4 things that I’ve learned in my career as an IT person!
1.) Don’t Get Comfortable
Be naturally curious. Never cherry-pick tickets that contain the issues you’re well-familiar with. Think of every unfamiliar ticket as a learning opportunity, and challenge for your professional development. Sit with it, and try by yourself to figure it out, but if you can’t figure out what is wrong, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask. 9/10 of your colleagues will be willing on lending you a helping hand, and then you will learn and take some of burden off your colleagues, and it will lead to team-building and trust over time. This is how I was able to advance my career.
2.) Keep track of frequently asked questions and common problems
Another nugget of gold is to always keep a copious amount of notes. A lot of times issues that come up will tend to repeat themselves later down the line, with a different person or in a different form. Keeping tabs and notes on this will allow you to refer back to them later, and will help you get faster at dealing with the issues that most commonly tend to pop up.
3.) Look for Patterns in User Support Requests.
A good rule of thumb, is to remember as well that two of your users having the same issue could simply be a coincidence, but should always make you raise an eyebrow and take note. Three or more just might signal that there is a flaw in an application. If you wake up to a drowning unassigned queue, this means something failed for sure. My advice? Get the coffee ready and light the bat signal to let your other colleagues know something is wrong. I find that a notification that goes company wide to all users will stop the rolling in of tickets, and buy some time for you and your team to figure it out.
4.) Speak to the User where they are at!
Your goal is always to help the user with their issue. But another goal of yours to keep in mind should be to make sure your users and colleagues understand every step you’re taking to resolve their needs. Taking a few minutes to explain everything and answer all their questions may take some extra time, but in the end it will help them better understand the software products your company is utilizing, and it will also reduce further questions down the line. Remember they won’t coming back with the same problems over and over again, when you make sure they understand how to effectively navigate the system the first time around. This will help them to perform their job efficiently, and will in turn also help you to reduce requests for your team. The user will always appreciate the extra time spent as well.