Read the Helpdesk and HDCS listservs e-mail daily.
Contribute to the discussion and problem solving on the Helpdesk and HDCS listservs.
We can't survive without your collective expertise.
Attend scheduled HDC meetings and training sessions.
Arrive ON TIME for your Helpdesk shifts. If you are unable to be present
during your scheduled shift, you are responsible for finding a substitute. Without
a Helpdesk Consultant on duty, the Helpdesk cannot adequately support our campus.
Requests for substitutes can be sent to the HDCS listserv.
If there is an emergency, please contact the Associate Director for Technology Support Services -
alternate arrangements may be made depending on the situation.
Excused absences include academic conflicts, illness, and family emergencies
(but these still require an Helpdesk Consultant to find a substitute for her shift).
Unexcused absences will result in disiplinary action.
Provide excellent customer service. Be aware that Helpdesk Consultants are a very
visible face of Information Technology
to not only faculty and staff, but to students and their parents. Please greet people with
a smile and a welcoming, helpful presence.
All Helpdesk Consultants should not:
Perform hardware duties. The majority of computers owned by Saint Mary's College are covered under warranties that
include hardware repairs by the computer manufacturers. For the computers that are no longer under warranty,
Information Technology staff will address the hardware repair needs.
This includes installing memory, replacing batteries, etc..
Information Technology
prefers that you DO NOT do any hardware work even when you are off-duty because
of liability. People may ask you to do this because they know you are technical,
but here are some considerations:
Information Technology does not train or pay student consultants to install
or repair hardware. Faculty and staff with personally-owned hardware install needs should make arrangements
with their computer vendor (for warranty repairs), a computer repair center,
or do it themselves if they can.
An HDC performing a hardware repair could end up voiding the device's warranty,
preventing the owner of the device (most likely the College) from receiving covered repair service
by the device's manufacturer in the
future if the problem persists or new problems occur.
If a Helpdesk Consultants does it just as a favor, it makes it seem that
Information Technology
provides this service even though we do not. If a Helpdesk Consultants does it for a user as a friend,
the friend may hold you and Information Technology liable if something goes wrong.
Other students may also expect you, other Helpdesk Consultants, and RCCs to provide
the same level of service and become upset when they are told we can't assist with
hardware.
So the moral to this brief story is: DON'T DO IT.
Accept abuse from angry or upset users. If a user is irate, do not hesitate to
send her to the Associate Director for Technology Support Services. You were not hired to receive abuse from
the people you are supposed to help. Be sure to keep a copy of all correspondence
between you and the irate user so that the Associate Director for Technology Support Services can follow the
situation and back you up. Make sure that the problem tracking system record is also
up-to-date and contains all available information.
As much as possible, communicate with the Associate Director for Technology Support Services - cc: her on
all potentially problematic correspondence! She is your ally and will support and
defend you 100% unless you are rude to the user. It's also a good idea to tell the
Associate Director for Technology Support Services of potential problems before they happen, so that she
is not surprised if she receives an irate phone call.
