The Evolution of the Customer-Centric Helpdesk: Two Case Studies

摘要

This article examines how the helpdesk function has changed over the past three decades through examination of two case studies. In 1985, the European shipment of PC workstations overtook shipments of simple terminals (i.e., video display units and keyboards, with very little processing power), instigating a revolution in end-user computing, with computer users taking advantage of new word-processor, spreadsheet, graphics, email and database applications. This article looks at two snapshots of end-user computing and helpdesk operations separated by a 30 year period - one at Glaxo Pharmaceuticals in 1988, and the other at the University of Gloucestershire in 2018. This case study research finds that whilst the range of technologies requiring support has increased markedly, this has been counter-balanced somewhat by the emergence of standards and dominant products in many technology categories. It also finds that the concept of support and the role of the end-user have evolved significantly in a rapidly changing technology landscape.