Chapter 13 The IT Professional PC Support & Repair Chapter 13 The IT Professional 9 days including study guide and test

Objectives After completing this chapter, you will meet these objectives: Explain

Communication skills & the IT professional 13.1

Communication Need good communication skills A knowledgeable technician who uses good communication skills will always be in demand in the job market Learn details Establish a good rapport with customer They will be more relaxed Body language, tone & reflection important Control your emotions A good rule for all technicians to follow is that a new customer call means a fresh start. Never carry your frustration from one call to the next

Determine Customer Problems Know - Call your customer by name Relate - Create a one-to-one connection between you and your customer Understand - Determine the customer’s level of knowledge about the computer to determine how to best communicate with the customer Active listening skills Acknowledge them (ok, I understand, etc.) Do not interrupt them After they’re done, summarize what you heard Ask follow-up questions Let me see if I understand what you have told me.

Professional Behavior Respect, prompt attention, be positive, focus on what you CAN do

Activity

Keep Customer Focused Stay calm, do not take comments personally

Proper Netiquette

Time & Stress Management Ergonomics Chair height, screen at comfortable angle, keyboard/mouse position Time Management Take “down” calls first Call customer back on time; check off list Do not cherry pick easy calls or favorite customers Stress Management Compose yourself between calls Don’t carry frustrations to next call Stand up, stretch, take short walk, stress ball, eat snack

Observe SLA Follow the customer’s contract Exceptions Response time Equipment/software supported Where service is provided Cost and penalties Time of service availability Exceptions Long time customer gets escalated and management gives something to them

Follow Business Policies Max time on calls Max time in queue or on hold Number of calls per day Passing calls to other techs What you can/cannot promise When to follow SLA or escalate Follow workplace policies (breaks, computer use, personal calls/emails, etc.)

Customer Service Set and meet a reasonable timeline for calls/repairs Communicate repair status Offer different repair or replacement options Provide customer documentation Follow up with customer

Ethical & legal issues 13.2

Ethical Considerations Respect customer’s property, privacy and data Don’t access or copy their stuff Get permission to access stuff or accounts Keep confidential info private; unethical & illegal Keep PII (Personally Identifiable Information) private Don’t send unsolicited or mass emails to customers You may be accessing private info or getting admin usernames/passwords

Legal Considerations Do not make changes without permission Do not access private files or emails without permission Do not install, copy or share content in violation of copyright laws Do not use customer’s IT resources for commercial purposes Do not allow unauthorized user access to customer IT resources Do not use customer resources for illegal activities Do not share sensitive info

Licensing Personal license Enterprise license For single user EULA specifies copies, how many installs, etc, Enterprise license Site license Digital Right Management (DRM) Prevents copyrighted material from being copied You may encounter a customer using illegal software

Computer Forensics Types of data collected: Persistent data Data stored on the drive you can’t lose Volatile data Data that disappears when you turn device off RAM, cache contents

First Response As a tech, you may discover the crime DO NOT turn off the computer Know who to call Know what to do and what to NOT do

Documentation While working on PC, if you discover illegal stuff: Initial reason for accessing the computer or network Time and date Peripherals that are connected to the computer All network connections Physical area where the computer is located Illegal material that you have found Illegal activity that you have witnessed (or you suspect has occurred) Which procedures you have executed on the computer or network

Chain of Custody Court wants to know: Prevents evidence tampering How this evidence was collected Where it has been physically stored Who has had access to it between the time of collection and its entry into the court proceedings Prevents evidence tampering

Call center technicians 13.3

Call Center Setup Have support software to do following:

Level 1 Tech Gather pertinent info to put on ticket Take care of simple problems Take detailed info in case have to escalate

Level 2 Tech More knowledgeable than level 1 May use remote access

Chapter 13 The IT Professional PC Support & Repair Chapter 13 The IT Professional 9 days including study guide and test