From Techno-hole to Your Friendly, Neighborhood Geek

The Time has Come for IT Support to become Client Support

by Michael Delcour

Do you hate your company’s IT guy/gal? What about that acidic voice on the other of the line when your computer won’t turn on? I’m one of them, and even I can’t stand these people — the rudeness, arrogance, or even just ambivalence. Some them, if you look hard enough, even post on Medium!

I know I am not perfect, but I try very hard to shake the IT Guy shadow. It is harder than it seems like it should be, partly because most IT people are playing against a stacked deck. First, most of our interactions with non-geeks are precipitated by a calamitous event. “The presentation I spent the last 30 hours reworking can’t be found!” “I clicked on an email attachment and now someone is holding my computer for ransom!” “All of my contacts vanished!” Something like that just happened and then you call us. Panicked clients often make for panicked support.

Second, IT Geeks (loud and proud) are not really integrated into the culture of most businesses. Consider a large law firm or a hospital — such operations need an IT department, but that IT department has nothing really to do with the practice of law or medicine. The geeks are more akin to the janitorial staff — there to service the firm or the hospital. Like custodians, IT personnel are best liked when they are neither seen nor heard. In other words, the lawyers and the doctors want their trash emptied and their email flowing, but they really don’t care how it is done (in fact, they prefer not to know).

Third, many firms do not value IT until there is a crisis. Crises generate 90% of my business as a consultant. This means that until there is a crisis, most IT departments are underfunded and understaffed, often with a good number of employees that shouldn’t be making the cut. Even after the crisis hits, many firms hire outside consultants like me, and then go back to the status quo after everything cools down. There is no doubt that this kind of culture takes a toll on morale.

But hold on — who cares? There are elements of the IT professional that suck. That only makes an IT job like every other job. It is not an excuse to be belligerent or indignant to the people we are supposed to be helping.

So, it is time for the profession to pivot toward serving clients (whether they be in-house or external) first. The focus should be on making clients comfortable enough to ask questions and taking responsibility when things go wrong. It requires a humility that is sorely lacking throughout the technology industry. It also demands that IT support personnel start each day appreciating that they do not have all the answers. In my own practice, I live by these words: “Technology is designed to be used to everyone’s benefit.” The consequences of this mantra are deceptively substantial. Most importantly, if a client has a problem with their technology, at least some of the blame falls on the technology itself. Technological development should always be a push to intuitive design and where that fails, we should be the ones to facilitate.

As far as IT support goes, if at least part of the problem is caused by the technology, this creates a need to at least sympathize with the struggling client. Sympathy leads to respect, respect leads to better problem-solving. By keeping such client interactions non-confrontational, clients are more likely to learn, which means they will be better-served by their technology. It also means that clients will be more likely to call again when trouble arises.

Here a few tips that can turn one from tech-hole to tech-buddy:

• Stop rolling your eyes. Even if your client can’t see you, eye-rolling is nonetheless perceptible.
• Stop using boilerplate language to apologize: “We apologize for the inconvenience…” More generally, don’t speak like a Microsoft support technician. Use your own words that connote sympathy: “What a pain! This shouldn’t be happening. Let’s get this fixed!”
• Socialize with your clients or non-IT coworkers. You don’t need to take everyone out for a drink, but learn people’s names and act interested in their lives. Focus on integrating, not isolating.

Good luck!

Michael Delcour is a technology consultant searching for creative solutions to the everyday problems. Through Delcour Solutions LLC, he serves clients in Chicagoland and across the country. Learn more at delcoursolutions.com.