table of contents
- 01.1. Issues with handling inquiries from the Information Systems Department
- 02.2. Three steps to streamline your inquiry response
- 03.3. Useful content for handling inquiries in-house
The IT department of a company is responsible for a wide range of tasks, but one that is often cited as a challenge is “internal help desk work.” Many people have concerns such as “I get the same inquiries over and over again,” or “My work is interrupted by inquiries, so I can’t concentrate on my actual work.”
This blog focuses on the theme of “DIY (Do It Yourself)” – that is, things you can do in-house without relying on tools or outsourcing – and provides practical tips for reducing the burden of daily work and improving security measures.
1. Issues with handling inquiries from the Information Systems Department
Employees contact us on a daily basis with a wide range of inquiries, from system problems to software usage.
According to a 2024 survey on internal help desk operations in information systems departments*1, 64.8% of information systems personnel responded that they “feel there are issues” with their current internal help desk operations. Furthermore, when those who responded that they “feel there are issues” were asked, “Please tell us the issues you feel you have with internal help desk operations,” the most common answer, at 62.9%, was “Responding to help desk requests takes up so much time that I can’t get on with other tasks I want to do.”
Not only do the inquiries received by information systems department staff vary widely, but some of them require a quick response, such as “There’s a problem with our business terminal” or “We’ve received a suspicious email,” which increases the workload.
Furthermore, if there is a lack of information sharing or the knowledge base is not well-developed, efficiency may decline, such as the number of inquiries not decreasing or the same inquiries being made repeatedly by multiple employees.
Furthermore, some companies have a “one-person IT department” where the IT department is run by one person or a small number of people. When there are few staff members, inquiries tend to be handled by individual staff, and if there is a sudden vacancy, inquiries cannot be handled, which can have a major impact.
2. Three steps to streamline your inquiry response
How can information systems departments solve these problems when they are overwhelmed with responding to inquiries and have neither the time nor the personnel resources? Here we will introduce three steps to streamline inquiry responses.
STEP 1: Centralize your contact points
Consolidating contact points also contributes to the accumulation of knowledge
If there is no designated contact point for inquiries, or if there is no clear person in charge and inquiries are received individually, establish an official “contact point” for the Information Systems Department.
Working Example:
- If you are using email,
please consolidate your inquiries to a group address dedicated to the Information Systems Department. - If you are using business chat,
create a channel or group chat specifically for inquiries and collect questions.
Key point!
By providing a place where employees can freely view questions from other employees, they can search past history to see if a similar inquiry has already been made. This can also be expected to reduce the number of inquiries.
Establish rules for inquiriesWhen an inquiry
comes in with little information to resolve, such as “My PC broke even though I didn’t do anything,” you need to first conduct a problem-solving interview and then pinpoint the cause.To ensure you
receive the minimum amount of information necessary in advance, establish rules that clearly state the inquiry’s purpose, background, response deadline, and reason.
In “3. Useful content for handling inquiries in-house,” we will introduce an example of an “inquiry format (for employees)” that can be used when making an inquiry.
You may also want to set other rules like these.
– Clearly state the scope of the Information Systems Department’s inquiries. If
there is a tendency for inquiries to be made incorrectly, such as “PCs are managed by the Information Systems Department, but smartphones are managed by the General Affairs Department,” it is a good idea to clearly state the scope of the Information Systems Department’s inquiries in advance.
Example:
”For inquiries related to smartphones, please contact the General Affairs Department (person in charge: XX).”
This is not the contact point for inquiries about the “Payroll Management/Attendance Management System” or “Project Management System.”
– Make the status of inquiries (completed/incomplete) clear.
By clarifying whether an inquiry is completed or not, you can prevent unresolved issues from being left unattended.
For example, if the issue is resolved, be sure to tell the person in charge that it is “completed.”
STEP 2: Understand inquiry trends
Once you have collected a certain amount of inquiry
data, review all inquiries to identify trends.
If possible, categorize inquiries into four quadrants. For inquiries with high importance or urgency, you can reduce inquiries by publicizing them internally through study sessions and materials, or by publishing them as an internal FAQ (see below).
Working Example:
- Export inquiry data from chat tools and analyze it using Excel or BI tools (such as Power BI).
STEP 3: Prepare FAQs and manuals
Providing an environment where employees can resolve inquiries themselves
Working Example:
- Collect data in Excel and publish it on the in-house portal
- Use an internal chatbot
(some can be built for free on business chat platforms such as Microsoft Teams).
Creating FAQs takes time and effort, so many busy IT departments may find it a high hurdle. However, by publishing frequently asked questions or important inquiries as FAQs and providing an environment where employees can solve them themselves, it ultimately leads to a reduction in inquiries.
Since it would be a huge burden to try to cover all inquiries up to now, it is a good idea to start small by publishing frequently asked questions in a specific field.
We will introduce an example of creating an FAQ in “3. Useful content for handling inquiries in-house.”
If the FAQ is not maintained after its release and the content becomes outdated, users may stop using it. If you have the resources, such as multiple people in charge, it is a good idea to assign someone to not only create the FAQ but also to update it.
3. Useful content for handling inquiries in-house
We would like to introduce some useful content for information systems departments that are short on time and budget.
(Employee) Inquiry format
It is a good idea to prepare a “format for inquiries” so that you can obtain information that will help you resolve your inquiries smoothly. Below are some examples of items that should be included in the format.
## Subject
(e.g. PC asset management number, IP address, login user name, screen capture, etc.)
## What you want to solve
(e.g. PC keeps restarting repeatedly.)
## What you tried before making an inquiry
(e.g. I tried the operations described in the troubleshooting up to step ●, but it did not improve the situation.)
## Desired response deadline
* Generally, 5 business days are required.
Internal FAQ format
Regardless of industry or size, we will introduce some examples of FAQs that information systems departments generally receive inquiries about from within the company, along with their answers.
● PC/smartphone settings (example)
Key point!
If there are official contact details or troubleshooting information for PCs, smartphones, etc., list them in the FAQ and direct employees to check them themselves before making an inquiry.
●Security-related (example)
| If you receive a suspicious | If you receive a suspicious email, do not open it and immediately report it to your supervisor and the Information Systems Department.
Information Systems Department Emergency Contact: |
|---|---|
| If there is a possibility of malware | If you suspect a malware infection or unauthorized access, please report it to your supervisor and the Information Systems Department immediately.
Information Systems Department Emergency Contact: |
| What to do if you lose your PC | If your PC or company smartphone is lost or stolen, there is a risk of information leakage. Please promptly report this to your supervisor and the Information Systems Department, and then go to the nearest police station. After taking action according to the instructions of the Information Systems Department, please submit an incident report. Information Systems Department Emergency Contact: |
Key point!
It’s also important to clearly state emergency contact information in FAQs about security incidents and other incidents that require an emergency response. It’s
also common for employees to feel guilty about losing their company smartphones and be reluctant to report them. Therefore, clearly state the response flow and emphasize the importance of a prompt response.
