Archives for March, 2012
by Rob Addy | March 28, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Benchmarking data is a powerful tool. But it can be misused just as any tool can. Benchmarking data is meaningless unless the comparison is against something very very similar to a particular providers operation. Comparing restoration times for servers against switches against PCs against consumer electronics is bogus. Even within these asset classes it is [...]
Category: Support Operations Support Processes Tags: Customer Experience, Customer Perceptions, Market Perceptions, Processes and Methodologies, Support Technologies, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | March 24, 2012 | 2 Comments
Last time we looked at a support premium uplift that I currently consider to be wrong on a variety of levels. This time I will explain why I believe that the introduction of a reactive uplift would be a very good thing. If a provider has truly proactive or predictive services (in accordance with the [...]
Category: Support Strategy Tags: Proactive, Reactive Break / Fix, Support Value Chain, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | March 18, 2012 | 3 Comments
Requiring customers to pay an uplift for extended support is obscene. Or so some would say. Certainly on the face of it, extended support offerings do look less than good value. ISVs typically state that the code line is archived and that no updates, patches or bug fixes will be forthcoming. The very fact that [...]
Category: Support Strategy Support Value Tags: Customer Perceptions, Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Service Definitions, Software Support, Support, Support Value Chain, TRKFAM, Value Proposition
by Rob Addy | March 14, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Sequels are inherently risky. Will it be “The Godfather Part 2” or “The Godfather Part 3”? Is it more of an “Empire Strikes Back” than a “Phantom Menace”? Yes, sequels are risky. They can make or break a franchise. Has the 2nd version of the Maturity Scale helped or hindered the product support cause? Only [...]
Category: Support Operations Support Processes Support Strategy Support Value Tags: Customer Experience, Gartner Product Support Maturity Scale, Support Value Chain, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | March 11, 2012 | Submit a Comment
Do you remember what your life was like before you got a handle on managing the day to day trials of running a product support function? Well many people are still there. Struggling to escape the python-like grip of the reactive break-fix mind set. Flailing against an organisation that doesn’t recognise there even is a [...]
Category: Support Processes Support Strategy Tags: Customer Experience, Processes and Methodologies, Reactive Break / Fix, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | March 6, 2012 | 4 Comments
Question: What have Product Support, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, Amy Winehouse and the Teddy Bears got in common? Answer: The song that launched Phil Spector’s career, “To know him is to love him” To know, know, know him is to love, love, love him Just to see him smile, makes my life [...]
Category: Customer Experience Support Operations Tags: Customer Constituencies, Customer Experience, Customer Perceptions, Processes and Methodologies, TRKFAM
by Rob Addy | March 2, 2012 | Submit a Comment
To some, product support is the festering jockstrap of the IT industry. Sure, it holds things in place during the cut and thrust of everyday operations. It even helps one to avoid undue pain or harm when one is forced to take a hit. But it’s not something to be shown off in public. It’s [...]
Category: Support Messaging Support Strategy Tags:
