Progent's Shared Service Desk
Progent's Co-managed Help Desk service is intended for businesses with between 50 and 500 end users and permits your IT team to divide responsibilities for Help Desk services seamlessly between your in-house network support team and Progent's extensive pool of IT support engineers and subject matter experts (SMEs). Progent's Co-managed Service Desk is a joint IT support solution built around ConnectWise Manage, the industry-leading Professional Services Automation tool for administering IT support calls, issuing trouble tickets, designating ownership, tracking progress, and producing management analytics. The cost for Level 1 IT support for Progent's Shared Help Desk service averages under $18 per user per month.
Progent's Co-managed Help Desk Service offers a transparent supplement to your core network support staff. Client interaction with the Service Desk, delivery of technical assistance, problem escalation, ticket creation and updates, efficiency measurement, and management of the support database are consistent regardless of whether issues are taken care of by your in-house support group, by Progent's team, or a mix of the two. All end-user service calls are ranked as Level 1, 2 or 3 issues. Progent focuses on whatever support level or levels you select (usually Level 1 and Level 3). Initial service calls are assigned to your in-house IT support organization or to Progent's Technical Response Center, based on your instructions. Level 2 or Level 3 tickets can be referred to Progent's Experts Team of subject matter experts (SMEs). The escalation activity is transparent to your clients. Your business has complete flexibility to expand or reduce your share of IT support activity as needed. Progent takes care of startup installation and provisioning of the professional services PSA software as well as documentation, testing and education.
A shared ticketing system tracks support issues throughout the entire trouble ticket lifecycle
Progent's Technical Response Center
Progent's Technical Response Center (TRC) has been delivering remote technical assistance for over twenty years and has active clients in each state in the U.S. (see Progent's customer testimonials.) The TRC maintains the team of seasoned computer technicians who can resolve Level 1 tickets, which represent the majority of Service Desk support calls. The Technical Response Center, like Progent's Experts Team, uses the ConnectWise Manage professional services automation (PSA) platform to automate ticketing, tracking progress, responsibility delegation, escalation and reporting. This keeps issues from falling through the cracks and gives clients continual understanding about all support services provided. The Technical Response Center targets 90% live answer rate and enables Progent's Shared Service Desk Services to include a 60-minute service-level agreement. Support times are 5am to 7pm Pacific Time on standard work days. Extended support times and on-premises support are offered at extra cost. For more details about Progent's TRC, see The Technical Response Center Customer Commitment.
Definition of Service Levels
Progent provides three distinct levels of online technical help, which correspond to industry-recognized Tier 1 through Tier 3 service. You can choose which support levels will be handled wholly or in part by Progent's support team and your in-house resources. The size and scope of Progent's team of SMEs enables fast and effective ticket escalation and makes it possible to rely on Progent as a single source for the majority of IT problems at any Tier. Also, Progent's provision of knowledge transfer allows key support issues to move from higher to lower levels as solution processes become recorded and normalized so they can be performed by less skilled and less expensive support staff.
Support levels are defined as:
- Level 1 Support: Categorizes Help Desk calls and delivers basic IT help and debugging, like password resets, printer configurations, break/fix instructions, ticket routing and promotion to Level 2 and Level 3 support. A Level 1 tech gathers and analyzes information about the user's issue and determines the best way to resolve the problem. Level 1 service can also include assistance for identified Level 2 and 3 problems where mitigation solutions have previously been documented.
- Level 2 Support: Primarily addresses break/fix, configuration issues, troubleshooting, software deployment, and hardware repair including on-premises fixes or coordinating depot services. This Level deals with promoted issues that Level 1 support is not equipped to handle. Level 2 service will occasionally migrate to Level 3, depending on the problem and the manner the Service Desk operates.
- Level 3 Support: Troubleshooting, setup, DBA, and migrations for server, cloud integration, email, collaboration, and common infrastructure problems. Besides having the capability to deploy solutions to new issues, a Level 3 consultant usually has the most expertise.
