Performance measurement can be a tool and a process for measuring ROI of helpdesk. Quantity may not only be involved to assess the ROI, for quality should also be considered.
There are factors to consider in measuring ROI of helpdesk. But first, it is worth to know what a help desk is and how it functions.
Help desk is an assistance and information resource that can provide resolutions to problems concerning IT products. In other words, it helps people with problems in computer and related products by relaying troubleshooting transactions via telecommunication means. Companies, mostly corporations, have help desk support to provide assistance to their customers via a website, e-mail, and/or toll-free number. Though companies can employ hired help desk agents, this function has usually been outsourced to contractors that offer the differentiated service.
Help desk does not only exist in the information technology world. The traditional help desk support can be found in businesses and educational institutions. In companies, help desk can provide information assistance, not only to their clients and customers, but as well as the employees. Some companies have their in-house help desk catering only for their employees.
The function of help desk has also reached into the realm of educational campuses. Some schools have a curriculum where students availing of that class can perform help desk functions.
Perhaps, the most popular help desk of these contemporary times can be seen in call centers.
Help desks are deemed helpful in maintaining the business and customer relationships. Because of its nearness to customers, it is important then for people handling the help desk to be properly trained. The performance of a help desk agent must be within the means of the company’s mission and defined goals and objectives.
In measuring the ROI of help desk, there are critical factors that must be taken into account. Perhaps the foremost is the performance of the help desk agent.
Assessing the performance of the help desk agent or agents is important in determining the return of investment for employing the customer-support function. In measuring the performance of help desk agents and the ROI of help desk, performance metrics can be used.
Perhaps, the most popular metric for activities that are complex to quantify and measure is the KPI or key performance indicator. The KPI in helpdesk ROI may include the performance of the help desk agent. Other factors to be considered would include employee proficiency, response time, call abandon rate, and customer satisfaction. These factors can be measured by recording the call activities of help desk agents and customers or by tracking system known as incident tracking system for logging the processes and activities taken place on the onset of calls.
The balanced scorecard is another tool that can be applied for assessing the total performance and measuring ROI of helpdesk.
The balanced scorecard is a metric for measuring the activities of enterprises and assessing their value and results in line with the enterprises’ objectives. It is a performance measurement framework that can be utilized by businesses to measure quantifiable and abstract factors that are vital to a business.
There can be variation in the contents and elements of the balanced scorecard used by one company to another. Individuals tasked to measure the performance may have used traditional means of assessing the total performance rate. However, in these modern times, the use of software has become increasingly common. Measuring the performance using the common or customized software can be helpful for businesses aiming to fully practice its strategies and for gaining insights of the things that must be done as responses to certain problems or concerns.
Measuring ROI of helpdesk can be complex. One company may use different performance measurements to derive the ROI of its helpdesk functions.