(NAPSA)—There’s good news for business and employees who are dependent on desktops, laptops, mobile devices and tablets to get their work done. There’s a new S000) TATA)" Accordingto “Exploring Businessand |.T.Friction: Myths ETONcrol UMMM UIANA CDUTe Uae No)AOE CCM ta ETopMei UMECCMUSTEM)Logcle OCUNCTA sd hours a month or 5 weeks a yeardueto IT. issues and challengesin resolving them. computer application, or app, designed to enable employees to ask for help, get answers to ques- tions, and share information through real-time online messaging, social posts and more. The app’s designerbelieves this will help to reduce what it calls the “friction” between workers by changing the way IT interacts with users. It also believes that using a social media approach to identifying and describing problems and requesting assistance can lead to greater productivity and satisfaction on the part of employees. According to a recent survey sponsored by the maker of the app, BMC Software, 85 percent of those surveyed have a negative opinion about the time it takes to get a response from their IT department, 82 percent have a nega- tive opinion about the time it takes to get their problem resolved, and 87 percent of employees believe all this has a negative impact on productivity. The app that it believes can change these attitudes is called MyIT 2.0. It is designed to give employees the power to quickly solve routine technical problems, eliminate frustrating forms, crowdsource answers and information, and visually navigate resources in any organization. It’s hoped that all this can help workers arrive at a resolution sooner, promote a moresatisfying experience, and cut down on “friction” between employees and IT workers. There are two other new products from the same manufacturer that are also intended to enhance productivity. Like the first, the other two are created to improve Wesufferdaily trying to access Wi-Fi, VPN, video conferencing or print services. Weneed more contextualinformation aboutourusersin order to help serve them moreeffectively. Weoften haveIT. issues so severe that we cannot do ourjobs andthere is no workaroundpossible. Users seek untrusted sourcesofinformation and support, andI.T. then has to track downroot causes andfix the outcome. OurLT. service desk lacksthe skills or knowledgeto solve ourproblems. We manually process a large volumeoflive calls and emails because users avoid self-service help options. One manufacturer believes the future of IT lies in a self-service approach modeledafter the Twitter and Facebook experience. employees’ access to problem solving. One, called Remedyforce, was created to help a business deliver a rangeof services, from a simple help desk function to transformational digital business services using a fresh, Google-like, mobileuser experience. It’s intended to provide what are considered “best practices” from a help desk perspective while minimizing costs. Because Remedyforce runs in the cloud, there’s no need to buy servers or manage complicated software. Instead, IT organizations are able to concentrate on bettering their processes and bringing valueto the business they serve. A third product is designed to give employees a choice of apps through a familiar app store expe- rience tailored to a particular business. Employees can individu- alize their work environments from the curated catalog of apps that their employer publishes in a privately labeled enterprise app store. The manufacturer believes that by making an array of employerapproved apps available from the cloud, individual flexibility and productivity are enhanced. At the same time, since the IT unit still maintains supervision of business apps, it maintains control of the process and service standards when it comesto problem solving. Said Kia Behnia, chief technology officer at BMC Software, “Our new products enable IT leaders to fundamentally transform theselfservice experience by offering end users a powerful yet intuitive solution rooted in expectations created by Facebook and Twitter.” To learn more, visit www.bmce. com.
