How to Implement a Successful Customer Experience Program
Arguably, there is a direct correlation between the quality of the IT service experience that a user receives and the sophistication of the service desk software upon which the organization relies.
Making extensive use of automation to provide a better IT service experience, Atlassian has announced an update to its JIRA Service Desk software that adds support for real-time queue updates so agents are alerted to new tickets in their inboxes without having to refresh their browsers.
Sid Suri, vice president of marketing for JIRA Service Desk at Atlassian, says that JIRA Service Desk 2.4 is sporting a new user interface that makes it simpler for IT staff to automate repetitive tasks and share alerts with one another. The software is designed to also provide end users with a self-service capability. Suri says JIRA Service Desk can be deployed on premise or invoked as a cloud service. It costs $10 per month for the first three agents and every additional agent costs an additional $25 per month. Alternatively, a 100-agent license is available for $30,000 per year or unlimited agents for $45,000 per year.
Additional new features in JIRA Service Desk 2.4 include enhancements to the People tab, which displays service providers, end users and people who can help or whose participation is required. Also available is the ability to customize theme and color based on the customer’s logo.
Because Atlassian has embedded automation into the service desk itself, Suri said the service desk has a lot more baked-in intelligence. For example, when a user comments on a closed ticket, the system knows to reopen the ticket and alert the agent. When a Priority 1 ticket is about to go beyond the terms of services defined in the SLA, JIRA Service Desk doesn’t just send an email, it calls a specified number to alert management. When a new laptop is ordered, it also automatically sends an update to the procurement and finance system.
When it comes to internal IT, perception is often everything. Regardless of application uptime, the perception of the IT department can be directly tied to how efficient it is at resolving problems. No matter how good any IT staff is, a more sophisticated service desk platform can make a huge difference in how the IT organization is recognized by the business as a whole.
