Chatbots are transforming the business landscape in many ways, but one of the most compelling use cases is in IT support. It should come as no surprise that IT helpdesks are busier than ever in a digital-first world. According to Gartner, up to 40% of a service desk’s call volume is just password resets[1]. And with the average cost per helpdesk ticket ranging from $20 (£16.54) to $100 (£82.68)[2], it’s no wonder companies want to improve efficiency in their IT service management function.
This is where chatbots come in. Organisations of all sizes can leverage powerful chatbot integrations to improve IT. So let’s dive into how.
Better Self-Service
Businesses can’t increase the number of agents in line with the number of tickets, but chatbots can help here. Chatbots can handle routine IT support queries like password resets by guiding users through automated processes. They can help with other simple tasks too. For example, chatbots can share relevant self-help articles, handle employee onboarding activities, and more.
Ticket Assignment and Segmentation
Segmenting tickets by issue type is a time-consuming but critical activity for any functioning helpdesk. Chatbots help simplify this process by automating ticket classification based on key details of the conversation.
Access Provisioning and Deprovisioning
Granting and removing access to IT systems and resources is another common activity for helpdesk engineers, but it’s one that can be easily automated. Chatbots can analyse incoming access requests based on rules like job title, service type, type of product, and user intent to make straightforward access decisions. And by using chatbots, you can significantly reduce the time it takes to resolve access requests, allowing users to get on with their jobs.
Software and Equipment Provisioning
The IT team equip new workers with the appropriate laptops, mobile phones, and other essential tech gadgets. They also deploy the software workers need for their job role. Similarly, existing employees may need to replace their clunky old brick of a laptop with a new, flashier model. Instead of IT engineers spending valuable time talking through the options and submitting the order, chatbots can step in. Chatbots can guide users through the catalogue of options and submit the request to the appropriate team for approval.
Proactive Notifications
The IT team can configure chatbots to send proactive alerts to employees to notify them of outages, incidences, maintenance schedules, software updates, and IT policy updates. This helps keep employees informed on the issues that impact them and mitigates an explosion in new tickets when events occur.
Uninterrupted Service Delivery
Today, it’s common for employees to be working in different time zones and from different locations. At the same time, it can be challenging for the IT service desk to address employee issues 24/7 and promptly. Having a fully-staffed around-the-clock IT workforce is unfeasible and prohibitively expensive. However, chatbots can help bridge this gap by handling employee requests and taking the appropriate action no matter the time of day.
Wrapping Up
Here’s the bottom line. IT chatbots can help improve issue resolution times by offering immediate solutions. This helps drive up the employee experience because workers aren’t left frustrated waiting several hours or days for their issue to be resolved. At the same time, IT chatbots allow IT teams to focus on higher-priority tasks while chatbots handle all of the straightforward, repetitive, but time-consuming tasks that flood the helpdesk.
[1] https://342sv54cwf1w32bxz36tm0bv-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/AD-Password-reset-tool.pdf
[2] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/actual-helpdesk-cost-per-ticket-20-500-radha-mistry
