May 2nd, 2011 by admin
Hello! I’m Steve from Front Line Support. I deal mainly with the Avaya line of products, but also get calls periodically for the Genband and Ericsson lines as well. Over the next couple of weeks, I’d like to share with you the inner-workings of the Support Team at Innovatia and give you a glimpse into a day in my life.
I’d first like to share with you what I like about working here, and a bit on Innovatia’s stance on the work/life balance, which, in my experience, is second to none.
When I arrive to work, I have a sort of checklist of things I need to do: bring up databases, email, and most importantly, get a large coffee to keep me going for the day. Then it’s time to focus, work hard, and get things done. I enjoy my job, and every day brings new challenges and opportunities to keep things interesting. At the end of the day, however, I have the opportunity to go home and leave work at work. I can enjoy my time with my family and friends, and get myself ready for the next day without worrying about issues at the workplace. This is just one of the reasons I enjoy what I do.
One more reason? My co-workers are great. I enjoy my job, and they’re a large part of it. From the top down, we’ve got a passion for customer service and that’s what keeps us rising to the top. It’s crucial to put your best foot forward in a competitive business environment, and that’s what we all do at Innovatia every day.
Stay tuned as I share more insights into the “day in the life” of a Front Line Support worker at Innovatia – and comment below if you have questions or would like to share your stories!
Steve Dunlop
Front Line Support Agent
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
April 29th, 2011 by admin
I was asked today by an employee what they need to do to become a future manager and what can they do in their current role to help them into a future leadership role. After some careful thought, here was my response:
Do your current job really well. Maintain strong follow-through skills – always do what you say you will. Stay organized and make daily and weekly lists of what you need and want to accomplish – and keep them in check. Be a master at conducting meetings. Setup an agenda and only lead a meetings on subjects you know best, and learn the topics you’re not yet comfortable with.
Remain calm no matter what pressures arise. Be a self-starter. Work independently, but also work well with others. Find solutions, not problems. Help others do their best by giving good advice and always listening intently. Be a people person – easy going, but not a push-over.
Understand how the business works. Know the inputs and outputs of workflow. In your role, understand where and why issues arise, how it gets to you and then where it goes when you pass it on. Understand the customer experience and put yourself in their shoes, and those of the team members you work with. Have you given them everything they need to succeed? Also, understand what you and your team are accountable for and how it’s measured and then help the team achieve those goals.
Finally, anything you can do to help your bosses look good is a major bonus and will make you go far. Maybe the focus should be put on the other points first, however.
Brad White
Director of Operations – Technical Support Services
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
March 29th, 2011 by admin
We’ve just finished day 2 of the PCC conference and Trade Show in Greenville, SC and what a great day it has been. Alex, Dave, Rob and I have reconnected with our customers and partners and have made a number of new connections as numerous people have dropped by our booth.
We have had a chance to share our latest training courses, documentation and technical support products. We spent a good part of the day learning about Avaya’s updated product roadmaps, the latest in industry trends and have had the chance to share ideas with other vendors, customers and partners.
The tradeshow floor has over 25 booths which has provided a great way for everyone to interact and discuss these ideas in the same room. In my opinion, meeting people face to face is still the best way to do business.
Brad White
Director of Operations – Technical Support
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
March 8th, 2011 by admin
Ok – I must admit. When I was first asked to do a “Blog” about technical support, I wasn’t really keen on the idea. So many things to do and so little time to do them. My intentions were good, but I soon found myself not being able to concentrate long enough to put my best effort into it. Instead of taking 30 minutes and sitting down to write a blog on the many topics that were suggested like “why outsource technical support”, “benefits of Innovatia technical support” or “what are customers are saying”, I chose to procrastinate and hide from our social media department. This included cancelling meetings, ducking out of the way when I saw them coming and making sure eye contact was not made in at our monthly corporate meetings.
They soon lured me in with food. How could I turn down the Christmas Bloggers lunch or the Bloggers Lunch and Learn with delicious soup and sandwich combo’s and cookies? How did they know I didn’t bring lunch and didn’t have money that day? (Or maybe I was planning on raiding the fridge for left over lunches?). It was too much, and eventually I was brought into the enemy’s lair to be schooled on the importance of Social Media in Corporations.
That being said, I’m now a believer of Social Media and the importance of letting our customers, employees and potential customers know what’s going on within the Corporation whether it’s through blogging on the website, sending tweets from tradeshows or providing daily news updates. It is 2011 and I’m glad to say I’m keeping up with the times, and with my company.
Brad White
Director of Operations – Technical Support
Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
March 1st, 2011 by admin
I learned many years ago that it’s important to keep a solid work/life balance.