Example of a Ticket Lifecycle
A typical example of a trouble ticket lifecycle is the situation where your company wants Progent's TRC to triage all support requests. In this case, Progent may be tasked with dealing directly with all the Level 1 issues your end users report. Progent can escalate other support requests to your in-house network support staff. Your internal network support group would then take on the Level 2 requests they have the skills and bandwidth to resolve and promote any remaining issues to Progent's Experts Team.
Typical Ticket Lifecycle
A ticket can move transparently within Progent's Technical Response Center, your internal network support team, and Progent's Experts Team
This sample implementation of Progent's Co-managed Help Desk Service has a four-phase ticket lifecycle:
- Your clients initiate requests via the online service portal, a dedicated telephone number, or simply by sending a message to a specific mailbox. This immediately becomes an open request in the trouble ticket system.
- Progent's Technical Response Center receives the trouble ticket request and decides if it will be serviced or forwarded to your in-house Help Desk.
- Your Help Desk gets the escalated ticket request and determines the best method to resolve the problem. If needed, your Help Desk can in turn promote the ticket request back to Progent for assignment to Progent's Experts Team.
- Progent gets the updated trouble ticket request, identifies the best suited SME from the Experts Team, and tasks the designated SME to collaborate with your support staff until the problem is solved or closed.
It is important to note that all support groups that handle the ticket can review and update the content, and the trouble ticket system automatically alerts your end users about changes in ticket status. As a result of the detailed, shared documentation workflows inherent in the ticketing platform, repeat technical problems that at first require a high-level of expertise can eventually migrate to a lower Tier for faster and less expensive remediation.
Key Features of Progent's Service Desk
Important features of Progent's Co-managed Service Desk program include:
- Pooled Level 1 help from Progent's Technical Response Center (TRC) staff
- Level 1 remote support provided 5 days a week, 5am-7pm Pacific Time, One-hour SLA
- Special per-hour rate and one-minute granularity for Level 1 support for users
- Average price of Level 1 support is around $18 montly per user
- Level 2 and Level 3 support from Progent SME provided on request at Progent's normal consulting rates
- De-escalation permits problems that at first require Level 2 or Level 3 support to move to a lower, less expensive Tier after procedures are documented
- StreamlineIT provides a complete implementation of ConnectWise Manage PSA software with secure multitenancy
Details of Progent's Shared Call Desk Support Program
Progent's Shared Help Desk program is intended to provide a versatile, co-operative call desk system for mid-size organizations. Specifics of these services, with Progent responsible for Level 1 support, include:
- Offered only in USA and US territories
- Initial startup fee based on complexity of the solution
- Beginning day one, you are assigned by Progent a Technical Resource Center (TRC) Coordinator and a TRC Service Lead to resource, appoint and communicate with your team and your users. Progent's TRC Service Lead will work with you to create a What Goes Where document to help seamlessly escalate issues to your service group or de-escalate back to Progent's team of engineers.
