In July, the WashU IT Service Desk and Deskside teams launched the Tech Team Career Crossover program. The objective of the program is to enhance the customer experience through improved collaboration and more effective troubleshooting. This will increase the rate of first-call resolution among technicians, ensuring a customer’s needs are addressed the first time they call.
“We started with shadowing and now, the technicians are walking in each other’s shoes for a week,” says Michelle Stirnemann, director of End User Services. “Through the program, the technicians are learning the different team workflows and gaining additional troubleshooting knowledge.”
Deskside technicians spend approximately four hours training at the Service Desk before taking customer calls. Service Desk technicians tour the campus, study deskside technician processes, and then interact directly with users who need IT help.
Initial results indicate an increase in enthusiasm for collaborative work on ongoing and upcoming projects, greater value placed on the different jobs within tech services, and a greater appreciation for one another.
“We expect to see more collaborative efforts to resolve customer issues,” says David Leisure, director of WashU IT Technical Services.
Nancy Webb, senior director of User Support for WUSM IT Support Services, announces the next program kickoff is on August 28.
The successful program has been integrated into the onboarding process and will continue indefinitely. This program will enable our technicians to further cultivate WashU IT as a unified and dependable provider of IT services across the university.