In the engagements I conduct for vendors fixing solutions to be attractive to channel partners I often get asked to recommend or deploy Helpdesk/NOC services. Drawing on my background running global NOC’s I use several “test” criteria:
• No Level 1 “jail” – Ensure clients are not frustrated by the classical Level/Level2 process so that experienced users aren’t frustrated by going thru Level 1 process which only provides solutions for common/known issues. Even if a NOC has a Level 1 structure there must be a way to “vector out” experienced users.
• Been there/done that staff – Not only should technical staff have the required technical expertise and experience but also they should have done some consulting/worked on site troubleshooting to understand the environment they are assisting.
• Context/dialect – Besides language/accent issues the Help desk/NOC personnel must have a cultural content provide the human touch to troubleshooting and not sound like preprogrammed robots. So North American based NOC’s are preferred.
• Clear Pricing – Complex pricing confuses both vendor/VARs and their clients. Simple pricing options with no surprises are a must.
Finding vendors with these attributes is not as easy as it seems so imagine my pleasant surprise when I was referred to check out a firm called LIVE Virtual Help Desk (www.livevdh.com) based in Vancouver.
• Their staff has been there “done that” serving not only enterprises but VARs and RMM vendors.
• Excellent initial contact model using Level 2 and above personnel who have the experience to assist even the most seasoned user.
• LVHD also uses a unique collaboration tool which allows them to have special client knowledge about user roles and the business environment. This is critical when dealing with nervous and upset clients in a critical support situation.
• Their fixed pricing model eliminates surprises for both vendors/MSPs and the end-user. In addition the pricing model provides reasonable profit to vendor/VAR at a market based price which meets end users expectations.
Now if they would just offer a service to train other Help desks/NOCs to improve the client experience this part of my job would be easy and make me a hero to my client. Check them out!