Today we have a guest post from Sean Ryan.  Sean is a research analyst with IDC focused on mobile enterprise software.

Things get a bit tricky when it comes to helpdesk support for mobile and remote workers. Organizations don't typically have their own Geek Squad to race out to employee homes and resolve computer issues. Trying to resolve software problems solely over the phone can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and could ultimately lead to other issues if the employee misunderstands some part of the instructions given.

For these reasons, helpdesk technicians need tools to let them provide remote support to an employee's computer in order to directly troubleshoot and resolve the problem. With a growing variety of devices needing support, it's preferable that such solutions be clientless, hosted solutions. Such tools are becoming even more essential for helpdesks to invest in as the business landscape continues to favor an increase in the number of mobile and remote workers.


Below are 5 reasons why organizations must prepare to support a growing mobile workforce:

• Changes in business culture are enabling a growing number of knowledge-based business professionals to work from home one day a week or more. Companies are doing this to promote work/life balance for families, to retain good people by rewarding them with flexibility, to enable employees to extend business hours or work on the weekends from home to meet deadlines, and to allow employees with longer commutes to be more productive.
  
  
• The need for business continuity in light of unforeseen disruptions such as poor weather conditions or concern over the spread of a flu pandemic means that helpdesks need to be able to support employees regardless of employee location and regardless of their own location.
  
  
• Due to current economic conditions and the ever-increasing need of enterprises to trim costs, IT helpdesks face resource constraints, with fewer helpdesk personnel responsible for supporting more workers. In some cases, the helpdesk technician may need to be on call to support employees outside normal business hours and at a variety of locations.
  
  
• Mobile workers (those who travel frequently for business) are often executives, outside sales people, and others critical to the success of an organization. It's imperative that helpdesks have the right tools in place to effectively support these individuals.
  
  
• A growing number of devices and connectivity options are enhancing productivity -- but are also adding complexity for the enterprise. Beyond PCs and laptops, helpdesk technicians must now also contend with BlackBerrys, iPhones, and netbooks running over WIFI, WIMAX, 3G, and the like. They must be outfitted with the right software tools to effectively support such a variety of devices, and across a vast territory as mobile workers are the ones using these devices and connectivity options.
  

The market for clientless remote support software (remote support software that's hosted and does not require a native client installed on the end device) is one that IDC has been tracking for some time. For the reasons above, as well as others, we expect the adoption of these solutions to grow by a compound annual growth rate of 22.6% over the next five years.

Yet, this is not to say that clientless remote support software can solve all ills; hardware issues such as a hard drive crashing still would require the remote worker to go into the office or to ship the device to the helpdesk, or would require support from a local third-party provider contracted by the organization. By and large, however, such tools can reduce the amount of downtime for mobile workers, reduce resolution times for the helpdesk, provide IT with greater controls and visibility, and extend support across locations and device types.

I've been having some troubles with my laptop's wireless card over the past couple weeks that have resulted in many (painful) hours of support calls. As most of you Workshifters can attest, there's nothing more frustrating than having IT issues that prevent you from connecting with the rest of your team and getting your work done. It's an isolating, maddening experience that, in my case, often results in a series of "troubleshooting" solutions that features numerous restarts (maybe it will just go away if I restart?), lots of whining and plenty of phone calls to my unassuming coworkers, husband and anyone else I can think of. Since this approach rarely works, I've spent my fair share of time on IT support calls throughout the first year of my Workshifting experience.

As Workshifters, we have to be more adept at overcoming IT hiccups than our office counterparts. This can be a challenge for those of us who aren't particularly tech savvy. I'd like to believe that I've gotten a little better at handling these challenges over the past year.

Here are some things that have helped me along the way:

7 Tips for Keeping Your Cool During IT Support Calls

1. Chances are, you'll be asked to shut down and restart your machine at least once during your support call. This can be a time-consuming process since many of us have configured our machines to automatically launch numerous programs when the computer is started. I recommend reducing these programs to the bare minimum in order to speed up the process. This will reduce the amount of time you and the technician are sitting around in silence, twiddling your thumbs. On PCs you can do this through your Start Up folder.
    
   
2. Try and isolate the problem to a specific component, such as your modem, certain software or your wireless router. For example, if you can't connect to the Internet, you can try and determine if you're having the same issue on another computer or if it's isolated to your machine. This will prevent you from having to sit through a support call with one service provider, only to have them tell you that it's not their product that's causing the problem.
   
   
3. Make sure you ask your support representative if they keep a record of the issue on file. This will prevent you from having to re-explain the situation over and over again if you're working with more than one person. Most companies do this, but it can't hurt to double check.
   
   
4. Keep a record of who you're talking to and when you've contacted them - this can especially come in handy when you're trying to resolve a service-related issue.
   
   
5. Many computer problems are related to cabling and connections. Before you delve into the IT support world, make sure all cables are connected firmly. After all, that's probably one of the first questions you're going to get. (See Ian Fortey's hilarious post "Why tech support sucks: a look behind the scenes" for more on this).
   
   
6. Before you pick up the phone to call support, make a list of the things you've tried to do on your own to resolve the issue. Also, make note of any error messages that may have popped up. Share this information with your technician at the beginning of the call.
   
   
7. Also, Google the problem (especially if it's a software problem).  Who knows? You might get lucky..

What about you? Is there anything that has helped you make it through support calls without losing your cool?

Photo by: paloaltosoftware

Today we have a guest post from Brenda Dentinger.  Brenda has been with Citrix for over 5 years and is an expert in technology and support services. She is exclusively focused on the remote services and support industry and often writes about remote support topics in her blog.  This post is a cross-post from Brenda's remote support blog that I thought would be interesting for our community.

Business Week's (BW) article Telecommuting: Once a Perk, Now Necessity highlights the benefits of working remotely. In fact, some companies are mandating that employees work from home vs spending hours in the car each way for the daily commute. "The flexibility will cut costs and at the same time accommodate both loud talkers and hermits." writes BW author Michelle Conlin.

Yet, HRRecruitingAlert.com reported that execs are resistant to the idea even though people are often more productive when working from home. A telecommuter, BW highlights in their article, Eve Gleb, said she inititally didn't know what to do with her extra time but now she goes for a walk and is more productive then when she is at the office. Another BW telecommuter, Grace Renteria, said "I only go into the office when I don't have a lot going on." (How that for a shift in perceptions about web commuting!) According, HRRecruitingAlert.com 21% of employees would take a pay cut to telecommute. Yet, Eve Gleb's company actually gave her more money to telecommute and Grace Renteria saves $70 on gas a week, $15 a day on lunch + wear and tear on her car. (hum....there just might be something to this.)

Some other findings from their report:

• 75% of employees want the freedom to work remotely.
• 56% have never been able to telecommute.
• Managers' most common arguments against telecommuting include: Job duties demand office attendance (cited by 38% of managers), remote work hurts relationship-building (19%) and productivity will decline if employees work from home (15%).

Now, internal IT managers and help desks need to provide remote support to these web commuters, aka, mobile workers. Many times companies will set up a VPN but when that fails, you still need a way to support your mobile workers and that's where remote support tools can help out.

Are you seeing your remote workers on the rise in your companies?? Tell us your story.

Photo by: wrumsby