Since a majority of the help requests are captured within our help desk ticketing system, we have access to a large amount of data regarding the types of issues or requests being made on a regular basis. Although the ticket metrics do not provide a comprehensive picture of the work being done by IT, it does provide some valuable information about trends, typical response times and areas for improvement.
A few weeks ago, a report was sent to each of the schools capturing some general information and metrics gleaned from the ticket system as well as key highlights from the shared services transition. The metrics presented can serve simply as a baseline for understanding service levels. After producing the initial report, we’ve identified several processes where we need to report in much more detail to capture the actual service level. So adjustments are being made so the data will be more meaningful to the campus community.
For example, a single account request may involve up to 14 different sub-tickets before it is complete. The response time in the reports capture the average time to resolve an account issue but does not take into account how many subtickets are involved! So in future reports, I hope to illustrate how long it takes for each subgroup to process their portion or how long it takes for access to each system.
The first reports are now available for the SMU Community. It is our goal to share our progress as we implement and improve this shared services model. This report will be published on a quarterly basis. To access the report, visit www.smu.edu/OIT/AboutUs/SharedServices.
