How to implement digital services – 10 useful tips
The shoemaker's wife is the worst shod – for some reason it was so led: so far as concerns digital transformation, the conversation seldom concerns the sphere of providing IT services. However the high rate of changes in our century of digital revolution dictates new rules of business development. Sooner or later the companies should refuse old models, to adopt new rules of the game and to take a way of digital transformation of the business processes including in the field of IT. "The future begins now" – a mantra of many corporations considering themselves leaders in the market of the automated solutions. But actually the future began still yesterday, and many already took the first steps of digitalization, got experience, typed cones, learned to derive benefit for themselves. How to bring the sphere of IT services to new level, making use of the accumulated experience of colleagues and ready-made solutions and what errors can be avoided, implementing digital service desk, – Regina Akhmetzyanova, the head of department of technical maintenance of large customers of ICL Services company shares the councils.
In process of growth of value of data and corporate information for business also importance of management of IT infrastructure increases. To remain successful in the modern market, the company should have strategy for management of universal infrastructure. According to forecasts of Gartner, by the end of 2020 more than 50% of transactions in the field of management of IT infrastructure which are executed manually will be automated. Digitalization of technical support of users [1] (Service Desk) will provide more comfortable and fast interaction of the user with services. Such transformation will improve product quality and services, automates production and will simplify internal and external communications. ICL Services prepared 10 councils for work with digital-solutions.
1. You pass smoothly
In modern world service space there are a lot of companies of which think in the digital plane and try to transfer at one stroke all channels of interaction with users to digital, having automated and having reduced to zero interaction with the operator. It is popular, but such approach will never work.
Some products and services, really, can and will better work in a digital form, and some – are not present. Also and users: some want to keep up to date, communicating in the digital mode, and some still prefer traditional phone or even a personal meeting.
| Try not to get to a trap: trying to tsifrovizirovat completely technical support there is a danger to forget about service quality of users. |
Therefore the companies rendering IT services should not give in to temptation to carry out complete digitalization not to get to a trap. Gradual implementation of a digital environment with orientation to the end user will be the wise solution.
2. Self-service should be convenient to the user
One of the digitalization purposes in the field of IT services is reduction of number of the entering addresses due to more active use of channels of self-service. Such aspiration often is focused on requirements of the IT company and business, on cost reduction more, than on convenience of the end user.
Often users and the customer of service are to instruments of digitalization skeptic (bots, self-service portals, etc.) – people got used to trust people more, than to technologies. However, IT users it is possible and it is necessary to bring up and modernize. In order that channels of self-service worked, it is necessary to provide their availability, ease of use and a possibility of preserving of a context on subject of a request and history of last requests.
| Focus on improvement of quality of digital solutions for self-service to reduce need of users for sending requests via other channels. |
The consumer of IT services will quicker be accustomed to self-service if he knows that process of execution is accurately built, predictable, and he has an opportunity to influence its improvement. Surely give to the user an opportunity to express the opinion on experience of interaction on digital channels. This valuable information will help to estimate success of your actions. Surely with gratitude react and answer any feedback.
3. Solutions should be simple and personalized
Users of IT services do not want to spend a lot of time and efforts. They expect that digital solutions will cover all options, possible for them, will be simple in use and will consider personal requirements and features.
It is important to find golden mean. If available digital channels for the address seem to the customer or the end user incomplete, unsolved, "clumsy", then they will switch to traditional canals again. If process seems to them too difficult, they will also ignore digital opportunities to save time and quicker to solve the problem.
4. Form the Self-Service team of ambassador
Any of digital solutions will not be successful if it is not possible to form a team of adherents who will not only create but also to believe in success of each developed solution.
Begin with yourself and the command, advancing advantages of digital-solutions, both in the company, and beyond its limits.
5. RPA should be an integral part of digital service
Digital platforms of self-service in which the technology of program robots [2] (RPA) is used allow the specialist of service of IT support to interfere easily in case of problems. Of course, increase in level of self-service and satisfaction will demand investments. But as a result users of IT services will not remain alone at emergence of problems. These investments will pay off success of such solution.
