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It goes without saying that employee support and engagement are going through a significant transformation in this ever-evolving technology and quickly changing employee expectations. Today, service desks have evolved from traditional troubleshooting hubs to dynamic hubs of innovation, efficiency, and user empowerment. In the post-pandemic era, IT helpdesks, ITSM tools and support agents were valuable for maintaining business continuity plans when organizations managed remote employees.

So, here is the question: Is there a need to upgrade service and tools in 2023 to improve employee service quality, productivity, and morale? Indeed. Let me tell you this with an example. Imagine one of your remote employees experiencing a slight delay in his or her connection. A modern generative AI service desk actively reaches out and offers the right help to troubleshoot the connectivity issue before frustration can arise. In addition to averting potential downtime, this proactive approach demonstrates the service desk's dedication to employee satisfaction.
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Doesn't that sound amazing?
As we find ourselves at the midway point of 2023, let's explore the fascinating world of service desk trends that can be implemented in your service delivery management.

What Impacts the Service Delivery Model Change?

The traditional helpdesk procedure required employees to wait hours for assistance and fill out a support ticket with all the technical details. Post the pandemic, when the remote and hybrid work culture took root, how the service desks operated had to change since employees were unable to call support agents directly (although they couldn't, it was equally easy despite being away from the office).  

Rezolve.ai found the top 5 factors that pushed enterprises to adopt these new trends, as was evident from our research.  

Conversational Interface at Home  

As people have started hybrid mode of work culture, the use of UX and UI gadgets has increased. We make use of virtual assistants from Apple and Amazon, such as Siri and Alexa. Everything is just a command away - from entertainment to infotainment to chores to almost anything. The employees started expecting support by asking questions about specific things and getting answers from their assistants.  

Gartner predicts that 25% of brands will achieve significant advances in CX/EX quality in 2021 and strive towards TX (total experience). This encouraged organizations to invest in the latest employee support models.  

Automation Need  

Gone are the days where automation projects were either for nine months or even for a year. The use of AI, IoT, and Cloud-based systems have made hyper-automation simple. The rate at which employees seek assistance has increased, so looking out for the Service Desks is the next focus. Service Desk agents can focus on innovation and uplift through continuous improvement while providing better services to employees.  

Gartner predicts that by 2024, organizations will lower their operational costs by 30% by combining hyper-automation technologies with redesigned operational processes.  

Rising Hybrid Work Culture 

Employees throughout the world were forced to adopt a hybrid work culture, although it was difficult initially, it soon became the 'new' normal. Few studies show that employee productivity has increased in the work-from-home format. However, it is the opposite of Service Desk Management. The way enterprises support employees has drastically changed and is based on the company's size and ROI. It brought automation and chatbots in place. According to Forbes, as of 2023, around 12.7% of full-time employees work remotely, while more than 28.2% employees have moved to a hybrid work mode.

Collaborative Tools  

Remember the mediums for collaboration we used back in December '19? Yammer, SharePoint, Skype, etc., but from January 2020 to date, we mainly use Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Communication had changed, but how had that impacted the Service Desk Self-service or Intranet? Employees did not use self-help portals or SharePoint due to an ineffective design and support, which prompted them to seek help from Conversational AI.  

Gartner & LivePerson's survey reveals that 7 in 10 millennials prefer digital communication, primarily through text message than through in-person communication. This brings us to the next point, which is conversation and support.  

Integrated Service Desk  

In this unprecedented economic climate, there is a huge demand for mediums where employees and enterprises can integrate a single tool into their systems. The modern system provides solutions to the Silo problems by default.  

Let us look at the latest trends in Service Management.  

What are the Top Trends in Service Desk Industry?

Emerging Service Delivery Model  

The Traditional Service Delivery Model: First, let's take a quick look at the old and traditional delivery models. Employees may find information via self-service portals or by submitting tickets, but most make phone calls, write emails, or raise a ticket to get support.  

In contrast, employees need to apply for their choice of assistance, maybe Teams or Slack, for collaboration and have a conversation with a Virtual Assistant for getting the answers to their queries. In case the employee is not happy with the answer, a ticket is automatically raised, and you are connected to the dedicated support agent immediately. All this happens within a couple of minutes. There are two things that one needs to notice:  

• Employees don't have to raise tickets and wait for hours or even days to close them.
  
