help desk efficiency report 2010: software delivery united states and united kingdom

HELP DESK EFFICIENCY REPORT 2010Software DeliveryUnited States and United Kingdom

Deploying user self service to automate software requests could collectively save organizations $8.6bn1 a year in IT help desk costs.

Saving money is only part of the story. Two thirds of users in the United States and United Kingdom will wait up to a week or more for software they request through their IT help desk. Today, many users expect far higher levels of service from their IT departments than they have in the past. These users are tech-savvy and are used to getting the technology they need, when they need it.

1E is committed to helping its customers improve IT efficiency by identifying and reducing costs and waste. We commissioned Vanson Bourne to research IT help desk efficiency and user behavior in an effort to raise awareness of how help desk calls and costs could be dramatically reduced.

This report highlights a number of challenges for many IT departments in organizations of all sizes. Over a third of users perceive little or no value from the money their IT department spends on them each year. Many users feel it would be quicker and easier if they were empowered to simply help themselves.

At 1E, we passionately believe in reducing waste. By deploying user self service tools, organizations can reduce both the time users spend waiting for applications to be installed and the time IT spends manually fulfilling those requests. And by not wasting time, organizations can also save money.

True user self service is now a reality. Users should be free to choose the software they feel they need to best perform their jobs. When they need a new application, they should be empowered to log on, find it and have it installed, almost instantly, so they can get on with what you pay them for.

Every day that passes is a lost opportunity to save money and improve user productivity. By automating the process of managing thousands of requests for software every month, organizations can literally save millions of dollars.

Please talk to us to find out more about how we can help you to improve the efficiency of your IT.

Sumir Karayi CEO, 1E

EMPOWERED TO SAVE

“Automating software requests could collectively save organizations $8.6bn a year in IT help desk costs ”

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Help Desk Efficiency Report 2010

WHY ARE WE WAITING?

Over 50% of users have to chase every request they make at least once to make sure they receive the software they ask for

Two thirds of users will wait up to a week or more to get the software they request.

Case StudyUnum Insurance - 14,000 user requests handled by Shopping every year“Unum manages 1,200 user initiated software downloads through Shopping. That’s 14,000 calls a year my help desk isn’t getting any more. Better yet, we’ve reduced the average time it takes a user to download and install new software from four to six hours to just ten minutes!”

Blake Pease, Assistant Vice President, Unum

Almost everyone has a computer at home and users entering the workforce today are more aware of technology than ever before. They are already accustomed to evaluating, selecting, downloading and even managing the applications they need. Many of them are as tech-savvy as the people currently employed to manage IT – but two thirds will have to wait more than a week to get the software they need to do their jobs.

Deadlines are getting shorter and everyone is under pressure to deliver.

It is clear that in many organizations users waste otherwise productive time waiting for the software they need. This is because many organizations still follow a lengthy manual process when dealing with software requests. The IT help desk will field a call, passing it on to an engineer. The engineer will then check to see if licenses are available and get appropriate authorization. Once received, the engineer may even have to visit the user at their desk to install the application.

This process is both costly and time consuming.

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IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE THIS WAYNearly three quarters (73%) of users are still raising tickets, either by phone or email, with an IT help desk.

Case StudyParker Hannifin – Deployed Shopping in an afternoon to drive down costs“The feedback has been hugely positive. From management because of the cost savings, from the technicians who now get to focus on more strategic tasks, and also from the users themselves.”

Michael Powlison, Parker Hannifin

On average, only 15% of users are able to download the software they need by themselves and the larger the organization, the worse the problem becomes. ‘Other’ includes users visiting the IT department to ask for software.

The larger the organization, the less likely users are to be able to download software themselves. Only 11% of users in organizations of more than 3,000 users have the ability to download software they need on-demand.

Requests need to be managed through to completion. Gartner estimates every help desk analyst handles 471 user requests every month2, and many help desks still process these manually. In a 10,000 user organization, that means nearly 1,500 requests are made every month for new software3. A lack of automation is inefficient, both for IT staff and for users. Especially when we consider that these requests could be fulfilled by the users themselves.

Most users are now accustomed to downloading music, movies and even software almost instantly. When they need a new application on their home PC they don’t call a help desk or send an email, they find and install it themselves. Why, many ask, isn’t it the same at the office?

If you need new software to do your job, how do you get it?

If you need new software, can you download it yourself without help desk involvement?

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Many end users search the Internet for service and support of their personal technologies, especially the younger workforce. An IT organization that doesn’t offer self-service may be perceived as antiquated and out of touch with end users.