- Live Answer of incoming service calls to Progent Technical Response Center with a target of 90% Live Answer of all calls
- After determining whether server or networking assistance is needed, some service calls will be passed to Level 2 or 3 support
- All support that needs Level 2 or 3 service will be handled by a Progent expert after receiving client authorization
- 1 hour SLA for Level 1 desktop support in most cases
- Level 1 Support is for end users and covers Windows-powered computers and Apple systems
- Progent Level 2 or 3 support will be charged at standard hourly consulting rates
- Progent will provide skilled resources - Technical Response Center (TRC) desktop specialists during standard hours, Level 2 and 3 as needed
- Progent will dedicate a toll-free phone number and email mailbox for inbound service calls
- Free Remote Control agent with screen sharing for streamlined technical support
- Free ProSight IT Asset Management solution for professional network documentation management
- All Level 1 online support is charged at a discounted hourly rate with per-minute granularity
- All Level 1 service will be done remotely, no on-premises work included
- All onsite support will be invoiced at standard hourly consulting rates
- All on-premises work will have an additional fixed charge plus any documented travel expenses
- All travel expense projections will be disclosed and require client agreement before work or travel will be undertaken
- Projects and distinct Statements of Work (SoWs) will include their individual estimates and fees defined and will be undertaken only following authorization by customer
Graduated Deployment
Progent's phased deployment process allows your business to migrate transparently to a shared Help Desk and a modern ticketing and reporting system. Key phases of the onboarding procedure for Progent's Co-managed Service Desk include:
Initial Steps
- Build your custom Help Desk experience, including your internal team, service locations, and user information
- Progent's consultants will work closely with your company's support group to analyze current incoming support calls
- Configure your incoming support request service to incorporate email, software agents, and a dedicated telephone number
Subsequent Phases
- Progent delivers ticket management training for your company's service group
- Jointly define core workflow and ticket escalation procedures
- Add all your teams and resources that will provide support services
- Develop the announcement message and promotion of the new Call Desk solution
- Pick a specific location or small groups to onboard initially
- Bring additional groups of users into the solution at a workable pace
Optimization
- Study reports and system setup for efficient data and processes
- Add any reports or fields required to enhance the identification or monitoring of frequently seen issues
- Surface missing information that could allow a higher success percentage for Level 1 support requests
Production
- All users have been introduced to the support system and can connect to it
- All relevant client and equipment data is populated in the support system
- You can exchange and administer trouble tickets transparently between your in-house team and Progent
- You are able to view daily, weekly and monthly support performance and trends
Benefits of Progent's Shared Service Desk
Progent's Shared Service Desk offers an array of benefits that enable businesses to provide end users fast and successful IT support while simultaneously cutting expenses and relieving administrative hassle. Benefits of Progent's Shared Help Desk services include:
- Keep complete control over your IT service requests: you determine what trouble tickets are escalated to Progent's support group or taken care of by your in-house service team.
- Rapid access to supplemental IT support professionals when you require them: Progent's professional services automation (PSA) software programmatically routes internal tickets or permits you manually escalate to Progent's Technical Response Center.
- Productivity: Progent's team will review your inbound support requests and identify additional information that would allow a higher success rate for common Level 1 issues. Progent's team can also help you with tag management to expedite problem resolution.
- Seamlessness: Progent's Shared Service Desk is a seamless extension of your internal Help Desk with unified ticketing and reporting so no ticket drops between the seams.
- Happy employees: Users are able to track the progress and status of their IT service calls quickly and easily.
- Management analytics: You benefit from the metrics, responsibility assignments, and activity reporting of a modern PSA platform to assist your organization to build a custom-designed Help Desk experience that delivers top business value.
- Concentrate on your strategic business initiatives, not IT support calls and unhappy users: Your IT managers avoid being bogged down trying to manage ordinary service requests.
For a cost comparison of Call Desk outsourcing vs. maintaining an internal Help Desk, visit outsourced and co-sourced Help Desk benefits.
Read Progent's White Paper: Is Co-managed IT a Good Idea?
Even though maintaining a fully-staffed internal network support group can prove a burden from the budgetary standpoint, plenty of businesses opt for that strategy since it offers them more control over their information system management. But did you know that your business can continue to reap the advantages of a managed IT services firm within the shared network support model. Adopting the shared services model permits your company to keep in command over your system infrastructure while augmenting your own IT team easily and affordably.
To find out more, read our white paper: Is co-managed IT a good idea? (PDF - 632 KB).
Download Progent's Co-managed Service Desk Datasheet
To download a single-page datasheet in PDF format describing Progent's Shared Help Desk, see:
Progent's Shared Help Desk Datasheet. (PDF - 108 KB)
Progent's ProSight Family of Managed Services
Progent has packaged the ProSight suite of remote monitoring and management (RMM) services to streamline critical processes related to IT administration, cybersecurity and maintenance. These services can be integrated with Progent's Shared Call Desk service by deploying agent software on computers to be tracked and managed. Notifications generated by these agents can be routed automatically to Progent's Technical Response Center, processed via the ticketing and monitoring platform, and triaged for Level 1, 2 or 3 treatment.
