Deck 5: The Technology Component: Service Desk Tools and Technologies

Question 1

Service desks often combine or integrate tools and technologies to more easily and quickly transfer data between systems and to automate routine tasks.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The use of technology enables a service desk to handle more incidents and service requests, resolve them more efficiently, and offer more ways for customers to request services.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Many companies specify target response times for all contact channels in their SLAs or when communicating services to customers, so that customers will know how long it will take the service desk to resolve the incident or service request.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

With the increasing popularity of e-mail and the web to deliver support services, the Help Desk Institute predicts that eventually, the telephone will no longer play a role in customer service.

Question 5

Faxed incidents and service requests are typically logged the same way as telephone calls.

Question 6

When using an automatic call distributor (ACD), analysts should make sure they correctly use wrap-up mode, which prevents the ACD from routing a new inbound call to an analyst's extension.

Question 7

Companies that use skills-based routing require analysts to create and maintain a skills inventory that correlates the products, systems, and services supported by the service desk to each analyst's level of skill.

Question 8

On a service desk with hours from 9am to 5pm, a voice response unit (VRU) could be used to give customers access to a reduced set of services during non-business hours.

Question 9

Simultaneous screen transfer is a function that transfers a customer's call, as well as the information collected by the service desk analyst, to another support analyst.

Question 10

If services such as ANI, DNIS, and IID are implemented properly, customers are unaware of their use.

Question 11

With the increased availability of more complex service desk technology, service desks have decreased their reliance on e-mail to communicate internally. According to the Help Desk Institute, less than 40% of services desks use e-mail to communicate internally.

Question 12

When using e-mail, service desks often use forms, which are predefined items that can be used to quickly create standard e-mail messages.

Question 13

Creating a standard opening or closing to an e-mail is an example of using a template.

Question 14

For service desks that use e-mail as their primary communication channel with customers, e-mail management systems enable them to efficiently manage high-volume chat, e-mail, and Web form messages.

Question 15

One of the reasons that the Web is having a large impact on the support industry is that it gives the service desk an alternative and less expensive way to support customers.

Question 16

By logging all incidents and service requests, the service desk prevents the most common customer complaint, which is that incidents are lost or forgotten.

Question 17

If an organization wants an ITIL-compatible tool to manage their incident, problem, request, and change management processes, integrate with network and systems management tools, asset management tools, and sophisticated knowledge management systems, a commercially developed incident management system is a good choice.

Question 18

Companies tend to change their incident management systems periodically because they outgrow them or because new technology becomes available.

Question 19

In the context of the DIKW hierarchy, knowledge is uniquely a human characteristic.

Question 20

Today's organizations typically use rule-based systems to maintain knowledge, as they are easy to build and maintain.

Question 21

Decision trees work well for entry level analysts and for service desk customers because they can walk through a methodical approach to solving incidents.

Question 22

Search-retrieval techniques are complemented by interactive storage methods, such as hypertext retrieval; hypertext stores information in a graphical form.

Question 23

In order to reduce the "jumping and running" of some service desks and to support remote service desk customers, technologies such as remote monitoring and software distribution systems are used.

Question 24

A remote control system is a technology that enables an analyst to view and take control of a connected device to troubleshoot incidents, transfer files, provide informal training, or collaborate on documents.

Question 25

E-mail systems, unlike instant messaging systems, do provide capabilities of an incident management system, so analysts aren't typically required to record any status updates obtained via e-mail in the service desk's incident management system.

Question 26

One advantage of social media is that it delivers content and facilitates interactive communication.

Question 27

Staffing and scheduling systems work with ACD systems to collect, report, and forecast call volumes.

Question 28

After vendor tools have been rated, an evaluation matrix makes it easy to collect and compare vendor scores.

Question 29

Which is true?

A)Tools and technologies will benefit a service desk even if there are no well-designed processes.
B)The tools and technologies a service desk uses depend on the number and complexity of the processes being supported.
C)One of the benefits of tools and technologies on a service desk is to reduce the number of service desk staff.
D)Tools should be selected prior to defining a service desk's processes and procedures.

Question 30

When implementing tools and technology ____.

