The purpose of the IT Support Center Procedure is to identify staffing, training, and logistic requirements for an internal service or IT support center.

This IT Support Center Procedure provides ongoing emergency and non-emergency technology support to all departments and users. It applies to the IT support center, in particular, and all departments with technology needs, in general. (8 pages, 1623 words)

This procedure applies, in particular, to the Information Technology Support Center. In general, all departments within the company have technology needs, including:

Hardware support – Assistance with installation, usage, upgrades, or failures of all Information Technology related computer and communication equipment;
Software support – Assistance with technical questions on all operating systems, e-mail, applications, and database software; and
Telecommunications – Assistance with telephone, voice mail, pager, and all wireless equipment, including all setup, usage, and hardware difficulties.

Therefore this procedure, while not directly applicable to other departments, has a direct impact on the ability of every other department to do business in a manner that satisfies company and customer requirements.

IT Support Center Responsibilities:

Information Technology Managers are responsible for developing Support Center goals, identifying needs, developing the Information Technology Support Plan, providing resources for the Information Technology Support Center, reviewing Support Center metrics with the Support Center Manager, and recommending changes to the Plan.

The Information Technology Support Center Manager is responsible for administering the Support Center budget and other recordkeeping, recording and analyzing Support Center metrics and reporting on such metrics and other Support Center activities to Information Technology Managers on a regular basis, managing a staff of (in-house or outsourced) Technical Support analysts, recommending improvements to Information Technology Managers, and meeting or exceeding user expectations for the Support Center.

The Tech Support Manager is responsible for carrying out the daily operations of the Information Technology Support Center (i.e., delivering user support).

The Technology Review Committee is responsible for reviewing the Information Technology Support Plan, recommending revisions to the Plan, and for final approval of the Plan. The Technology Review Committee should consist of Information Technology Managers (who should chair the Committee) and management of the company’s functional departments or their representatives.

IT Support Center Definitions:

Technical Support (or “Tech Support”) – Provision of human resource and contract services for the installation, setup, and efficient operation of information technologies; also refers to personnel having responsibility for providing technical support.

Help Desk – Alternate name for technical support services.