With over 130 resources in our technical support dept and under my responsibility it’s very easy to get overwhelmed; customer escalations, people issues, management issues, finances, metrics, politics, new projects, performance evaluations, meetings, technical issues … !
Some days can be a huge challenge trying to keep up with the myriad of issues coming our way. And if you take your eye off the ball for an hour or two you can be presented with a dozen or so new fresh emails ready to be urgently answered. Ah the life of technical support!
Does it stop when I get home? No – there’s 5 kids to feed, then off to hockey, cheerleading, soccer, volleyball, drama, choir — you name it; the kids are in it. Some days I get home at 10:30 at night for dinner just in time to chill out for an hour before going to bed and getting up to do it all over again, unless of course there’s band practice, gym or a Friday night gig with my rock band.
How do you do it, you say? I enjoy every minute. The variety keeps me somewhat sane, and I’ve learned to completely separate work life from home life. Every activity is its own entity to be enjoyed in its own time. You can’t let one overtake another. Time with kids is not the time to be thinking about workload or “to dos”. When it’s time to work , go hard and put in a 100% effort.
Work/Life Balance is a learned discipline. Once in a while there’s definately stress, but good planning and having an “easy going” attitude helps me through. No worries.
- Brad White – Manager, Technical Support
Tags: hobbies, work life balance, work play
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
February 25th, 2011 by admin
Many people have asked that question and there are many good reasons our customers choose Innovatia to support their products and services. Those benefits include tapping into a wealth of experience with Customer Service, Training, Tools, Technology, Metrics and Management.
We’ve done it all before many times over and know how to support our customers and their end users. It’s all about understanding the customer expectations and target metrics up front and then bringing in the right resources to support those customer expectations.
At Innovatia we do an excellent job in screening and interviewing the right candidates for the right job and then create a positive, fun environment focused on constant training & performance. We specialize in technical management but it’s a bonus that we can tap into the other areas of Innovatia like E-Learning, Documentation, Frontline and Professional services to provide the customer with a full technical customer service experience.
Choosing Innovatia for your technical support needs is a wise choice.
Tags: call center, end-user support, Innovatia, outsourcing, support services
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
November 30th, 2010 by admin
Employee recognition is an important element of creating a happy and healthy workforce. However, often (and not purposely), recognition falls to the bottom of our list while we struggle to squeeze the vast quantity of work into our hectic day. The benefits of recognition far outweigh the minimal time and effort it actually takes to do. The outcome results in employees that feel valued and appreciated, with a sense of belonging and ownership in their work place. It also increases employee morale, loyalty, motivation, and retention – all things that should be important to any leader of people!
There are several methods to acknowledge a job well done, and can often be accomplished without incurring any cost at all. These types of rewards can sometimes be more meaningful than a monetary gift. A simple “thank you” still goes a long way. How about sending an employee an email with three things you appreciate about them? Why not send them a note of gratitude and copy your manager? There are loads of ideas that you can find on-line. Do a search and see what may fit for your particular business or team.
How to begin? Try blocking time in your calendar once a week to allow a few moments to recognize someone. Getting started is the hardest part, once you do; it becomes part of your routine. I promise that you won’t have trouble finding someone deserving!
Tina
Tags: employee recognition
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
September 23rd, 2010 by admin
Tina Melvin, blogger for Support Services, and Leslie Magee, blogger for Training present their views and information on training today’s contact center employees. Head over to the Training Blog to check it out!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
July 26th, 2010 by admin
Innovatia recently hired a number of new Engineers (SME’s-Subject Matter Experts) from various locations in the US including Raleigh, Denver and Orlando. Recently some of these SME’s spent 2 weeks in little old Saint John providing mentoring and training to our local resources. Surprising to them (and us), they actually enjoyed themselves here. We didn’t quite know what their initial reaction would be to this small town but the feedback was extremely positive and all said they’d love to come back.
Saint John has a very rich history dating back to the French explorer Samuel De Champlain arriving at the mouth
of what is now the St. John River in 1604. Saint John boasts many landmarks including one of the earliest know settlements Fort Latour (1631), Reversing Falls, Bay of Fundy Tides (highest in the World), Historic City Market along with thousands of historical properties dating back to the 1700’s. Don’t forget it’s the home of the Loyalists (1762), Benedict Arnold, and was the First Incorporated City in Canada.
Other comments made by our visitors include the friendliness of the people, the many music festivals and local talent, the local beer (go figure) as well as the great seafood found in our local Bars and Restaurants. In the words of Steve Kapps “I’m just delighted to be here”.
All stated it was a truly enjoyable trip and we hope to have these great employees back to our great City.
Brad White
Tags: Innovatia, New Brunswick, Saint John, SME, Subject Matter Experts
Posted in SME | No Comments »
| | |