A well-executed self-service site will offer additional channels for the end user, and can make the IT organization seem progressive and attentive to the end users and the business4.

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“David Coyle, Research VP at Gartner

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DO IT YOURSELF?Nearly half of users (44%) believe that the process for requesting software in their organization is inefficient and time consuming.

Case StudyPark Hill School District– User self service empowers the future of education“Shopping has now handled nearly 6,500 user requests since installation and frequently manages one hundred or more user requests in a matter of seconds, taking the burden off the IT team. Not only does Shopping manage the installation of user applications on-demand, but, should sign-off be required, it also dynamically manages the approval chain for software requests, keeping the user informed of progress every step of the way.”

Brad Sandt, Director of Technology at Park Hill School District

1E believes that users should feel empowered; IT should be an enabler to an agile organization and a productive workforce. Many large enterprises agree, as the consumerization of IT and user self service become an irreversible force. Google, BP, Nestlé and Philips have all deployed industry solutions for user self service in recent years, and it’s a growing trend5.

“Interest in IT service desk tools, metrics and best practices remains very high because IT organizations are looking to IT service desk tools to help them reduce service and support costs, increase end-user productivity, align themselves closer to the business, and deliver enhanced user satisfaction6. ”David Coyle, Gartner, Inc

More than two-thirds (68%) of users feel it would be quicker and easier to find and install software themselves, rather than contacting their IT help desk

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Over one third of users (34%) perceive little or no value from the money their IT department spends

on them every year

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WASTED SOFTWARENearly three quarters of users believe that they have unused software on their PCs

Nearly three quarters of users believe that they have unused software on their PCs. Almost one in seven think that the number of unused applications could be as high as 10 or more. Software that is installed but never used equates to waste, both in software licenses and PC disk space.

Gartner estimates that 22% of all IT spending is on software7. In many cases a single piece of software can cost upwards of several hundred dollars, indicating that a significant percentage of IT software spending is currently being wasted.

Over a third of users believe that they have five or more applications installed on their machine that they never use

If you had to guess, how many items of software on your machine do you think are unused?

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RENTAL VERSUS PURCHASEOver 50% of users say they would be open to being given the software they need on a temporary basis

Case StudyDell, Inc – Better license control and an improved user experience“Shopping from 1E has helped Dell with its current Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager infrastructure. It has helped us offer better service for license controlled software and added approval work flow to ease the installation process. The Web portal experience for our end-users has improved their ability to acquire software.”

Angie Stahl, Dell Inc.

Every organization has orphaned licenses (licenses without users), software that has been purchased and deployed to a particular user or for a specific project that is no longer required. Organizations typically allocate software ‘for life’ based on the job function of the user. As time passes users change roles, but it is common for software to remain on the users machine, unused, but still incurring license, support and maintenance costs. Whether an organization has 10,000 users or only 100, there will be orphaned licenses somewhere in the network8.

Why buy one software license for every user in the organization, when they may only use that application for a few months at a time?

Think of rental as on-demand software provisioning. Both desk-based and mobile workers visit an internal web site that looks more like Amazon or eBay; they find, request and install the software they need and begin working, renting it only for as long as they need it. The entire process can take just minutes. When they are finished, the application is uninstalled and the license made available to other users.

Would you mind being allocated software on a temporary basis?

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THE FINANCIAL IMPERATIVEUser self service could save organizations in the US and UK over $8.6bn a year in IT help desk costs1

There are 108 million employees in the United States and 17 million in the United Kingdom that regularly use PCs to do their jobs9.

On average, these users raise a help desk ticket 1.2 times every month10. That’s 150 million requests, calls and emails. Of these, around 12% will be for new software11.

If requests for new software installations were handled by self service tools this would enable organizations to save a combined total of $8.64bn a year in IT help desk costs1.

Are you aware of the cost to your organization of the software you request?

According to Gartner, end user contacts with the IT service desk cost every organization between $18 and $75, depending on the nature of the call and the seniority of the analyst involved12.

Case StudySyngenta – Saving over $1.7m every year through user self service“Our teams were handling on average around 3,700 requests a month. We calculated that each request was costing us between $30 and $50, so there were significant savings to be made by allowing our users to search for, order and then receive the applications they needed by themselves. In fact, with an average of $40 saved per request, we’re saving approximately $148,000 per month, which comes to about $1,776,000 per year.”

