Wall Street & Technology is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.

Careers

01:50 PM
Connect Directly
RSS
E-Mail
50%
50%

Sometimes the Help Desk Could Use a Little Help

Now that time has quelled the techno-anxiety posed by Y2k, IT consultants can relax as end users smoothly operate at their workstations, right? Not exactly.

Now that time has quelled the techno-anxiety posed by Y2k, IT consultants can relax as end users smoothly operate at their workstations, right? Not exactly. An independent research firm and RHI Consulting conducted a survey of 470 IT consultants that revealed that many technology users are struggling with “Computer Literacy.”

The IT staffers were asked, “What is the strangest request you have ever heard of, or received from a client or end user?” Some help desk technicians’ skills were put to the test by such questions as, “This PC just performed an illegal operation! Will I get in trouble?” and “Can you please warn me next time my computer is going to crash?”

Aside from being good for a laugh, these client questions “illustrate the potential for miscommunication on technical issues,” states Greg Scileppi, RHI’s executive director, in the prepared survey results. Since technology is becoming more complex and organizations lack the time to properly train their non-technical personnel, effective help desk staffers need more than technical expertise. Empathy, strong interpersonal skills and, at times, a good sense of humor are necessary to keep operations afloat.

Register for Wall Street & Technology Newsletters
Video
Exclusive: Inside the GETCO Execution Services Trading Floor
Exclusive: Inside the GETCO Execution Services Trading Floor
Advanced Trading takes you on an exclusive tour of the New York trading floor of GETCO Execution Services, the solutions arm of GETCO.