A)it is better to implement technology as a one-time cost so that the service desk doesn't exceed its budget and have to ask for a variance
B)organizations should strive to implement the most sophisticated technology that their budgets will allow so customers will be more productive
C)it is more important to get the technology installed properly than to define the roles of the people who will be using it
D)ongoing maintenance activities, such as installing upgrades and additional memory, and training must be performed in a timely fashion

Question 31

Which is true about service desks and technology?

A)The nature of a company's business and customer expectations influences a service desk's tool selection.
B)Small service desks typically don't benefit from technology, and they don't usually have the time to implement it.
C)It is a best practice for service desks to wait until they are larger and more busy to implement technology.
D)Some service desks will not be able to benefit from technology; instead they need to ensure that their processes are correct.

Question 32

According to a 2010 Help Desk Institute survey, 89 percent of companies have implemented ____.

A)systems to assist in finding root causes of incidents
B)remote control systems
C)systems to enable service desks to log and manage incidents
D)automatic call distributors or voice response units

Question 33

When considering VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems, which is true?

A)Because of the complexity and expense of VoIP systems, most companies are upgrading or replacing their existing telephone systems when they become obsolete rather than using VoIP.
B)Companies using traditional telephone systems need to invest in significant upgrades to their data network in order to support VoIP traffic and guarantee call quality and network reliability.
C)Since VoIP systems transmit voice communications differently than e-mail and instant messaging systems, organizations must decide which method of transferal will be most beneficial to them.
D)Benefits of VoIP include enabling of screen pops, the ability to link local service desks and analysts working at home, increased agent mobility, and reduced telephone company fees.

Question 34

Which is true about voice mail?

A)Voice mail technology is typically used by itself and not combined with other technologies.
B)Service desks typically use voice mail during the day and answering services at night.
C)The best companies set and manage voice mail response times and promptly return all customer calls.
D)Most customers prefer to leave a voice mail than to wait for an analyst to be available.

Question 35

A(n) ____ answers a call and routes it to the next available analyst.

A)automatic call distributor
B)greeting system
C)voice response unit
D)electronic call distributor

Question 36

On an automatic call distributor (ACD), a(n) ____ state means the analyst is ready to take calls.

A)ready
B)set
C)available
D)on line

Question 37

If a service desk uses an automatic call distributor (ACD) to allow a French-speaking customer to have the best chance of talking to an analyst that also speaks French, this is an example of ____.

A)automatic call distribution
B)skills-based routing
C)queuing
D)needs-based routing

Question 38

A(n) ____ integrates with another technology, such as a database or a network management system, to obtain information or to perform a function, such as verifying that a customer is entitled to service.

A)skills-based routing system
B)automated attendant
C)voice response unit
D)automatic call distributor

Question 39

The optimum number of choices for the top level of a voice response unit (VRU) menu is ____ options.

A)3
B)4
C)5
D)It depends on the types of calls.

Question 40

When a customer calls a service desk, and the customer's address and phone number automatically appear on the service desk analyst's monitor, this is an example of ____.

A)a screen pop
B)simultaneous screen transfer
C)knowledge base lookup
D)skills-based routing

Question 41

____ is a service provided by a long distance service provider that delivers the telephone number of the person calling.

A)ANI
B)Caller ID
C)DNIS
D)IID

Question 42

A popular use of ____ is to direct customers, calling a toll-free number, to specialized support groups without requiring the caller to select from a telephone menu.

A)ANI
B)Caller ID
C)DNIS
D)IID

Question 43

____ identify/identifies the origin of a call from the type or location of the telephone being used to place a call.

A)ANI
B)Caller ID
C)DNIS
D)IID

Question 44

Which is a technique that service desks can use to ensure that e-mail communications are handled efficiently and effectively?

A)Provide analysts with e-mail etiquette training and guidance.
B)Ensure that all customers are using the same e-mail package.
C)Integrate e-mail packages and telephone systems.
D)Use e-mail routing systems.

Question 45

____ web sites enable customers to have "live" contact with analysts or other customers.

A)Real-time
B)Passive
C)Active
D)Interactive

Question 46

Which is true about incident management systems?

