SDI sets

the best practice standards for the IT support industry and is the conduit

for delivering knowledge and career enhancing skills to the professional

community, through membership, training, conferences, events and its publication

SupportWorld magazine. It also offers the opportunity for international recognition

of the support centre operation through its globally recognised Service Desk

Certication audit programme.

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