troubleshooting and customer service skills, but with a new focus this year - the Fish! Philosophy.

Debby Boyle, Computing HelpDesk Manager, extended an invitation to all HelpDesk staff to the Fish Philosophy! The Fish! Philosophy focuses on four principles to create a work environment where employees are alive, engaged and committed. The principles (Be There, Play, Make Their Day and Choose Your Attitude) focus on the idea that organizations are successful when each individual is successful. How does this happen? Well, you can start by having fun and that's just what the HelpDesk did at their annual conference.



The Computing HelpDesk did just that - they had fun and learned in the process through interactive training, team building activities, and games. Perhaps some of you may have

HelpDesk Analysts & Support Specialists
(l-r) Kevin Conrow, Tom Hardbarger, Richard Blankenship, Mike Benedict, Jamie Johnson, Tom Shomo and Mohammad Sumbal. Not pictured: Celia Wright - she's gone fishing!

seen the staff on the quad or behind the IT Training Center - competing in a potato race, rapping to the beat, or throwing frozen fish - yuck! The staff even participated in a rowdy "yet unfairly scored" game of Jeopardy to assess their technical and customer service knowledge. On the last day of the conference the staff put their heads together to survive a plane crash in the Sub-Artic. The fun and the training paid off.

Random customer satisfaction surveys sent out at the start of school demonstrate the Fish! Philosophy in action with high customer satisfaction from computing support handled by the HelpDesk - scoring 3.8 for courtesy, 3.7 for skills, 3.7 for resolution, 3.6 for timelines, and 3.8 overall

on a scale of 1 to 4 where 1=Poor, 2= Fair, 3=Good and 4=Excellent. Here are some of the comments faculty, staff and students added to their survey rankings:

• "The young gentleman who assisted me was very professional and friendly."
• "The gentleman with whom I spoke was helpful and answered my question without hesitation"
• "It is nice to have a Mac person on board."
• "The staff was very helpful and was able to answer all of my questions very quickly."
• "Completely made my day, much faster than other professional computer fixing services. Thank you so much!!"
• "These guys were EXCELLENT!!! Very personable, patient and knowledgeable."
• "Again, getting the help I needed quickly was the most appreciated factor of the interaction. However, the person who assisted me over the phone was extremely helpful, and more than pleasant. Keep up the good work!"
• "The help desk does a wonderful job on computers."
• "You guys rock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
• "I am a frequent caller and am ALWAYS amazed by how well my calls are handled. You are all THE BEST!"
• "It was quick and easy and everyone was willing to help! GREAT PROGRAM!"
• "Overall, excellent service provided. Thank you!"
• "They are awesome!"
• "I have no suggestions, y’all were amazing."
• "The staff at the HelpDesk are always so courteous and helpful. They have great patience. Thanks to them for their continued excellent service."
• "I was very impressed with the knowledge of the staff and how fast they fixed my problem."
• "Excellent response to a question I needed to be answered quickly!"
• "I got everything I needed incredibly quickly. The timeliness was very appreciated."

So, what kind of computing support and service volume does the HelpDesk handle at the start of school? For the week of August 23-30th alone, the Computing HelpDesk responded to 2,462 questions, issues and/or problems (approximately 400 more requests than last year) with a phone abandonment rate of 10% or below. This means that we were able to answer 90% of the callers that were trying to reach us - the best yet for the start of school. We can attribute the low abandonment rates to optimal staffing and no major virus outbreaks! Thanks to everyone at JMU for a great start of the school year!

HelpDesk Frontline Staff 2006-07

Note: if you are interested in learning more about the Fish! Philosophy and Sub-Artic Survival course, see JMU’s Training and Development Department’s October schedule and Team Building site.