Troubleshooting 101: Effective Information Gathering Martha Lundgren Texas Association of School Boards Copyright 2005, Texas Association of School Boards

Troubleshooting “... the process of replacing probability with certainty.” Robert F. Mager Troubleshooting the Troubleshooting Course

Effective Information Gathering: The Three Step Process 1.Collect information 2.Develop the problem statement 3.Prioritize the problem

Collect Information – 5 Key Questions Who? What? When? Where? How?

Collect Information – Who? Identify the user – name, organization, phone number, e- mail address Is the user an intermediary? One or many experiencing the problem? Technically savvy user?

Collect Information – What? Record the details in incident management system. Get specific. What version of what program? Machine type, o/s, etc. What function is the user trying to perform?

Collect Information – What? What is happening? –How long does it take? What is on the screen? –Is there an error message? What isn’t happening? Can the user perform similar tasks in other programs?

Collect Information – What? “How do I...?” questions vs. “It’s not working...” issues What is the question behind the question?

Collect Information – When? When did it start? When does it happen? Is there a pattern to its occurrences? What changed? –New/different computer? –New software installed? –New o/s? –Changes to your network? When do you need this by?

Collect Information – Where? “Any machine no matter who’s logged on.” “Only my machine no matter who’s logged on.” “On any machine but only when I log on.” “Only my machine and only when I’m logged on.” “At the office but not when I work at home.”

Collect Information – How? Can the user make it happen again? Can you reproduce the problem in the support center? Document the steps to recreate the problem. –Is the user following proper procedure? Reproducible vs. Intermittent problems

Sometimes it’s not what you ask but how you ask it Avoiding defensiveness Don’t rush it Open vs closed questions The “why” word Is an apology in order?

Develop Problem Statement State the problem as you understand it. Does user agree the problem statement is accurate? Does user add new, relevant or clarifying details? Restate the problem.

Prioritize the Problem Determine impact and severity. –Does it affect one person or many? –Is a high-value transaction at stake? –Is a high-value account at stake? How does it compare with other open incidents? Do you and the user agree on timeframe to resolve or follow up? When do you need this by?

Case Study Who? What? When? Where? How? Restate the problem Prioritize the problem

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