The Checklist Of Modernizing Employee Helpdesk In 2022

Even though the great remote-work experiment has been continuing since 2020, businesses are still struggling to adapt to this new norm. Although most people enjoy the flexibility of working from home, a majority also miss their offices and the work-life separation they had before the pandemic. People thought that things would start to normalize again, and they would be able to go back to work in 2022. As per the statistics of Fortune, around 77% of employees across the world were prepared to return to work in January 2022. But now Omicron has emerged, forcing global companies to backtrack their return-to-the work plans.    

So, it looks like remote work is here to stay.    

So why do employees want to leave the comfort of working from home?    

• Though employees enjoyed the flexibility of remote work now they have started to feel disconnected from co-workers and the organization at large, feeling unsupported, stressed, unmotivated, and anxious.
  
  
• Support is also another pressing concern. Remote employees encounter technical and non-technical issues that prevent them from working.
  
  
• The support agents are also overburdened with repeated and multiple questions from various employees and unable to provide timely support.
  
  

These are some of the unique and unprecedented challenges that businesses around the world are facing. And traditional solutions are not meeting the needs. 

Issues with Traditional Employee Helpdesk

“Traditional employee helpdesks are meant for tracking issues, not resolving them”    

Employee helpdesks are supposed to provide employees with best-in-class support by integrating technology and human resources efficiently and effectively. The right employee helpdesk can streamline processes while delivering exceptional user experiences. But that is not what traditional service desks were meant for. They were built for agents and not employees. In today's constantly changing workplace, traditional help desks are no longer viable. Most traditional helpdesks are built on older architectures and even an old mindset, and thus it is not focused enough on employees. Employees prefer to reach out to support agents via emails and phone instead of using a traditional helpdesk.

Employee needs have also evolved with the change in work culture. Employees expect instant support rather than fragmented support. It doesn't matter whether it is a Fortune 500 company or a start-up; if employees are annoyed with the support or feel unengaged, the business will not thrive. When employees work remotely or in-office, they encounter technical and non-technical issues such as password resetting issues, laptop configuration, software installation/ updation and denied access to documents or other relevant information.

These situations leave employees frustrated and often negatively affect employees' work productivity and the organization's bottom line. In its study, McKinsey stated that employees spend 9.3 hours per week searching for information— that amounts to almost 2 hours a day.

Many businesses are also unable to provide remote teams with the training and support they need. Traditional helpdesks are inefficient and offer fragmented support to employees, often leaving them confused and in unorganized chaos.    

That is why businesses need to take a look at ai-powered employee helpdesk.

The modern employee helpdesk is not an option, it's a necessity

With a modernized employee helpdesk, an organization can handle and resolve issues employees face seamlessly and effectively. It allows all employees to access support through a single platform, such as MS Teams and Slack. This eliminates the confusion about whom to contact for assistance. Since a modern helpdesk is fully automated and powered by conversational AI, it understands employees' queries and finds the best solution to the issue at hand. As a result, employee experience and productivity increase.

Benefits Of A Modern Employee Helpdesk

Modern employee helpdesks are powerful when automated using technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). It helps in automating workflow, which reduces manual efforts and support costs. According to the reports of Market Research Future, during the forecast period of 2017-2023, global helpdesk automation is expected to reach USD 11 billion at a CAGR of 33 %.

Here are some of the benefits of An AI powered Modern helpdesk

• Instant support
  
  With modern employee helpdesks, employees can get immediate, personalized support whenever they face challenges. Employees who receive quick support can save time and focus entirely on their tasks. This will enhance employee experience.
  
  
• Automate processes and workflows
  
  With automated employee helpdesks, time-consuming and tedious processes can be eliminated. It is possible to set triggers within your system to initiate and stop processes like resetting passwords, installing software and configuring laptops, etc. without human intervention. A modern helpdesk can also be used to automate HR processes like recruitment and onboarding/offboarding.
  
  
• Reduce support costs and eliminate low-value processes
  
  Streamlining communications is a benefit of a modern employee helpdesk. Helpdesk can easily automate repetitive and time-consuming tasks using automation software and process templates, saving precious time. Modern-day AI-powered employee helpdesks take care of mundane tasks, freeing the helpdesk agent to handle more critical issues.
  
  
• Instant Information
  
  A critical element of a modernized helpdesk system is robust knowledge management. With knowledge management, users can find all the information they need in a single, unified place. This will help them resolve their issues and get their questions answered.   
  