A)When using an incident management system, a best practice is to close the incident as soon as the support analyst thinks he/she has resolved the issue.
B)Most organizations allow analysts to keep a log of all e-mails, while requiring analysts to log all phone calls into an incident management system.
C)Ideally, one should integrate incident management systems with the information or systems used to manage Service Level Agreements, such as target response and resolution times
D)Most incident management systems require that analysts manually track the status of incidents from start to finish.

Question 47

Homegrown incident tracking systems ____.

A)typically benefit large service desks who support a lot of products as they can be customized by programmers who already work for the company
B)tend to be well-documented and easily enhanced, as the programmers work in-house and have a vested interest in having a good, easily updatable system
C)tend to be cheaper and easier to install than commercial incident management systems or enterprise solutions
D)tend to support only the incident management process and offer basic trouble ticketing and reporting capability

Question 48

If a medium-sized service desk wants a system with enhanced trouble ticketing and management reporting capability, the ability to log "quick tickets," support for change management and configuration management processes in a limited manner, and automated escalation and notification capabilities, a(n) ____ is probably the best solution.

A)homegrown incident management system
B)commercially developed incident management system
C)integrated ITSM solution
D)enterprise solution

Question 49

In the context of the DIKW hierarchy, how to resolve an incident or how to upgrade a workstation would be classified as ____.

A)data
B)information
C)knowledge
D)wisdom

Question 50

____ is a searching technique that uses everyday language to ask users questions and interpret their answers.

A)Case-based reasoning
B)Decision trees
C)Fuzzy logic
D)Keyword searching

Question 51

____ is a searching technique that can get results when the exact spelling of a word is not known, or it can help users obtain information that is loosely related to a topic.

A)Case-based reasoning
B)Query by example
C)Fuzzy logic
D)Keyword searching

Question 52

____ can find records that do not contain the search criteria or that contain a value less than, greater than, or equal to the specified search criteria.

A)Case-based reasoning
B)Query by example
C)Fuzzy logic
D)Keyword searching

Question 53

A configuration management system ____.

A)is typically maintained by the service desk staff and incident management process, as the service desk is the primary beneficiary of the data
B)must be populated automatically by applications such as network inventory software in order to be efficient and effective
C)may provide the ability to view and report on all of the incidents reported about or changes made to a particular hardware device
D)is typically one single, standalone tool used to store information about the components installed on a computer or network along with related information

Question 54

To track and collect alerts generated by a network monitoring system and pass them to a central server, where they can be automatically picked up, evaluated, and, when appropriate, logged as an incident, a ____ system would be best.

A)remote monitoring
B)remote control
C)self healing
D)knowledge management

Question 55

Which technology consists of a bright display that sends out visual and, in some cases, audible messages to service desk staff and to customer sites?

A)whiteboards
B)dashboards
C)simultaneous screen transfers
D)instant messaging systems

Question 56

The first step in selecting and implementing any technology for a support organization is to ____.

A)define the requirements
B)identify candidate vendors
C)determine the budget available
D)define the goals

Question 57

Which would be a high-level requirement when selecting an incident management system?

A)operating system requirements
B)customization requirements
C)security requirements
D)usability requirements

Question 58

When selecting a tool, expect ____ percent of your requirements to be satisfied "out of the box."

A)30
B)50
C)80
D)100

Question 59

_______ are inventions, processes, or methods that enable the creation and enhancement of tools.

Question 60

A(n) _______ greets callers when all service desk analysts are busy and can provide valuable information when customers are asked to wait on hold.

Question 61

On an automatic call distributor (ACD), a(n) _______ state means the analyst is logged on to the ACD but is not accepting calls.

Question 62

A(n) _______ is an automatic call distribution (ACD) feature that routes calls based on input provided by the caller through a touch-tone telephone.

Question 63

The "I" in CTI stands for _______.

Question 64

_______ systems enable a company to monitor calls and evaluate analyst performance or tape calls for security purposes.

Question 65

A(n) _______ is a web "supersite" that provides a variety of services, such as site searches to locate pertinent articles and white papers, a product buyers' guide, and discussion or message boards.

Question 66

Knowledge management systems support the DIKW hierarchy. The "D" in this hierarchy stands for _______.

Question 67

A(n) ____-based system is made up of units of information, such as online documents, database records, or the solution to a common incident, and a set of question and answer pairs that can be used to confirm the solution to an incident.