The technology of self-service ideally will be able to send the user to the specialist who will quickly complete or will correct the begun work to situations when human intervention is required.
| RPA is a link between the user and the specialist of IT support. |
At application of RPA when there is a process error, the intelligent desktop robot will immediately warn the specialist who then will be able to call or open a conversation in a chat with the user to solve a problem in real time.
6. Use chat-bots
It is easy to achieve reduction of number of addresses on different requests using implementation of the chat-bot.
The round-the-clock availability of chat-bots with such functions as check of the status of a request, accomplishment of standard requests or answers to frequently asked questions, also minimizes time of processing and will increase satisfaction of users and the customer.
Besides, implementation of the dialogue systems of artificial intelligence combining speech and digital functionality can also automate the advanced repeating queries which specialists of IT support process today.
After setup in the voice mode these solutions are scaled to digital channels, such as chat, SMS, Facebook Messenger, Skype, etc.
7. Compare the key performance indicators (KPI) with opportunities of the digital solution
The golden rule is that you should have an opportunity to trace, your strategy of self-service how well works, for this purpose you for certain will need to compare benefits with your KPI.
In other words, you need to understand accurately the purposes which you set, implementing the digital-solution – whether it be decrease in number of contacts or improvement of consumer service quality of services – and to define what KPI it is possible to measure to estimate the level of success in achievement of the goal.
8. Make sure that your command understands the strategy of automation to which the company follows
Always it is useful to remember that about the company judge by employees ability to help users to be guided with difficult situations and to find answers to difficult questions.
Never forget at automation implementation that your employees are still an important part of the company, addressing in which Customers and users of IT services want to find the solution, but not just to obtain information.
9. Use the six-step system of work with the automated solutions
To ensure smooth and effective operation of digital-solutions conform to 6 basic rules:
- Invest in the best knowledge management.
- Offer the choice.
- Provide mobile access.
- Feel a difference between UI and UX
- Use the existing possibilities of corporate automation.
- Make sure that service of your solution is carried out regularly.
10. Be afraid of frequent delusions
Myth 1: It is possible to forget about self-service systems as soon as they became automated
It is a big error as the behavior of end users constantly changes, and business – develops.
Each company using platforms of self-service should trace and control them constantly. It is important to understand where in process people intensively use them and where people are disappointed and refuse the solution.
It is especially important that any automated approach of self-service could create reports and generate data which will allow to define precisely the critical moment if suddenly the most part of users refuses the solution. Having revealed and having corrected these areas of dissatisfaction, you can protect business from the disappointed users who are ready to self-service, but are dissatisfied with quality of implementation of the digital solution.
Myth 2: Users it is necessary to force to go the way digitalizations
Technologies help to automate service of users, but it is necessary to be able to take a break in time. Despite the growing demand for self-service there will always be those who will prefer to talk to the real person.
For this reason in the field of IT services it is important to use versatile approach to the solution of the user problems which should include well organized and managed Service Desk with multichannel approach, then users of tomorrow will be happy.
Myth 3: Digital solutions – only for progressive youth
Do not think that the senior generation will not want to use automated systems of self-service – if the solution simple and convenient, it will suit all (remember success of Amazon).
Remember that all of us are in a digital travel. Different people move on this fascinating way with a different speed. Do not consider digital solutions as the channel for the narrow group of people. Such thinking will obviously bring into the deadlock.
Myth 4: Digital everywhere and in everything
In some cases digitalization can do more harm, than advantage. During the research CallMiner Index a little more than a third (36%) of respondents called phone the first preferable method of vendor interaction of services.
Nevertheless, almost twice more consumers (61%) used the contact phone number with suppliers because they had a problem which could not be solved via other channel.
The careful analysis of interaction of users with IT service providers will show why people prefer this or that channel for communication. Such analysis will help to build the right personalized strategy of work with end users. Besides, using the systems of the speech analysis, you will be able to direct the main flow of users in a right direction to use the necessary channel in due time.
Myth 5: The digital-solution is more difficult, the company is more competitive
Always there is a temptation to build in all imaginable opportunities a self-service portal. And users even more often prefer to find answers to the questions, but not to spend precious minutes for phone.
The user channel without accurately designated frequently asked questions, practice guidances and information on an account will not be popular. The clear, laconic and sympathetic software will help to find the necessary information, having released resources of real consultants.
Notes
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