How to Build an Effective Technology Team

Customer satisfaction is a central objective of most service organizations. Support personnel strive to meet all wants presented by customers. Their goal is to quickly and effectively address any arising problem. Customers interact with technical support teams on a daily basis. The public builds their opinion of the company based on interactions with the support staff. Support staff is instrumental in tackling issues presented by the consumer. The composition of technology teams ought to be performed with a lot of soberness so as to ensure optimum efficiency.

Developing an appropriate team environment is crucial to effective team building. Clear goals, mission and objectives have to be established in order to establish clear responsibilities and roles. Proper handling and tackling of conflicts is essential to muster negotiation techniques and effectively handle conflict situations (Dorf, 1998, p. 24). Understanding the psychological and emotional composition of team members enables a team leader to comprehend the driving force behind each and every personality and hence devise appropriate incentives.

Response is one of the principles critical to strategic systems solutions. Upon a client’s request for support, communication becomes very important. Personnel immediately embrace every support request made. The analyst’s response informs the customer of: the fact that their request is being dealt with, the individual addressing it and the projected completion period. In case the analyst cannot furnish the customer with a quick completion time estimate, such an analyst is required to continuously update the customer of their request and provide an estimate as soon as it is available.

Customers evaluate a system based on the accuracy and speed of support staff’s responses. Polite and prompt response assures the client of the imminent fast tackling of their issues (Lowe, 2003, p. 35) A support analyst requires comprehension of the system and its immediate environment as well as ability to access resources and implements for investigating issues and solving dilemmas. These tools facilitate the analyst to effectively discharge their duties regarding information gathering, establishing priorities for requests and recording of data into the problems tracking process.

When an analyst encounters requests that are beyond their reach as regards abilities or mandates, they refer to pre-recorded escalation procedures to facilitate handling of such cases. An escalated request calls for the engagement of the original analyst in preparation for such scenarios so as to improve the individual’s knowledge. Consultation with a manager or colleague of higher experience is essential in such circumstances.

A firm resolve enables analysts to provide the client with a timely and effective solution that is at per with past estimates after successful determination and recording of the issue (Cleland, 2007, 17). Reporting is essential to the provision of support services. Initially, the problem is recorded. Emphasis is placed on the solution that accompanies the problem since such a problem is critical in handling future requests and in the provision of essential data for reports. Important reporting is developed and agreed on in conjunction with the Service Level Agreement.

This process aids in reporting on trends, patterns, common issues, proposals and causes. Such a process also estimates and reports on attained real support service levels to measure them against customers’ wishes. In instances where many support issues are existent, a section of analysts assumes the role of Client Liaison while the others become Problem Handlers. Client Liaison involves issuing of updates to users and handling of their projections on the progress and expected finish times.

Problem solving analysts analyze issue and develop solutions. Such kind of support can be offered in 80% time by merely three personnel. A single individual utilizes most of the time conversing on situations with clients at the expense of the real support function (Dorf, 1998, p. 61). Proactive support involves application monitoring, minor repairs on application software, transition arrangements for incoming or modified software, preventive repairs, reports on the status and any other client or team head- identified activities.

Clients and support staff benefits are usually substantial owing to the fact that this kind of activity is usually neglected as a result of frequent fire-fighting. The worldwide multi-time zone support is difficult and this complicates future effecting of accurate coverage and planning. Effective team building involves first determining the services to offer and the support that customers ought to expect. Emphasis then shifts to composition and support staffing of support teams. A solid team includes individuals who are self-motivated, flexible and highly motivated.

Team members ought to positively contribute to the team as well as enjoy in-job learning. Team-building capacity and effective communication among team members and with managers is essential. Team members ought to posses excellent written and verbal communication skills. Comprehension of certain procedures and technologies employed by the client are advantageous for the staff. Personnel ought to seek to better their services through analysis of problems and service betterment programs as they perform their daily support functions.

This proves beneficial to clients in that it integrates automation, system improvements and appropriate application monitoring software. Multiple pathways, exception processing and escalation concerns are existent at almost every point of the processing of an issue through a support request. A professional support system ought to be transparent to the client as well as the internal user base. Such a system is integrated into the clients firm with which it functions with in meeting the business needs.

An effective system provides the following services in line with this integration goal: it furnishes support analyst with customer telephone contacts and email addresses, facilitating the use of client equipments by the analysts and gaining access to appropriate customer systems (Cleland, 2007, p. 73). The process of reaching a consensus with clients on service delivery involves the support organization establishing the clients’ expectations and what the firm is required to do in order to satisfy the wishes.

The following aspects need to be thoroughly addressed in the proceeds of defining the requirements of service scopes, agreements and goals: extent of work, coverage levels and response, day-to day functioning of the team (work-flows, escalation, prioritization, administration), transition management, team management, target and objective evaluation, security and environment organization, client contact information, billing and personal details and team composition (Lowe, 2—3, p. 45).

Two personnel are ideal per shift so as to comfortably manage through lunch and comfort breaks, safety and health regulations and transport relapses. This translates to two to three individuals per shift based on how the client seriously considers risks. This numbers fall to mostly one individual owing to sickness, holidays and training impediments. Ideally, two analysts will be at work for half of the time, a single individual will work for a quarter of the time, the system is likely to be unmanned for 3 percent of the time and all staff will be working for only a third of the time.

References Cleland, D. I. (2007). Project manager’s handbook: applying best practices across global industries. New York, USA: McGraw-Hill Professional. Dorf, R (1998). The Technology Management Handbook. New York: CRC Press Lowe, P (2003). Management of Technology: Growth Through Business Innovation and Enterpreniuership. London: Emarald Group Publishing