Student Workers - The Heart of the Help Desk

摘要

Managing a Help Desk staffed with part-time student workers can be quite a challenge. However, it has been the experience of the Louisiana State University Office of Computing Services (OCS) Technology Support Staff that developing the right mix of procedures and policies makes for a much more efficient work environment for both the part-time student and the full-time personnel. This paper will focus on the policies and procedures put into place at the OCS Help Desk. This includes: 1. Obtaining the right student workers for a Help Desk environment: Support Staff from various departments within Computing Services developed a new program to attract, interview, test, and place potential student workers in the environment best suited to their wants and needs within the organization. 2. Training student analysts: Several traditional and non-traditional training methods are used in the OCS Help Desk environment that makes for a fun and challenging learning experience. On-Line testing, role playing, coaching, and one-on-one training are all ways in which students are trained at the Help Desk. 3. Providing the right resources and tools in order for them to do their job efficiently and correctly: Microsoft NetMeeting, MSN Messenger, Documentation, Knowledge Base, 2-way radios, Active Desktop, and daily information emails are examples of the various tools used by the student workers to effectively do their jobs. 4. Supporting and encouraging student workers: Evaluating techniques, monitoring, and reward systems are all used to help encourage and support our student worker staff. Student workers are the heart of our Help Desk here at LSU. Faced with the many challenges of staffing a Help Desk with part-time student workers, OCS Help Desk management and staff have come up with creative processes and procedures to help transform the image of that of a traditional part-time student worker to part-time professional staff.