Brooks Truitt, Global Service Delivery Manager, Syngenta

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ABOUT THE RESEARCHThis survey analyzed 1,000 business users (500 in the United States and 500 in the United Kingdom) and was carried out during August 2010. Commissioned by 1E and conducted by Vanson Bourne, a specialist research-based technology marketing consultancy, the research looked at IT help desk efficiency, user behavior and user attitudes towards self service software provisioning.

How many employees are there in your organization?

Which of the following best describes the department you work in?

The survey gathered the opinions of users working in a broad range of departments including sales, marketing, administration and senior management in medium and large organizations in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Source: Harris Interactive

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About 1E1E believes every one of our customers should expect more from their IT. Founded in 1997, 1E is recognized as a leader in software and services that improve IT efficiency by identifying and reducing costs and waste in hardware, software, energy and time.

1E pioneered advanced PC power management with the release of ground-breaking solutions like NightWatchman® and WakeUp™. That innovative approach has continued with the development of revolutionary concepts like Useful Work™, Drowsy Server®, Computer Health™ and Shopping™ as part of a unique range of industry-leading solutions.

Headquartered in London and New York and with 14 million licenses deployed world-wide, over 1,100 organizations in 42 countries have trusted us to help them to work effectively, productively and sustainably. To date, we have helped our customers save in excess of $530m in energy costs alone, reducing their electricity consumption by 5.6 million megawatts and cutting CO2 emissions by 4.3 million tons.

About ShoppingShopping™ delivers immediate and significant IT cost reductions. By providing a simple self service enterprise software store users are empowered to locate and automatically install the software they need to do their jobs, without help desk intervention. To further reduce costs, Shopping can rent applications to users only for the time they need them, reducing the number of licenses deployed across the organization.

ABOUT 1E

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About Vanson BourneVanson Bourne is a specialist independent research-based technology consultancy offering clients analysis and advice based on incisive and rigorous research into their market environment.

Vanson Bourne combines big company capability with small company responsiveness. Their experience encompasses researching both technology and business managers in all business sectors and geographies from Europe to Africa and from AsiaPac to the USA. Vanson Bourne are equally comfortable with using quantitative (online, telephone, postal) and qualitative (depth executive interviews, focus groups) techniques.

Their core competences of designing, managing and interpreting technology research reside in house, as does the online technology they increasingly use to gather and distribute market insight to their customers. Vanson Bourne couple their specialist technology research expertise with years of experience. The result is well-crafted, independent and robust content for B2B and B2C marketing programmes.

ABOUT VANSON BOURNE

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1. 108m regular business PC users in the US + 17m regular business PC users in the UK = 125m users9 Each user contacts their help desk, on average, 1.2 times each month10

1.2 calls x 125m users = 150m contacts per month. 150m contacts per month x 12 months = 1.8bn contacts every. If 12% of these contacts can be handled by self service11 then 216m could be automated. If we assume the cost to an organization to handle a help desk contact is $4013. $40 x 216m calls = $8.64bn

2. Do You Have the Right IT Service Desk Staffing Ratio? August 2009 | Gartner ID: G00170174

3. 1.2 calls per month10 per user x 10,000 users = 12,000 calls. If 12%11 of these calls are for software = 1,440 calls

4. Driving the Adoption of IT Self-Service, Gartner, Feb 2010, ID: G00173790

5. I Am Not A Number - Why User Empowerment is Gaining Ground in Forward Thinking Organizations, 1E, August 2010

6. Magic Quadrant for the IT Service Desk, Gartner, Oct 2009, ID: G00171195

7. Gartner IT Key Metrics Data 2010 Summary Report - Key Industry Measures: IT Spend & Staff summary report

8. Applications On Demand - Why Renting Software to Your Users is the Key to Reducing Costs, 1E, August 2010

9. Harris Interactive Survey for 1E, Sept 2008

10. IT Key Metrics Data 2010: Key Infrastructure Measures: IT Help Desk Analysis: Current Year ID: G00172643

11. End-user request for IT installs, moves, adds or changes is 5% - 18% of Help Desk contact volume. Gartner

12. End user contacts with the IT service desk cost every organization between $18 and $75. Gartner

13. Shopping from 1E helps Syngenta save over $1.7m every year by implementing on-demand user self-service -customer estimate, average of $40 saved per request

REFERENCES

www.1e.com

[email protected]

US Toll Free: 1 866 592 4214

UK: +44 208 326 3880

France (Numéro à tariff local): 805 111 577

Deutschland (Bundesweit): 800 664 6702

India: +91 120 402 4000

help desk efficiency report 2010: software delivery united states and united kingdom

Documents

help desk costs

time users

help desk calls

user requests

help desk efficiency

help desk isnt

new software

software downloads