  
• Employee issues are automatically resolved with the automated support system, whether it is a technical/IT issue or a general HR issue.
  
  

ITSM to Enterprise Service Management

Traditional Silo-ed Approach: A group works in a silo when its members find themselves disengaged from other groups.  

Every company has its own best practices in Service Management and strategies designed to help its employees. Some of these could include a self-help portal for employees or a SharePoint where employees can download information. But often, employees aren't sure about which information is correct. Frequently, information obtained is incorrect or outdated.  

Having a ticketing system does not necessarily mean you have a Service Desk because it is much more than a ticketing system. Employee Support is more than just a helpdesk. Employee Support encompasses more than what a helpdesk can handle. To understand Service Management in the modern age, it is important to learn what employees need and bridge the traditional system gap.  

Employees are looking for quick support, and the problem with the traditional system is that employees have to search for the right support at the right time. Based on this principle, Rezolve.ai brings across a trend where employees can get support on Microsoft Teams within a single window.  

Single Window Approach: Employees no longer have to look for information from different departments. Be it project management, IT services, HR, finance, facilities; they can consult with Virtual Assistants through Microsoft Teams and get help from the same window across departments. Thanks to AI and Automation, this technology has made this possible, and we call it AIESM.  

AI Role in Transformation  

So, the question for the company leadership is - what can you not do conversationally in Enterprise Service Management? Artificial Intelligence can transform learning, knowledge sharing, task management, support, collaboration, and automation in a meaningful way using Chatbots .  

By leveraging machine data and analyzing it, AI can transform existing enterprises. The insights managed to gain few metrics used to improve the quality of employee service and identify improvement areas. These insights can also help monitor what is needed to improve the existing Service Desk Management and tools that are most effective in improving CSAT.  

Easy Automation  

Automation is a vast subject, but six factors, as shown in the image below, consider when talking about Service Desk Automation.  

Knowledge Automation is the process of providing relevant content to employees only when they need it. Knowledge is the slice of information that is relevant to a specific person at a specific time.  

Changing KPIs  

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are an altogether profound concept. However, it is important to know that with a paradigm shift in Service Desk Management and Employee Support, there are changes in key KPIs that you must measure. Discover the updated KPIs that are important in the conversational AI world in this E-Book.  

Conclusion

There is no doubt that the landscape of service desks is changing before our eyes as we travel through the future. Service desks are positioned to offer unmatched employee support and experience in 2023 - all thanks to Generative AI-powered automation, remote and hybrid support models, self-service empowerment, and user-centric experiences at the forefront. These developments increase productivity and open the door to a brand-new era of customer service where innovation and user empowerment coexist. Therefore, prepare for the journey ahead because there are many exciting possibilities for service desks in the future.

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FAQs

1. What is a modern IT service desk, and what does it do?
   A modern IT service desk can be defined as a centralized hub that provides technical support, instant assistance, and issue resolution to employees or customers. It serves as a central hub for questions, issues, and service requests.
2. What distinguishes a service desk from a helpdesk?
   Both service desks and help desks provide support, but service desks frequently cover more ground. A service desk typically manages requests, change management, and IT service procedures in addition to technical issues.
3. What are the main advantages of having a properly operating service desk?
   A well-designed AI IT service desk boosts user satisfaction, operational efficiency, downtime reduction, centralization of support requests, prompt issue resolution, and user empowerment through self-service options.
4. What effects does automation have on modern service desks?
   Human support agents or technicians can concentrate on complex problems because automation streamlines repetitive everyday IT tasks like password reset, laptop configuration, software installation, ticket assignment and categorization. Additionally, it facilitates self-service options and quickens response times, increasing overall effectiveness.
5. What function does AI serve in modern IT service desks?
   By providing predictive analytics, automating everyday tasks, enabling AI chatbots for instant responses, providing data-driven insights, and personalizing user experiences, AI improves service desks and increases the effectiveness and quality of support.