Title: (cn)1
Author: Jeff Wilson
Last saved by: Laura Stone
Company: BackHouseStudios

Chapter 1 Summary
1.	Technical support has become more important in organizations because of the increased use of technology not just to support business processes, but also to contribute to a company’s profits.
2.	The role of the help desk is to provide support services to users of technology, so that technological problems have minimal effect on worker productivity.
3.	The three types of technology used in organizations are hardware, communications, and software. Hardware refers to PCs, printers, modems, and other equipment. Communications includes devices that enable computers to send data to and receive data from other computers. Software refers to operating systems and application programs.
4.	Users differ in their technical knowledge and skills, in the range of exposure to different technologies, and in the extent to which they use technology to do their jobs.
5.	The most common problems experienced by users involve the hardware, software, network, security, and operating system.
6.	A successful help desk is composed of the people who provide support, the processes used to provide support, and tools used to track and solve problems.
7.	Support specialists should possess communication skills, problem-solving skills, customer service skills, technical skills, and business skills.
8.	Common help desk processes include problem management, request/change management, knowledge management, asset management, network management, and security management
9.	Support specialists use problem management tools and problem resolution tools to solve users’ problems. Problem management tools log, track, route, and record information about problems reported to the help desk. Problem resolution tools are used to determine the causes of users’ problems and develop effective solutions.
10.	Help desk performance is measured in two ways. First, reports are created using quantitative data from a problem management program. Second, feedback is solicited from customers to evaluate customer satisfaction.