  

The Ultimate Checklist for a Modern Employee Helpdesk

Making the right decisions about when and how to upgrade your business processes can be challenging. If you plan to upgrade your employee support by implementing a modern employee helpdesk, you should ensure that it includes these significant components/features that make it easier and more convenient to use.

1. Seamless Employee Support within collaborative platform
   
   A modern employee helpdesk provides quick and seamless support to your employees. Employees can interact with conversational chatbots integrated within collaborative platforms such as MS Teams and Slack, where they spend most of their time. From the moment your employees log into the platform, to the point when their issue is resolved, the chatbot will assist them.
   
   
2. AI-powered chatbots for first-level employee support
   
   An AI-powered service desk lets your employees be assisted by an AI chatbot as soon as they log on to the platform, rather than waiting to speak with a support agent. These smart chatbots provide quick and essential support by answering their questions promptly.
   
   If the employees aren't satisfied with the solution and want more specific support, suppose they are not satisfied. Chatbots will then automatically assign their cases to an appropriate agent to investigate the matter and provide them with an appropriate solution. The AI chatbots will serve as a constant link between employees and customer service agents through this process, facilitating smooth and effective communication.
   
   
3. Twitter-age Knowledge Management
   
   Organizations can utilize AI-powered service desks to leverage their enterprise knowledge base and provide personalized support to employees. Twitter-age knowledge management is a must-have for every modern service desk. Whenever employees have a query, they need to add the question, and all the contextual information will appear. Employees can obtain all needed data in the form of articles, FAQs, handbooks, user manuals etc. on a single unified platform within seconds.
   
   Relevant Article: Benefits of implementing a robust knowledge management system
   
   
4. Invisible Ticketing System
   
   Most employees dislike a ticketing system, while others aren't sure how to use it. They prefer to send emails or make phone calls to register complaints. An AI-driven employee helpdesk makes ticketing invisible since most employees don't want to leave their collaborative platform. The modern helpdesk uses a conversational AI interface to allow employees to create tickets, check the status of their tickets, and have a conversation with an agent right within MS Teams and Slacks. The employee will receive an update once the issue has been resolved and the ticket has been closed.
   
   
5. Automated WorkFlow Approvals
   
   The workflow approval process consists of multiple steps that allow a company to ensure the right processes are being completed at the right time. In the era of digitization, traditional workflow methods are no longer effective since they slow down the entire process.
   
   With modern helpdesk, you can automate several repetitive tasks that are complex and multi-step, like obtaining access to documents, and verifying identities. The workflow approval process is an important feature of a modern employee helpdesk.
   
   
6. Routine task and process automation
   
   Every organization performs a number of different tasks every day, and if you go with manual processes, it will require your employees to spend a significant amount of time and effort on tasks that can be automated. A modern employee helpdesk will help employees by automating tedious and time-consuming routine tasks and processes like recruiting, onboarding, leave applying etc.
   
   
7. Personalized Support
   
   Personalized support is a necessary feature of a modern employee helpdesk. This feature allows your employees to receive support and responses based on their location, job role, and past conversations with the service desk. Your employees will enjoy holistic support from an AI-based employee helpdesk because it can understand the context of their questions. The modern employee helpdesk also takes employee's previous interactions into account. Therefore, it offers solutions that are personalized to the unique requirements of a given employee.
   
   
8. Microlearning for employee training.
   
   It's no secret that employees are no longer interested in attending hours-long training sessions led by instructors. Instead, they are seeking training that is both concise and focused. A modern employee helpdesk offers microlearning feature, which is one of the most convenient and effective training methods to enhance employee skills. Any employee who needs to learn a few skills for their job or who wants to understand how particular processes work can gain access to all training resources through the integrated platform and start learning themselves.
   
   With microlearning contents created in digital formats like texts, audios, images, videos, and games of 3-5 minutes duration, employees can access them from any device, anywhere and become more independent. This ensures easy and efficient training resulting in higher employee engagement.
   
   
9. Access to expert connect
   
   There might be instances when an employee is not satisfied with the first level of support (L1) received via AI virtual agents. The modern helpdesk should connect them with a support agent when this happens. The support agents are already aware of the difficulty or issue, and they will have the employee's data that they interacted with the bot. An expert's live interaction helps your employee resolve the issue in a more streamlined and personal manner.   
   
   

Conclusion: Modernizing employee helpdesks boost employee experience.

A work environment where employees can instantly obtain support allows them to stay motivated and focus on their work. And that is what every remote employee desires. Thus, investing in a modern employee helpdesk is a smart move to elevate employee engagement and productivity to the next level.    

Read More: Rezolve.ai is redefining the concept of employee helpdesk.