Symantec® ServiceDesk Customization Guide 7.0
8
Introduction
With Symantec® ServiceDesk 7 software, you can provide the level of service that your
organization expects and can afford, keeping hundreds—even tens of thousands—of
computers running efficiently, while providing new services on a regular basis.
The key is to create an organized environment that quickly responds to reported issues,
and, at the same time, advertises and provides new services to the organization. The
ultimate goal is to provide better service by automating as many steps as possible, and,
where automation isn't possible, to increase the efficiency of the people who provide the
services.
Intended Audience
This guide (particularly sections 2 and 3), is for administrative users who plan to
customize ServiceDesk 7 on their own. You can also leverage experienced consultants to
help.
Note:
It is required that you have working knowledge of Symantec Workflow in order to
perform many of the configuration steps explained in this document.
ServiceDesk 7 High-Level Capabilities
ServiceDesk 7 can be configured to capture issues electronically through e-mail or from
other applications, or through special Web-based screens designed for end-users or
technicians to log an incident. End-users receive updates on all problems that they
report. Once an issue is reported, it can be prioritized and routed to the right people who
can solve the problem and report the success back to the users and management.
ServiceDesk 7 has many automated capabilities that can drive down the amount of
human effort needed to correct issues. In other cases, where several people need to be
involved in the process, such as purchasing, installing, and provisioning a new server,
ServiceDesk 7 can provide coordination between all of the parties to help eliminate
delays and improve service levels. ServiceDesk 7 can then become a central
communication and coordination center for all of the things going on in the IT
department, and in many cases it can extend beyond IT to provide services to Facilities,
Telecommunications, Human Resources, Equipment Maintenance, and so on.
An IT process is a predefined series of steps that are executed in a repeatable way to
deliver the same expected outcome each time the process is triggered. When a company
can move from a place where IT problems are solved in an ad-hoc manner to one where
every issue is handled in an efficient and repeatable manner, cost goes down and end
user satisfaction goes up.
A workflow is the implementation of an IT process in ServiceDesk 7. Workflows are
housed in projects, built in the Symantec Workflow software.