Samples of ProSight RMM services include:
- ProSight LAN Watch: Network, Server, and Endpoint Monitoring Services
ProSight LAN Watch is Progent's network, server, and endpoint monitoring managed service that incorporates state-of-the-art remote monitoring and management techniques to keep your network running at peak levels by checking the health of vital assets that power your business network. When ProSight LAN Watch uncovers an issue, an alarm is transmitted immediately to your designated IT personnel and your assigned Progent consultant so that all looming issues can be addressed before they have a chance to impact productivity. Find out more about ProSight LAN Watch network, server, and endpoint remote monitoring consulting.
- ProSight WAN Watch: Infrastructure Management
ProSight WAN Watch is an infrastructure management service that makes it easy and affordable for smaller organizations to diagram, monitor, enhance and debug their connectivity hardware such as routers, firewalls, and access points as well as servers, endpoints and other networked devices. Using state-of-the-art Remote Monitoring and Management technology, WAN Watch makes sure that infrastructure topology diagrams are kept updated, captures and displays the configuration information of almost all devices connected to your network, tracks performance, and generates alerts when issues are discovered. By automating complex management processes, ProSight WAN Watch can knock hours off common chores like making network diagrams, reconfiguring your network, locating devices that need important updates, or isolating performance issues. Learn more details about ProSight WAN Watch infrastructure management services.
- ProSight Reporting: In-depth Reporting for Ticketing and Network Monitoring Platforms
ProSight Reporting is an expanding line of real-time management reporting tools designed to work with the industry's leading ticketing and network monitoring platforms such as ConnectWise Manage, ConnectWise Automate, Customer Thermometer, Auvik, and SentinelOne. ProSight Reporting uses Microsoft Graph and features color coding to surface and contextualize critical issues such as inconsistent support follow-up or machines with missing patches. By exposing ticketing or network health problems concisely and in near-real time, ProSight Reporting enhances productivity, reduces management hassle, and saves money. For more information, visit ProSight Reporting for ticketing and network monitoring applications.
- ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS): Managed Backup and Recovery
Progent has partnered with leading backup product companies to produce ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS), a portfolio of subscription-based management outsourcing plans that provide backup-as-a-service. ProSight DPS services automate and track your data backup processes and allow transparent backup and rapid restoration of critical files/folders, applications, images, plus VMs. ProSight DPS helps you protect against data loss caused by equipment breakdown, natural disasters, fire, malware like ransomware, human mistakes, malicious employees, or application glitches. Managed backup services in the ProSight DPS product line include ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup, ProSight 365 Total Backup (formerly Altaro Office 365 Backup, ProSight ECHO Backup using Barracuda dedicated storage, and ProSight DPS MSP360 Cloud and On-prem Backup. Your Progent consultant can assist you to identify which of these managed services are most appropriate for your network.
- ProSight Email Guard: Inbound and Outbound Spam Filtering and Data Leakage Protection
ProSight Email Guard is Progent's spam and virus filtering service that uses the technology of top data security companies to deliver web-based control and comprehensive protection for all your email traffic. The hybrid architecture of Email Guard combines a Cloud Protection Layer with a local security gateway device to offer advanced defense against spam, viruses, Dos Attacks, Directory Harvest Attacks (DHAs), and other email-borne malware. Email Guard's Cloud Protection Layer serves as a first line of defense and blocks the vast majority of threats from making it to your security perimeter. This reduces your vulnerability to inbound attacks and conserves system bandwidth and storage. Email Guard's on-premises security gateway device provides a deeper level of analysis for inbound email. For outbound email, the onsite gateway offers anti-virus and anti-spam filtering, protection against data leaks, and email encryption. The on-premises gateway can also help Exchange Server to monitor and safeguard internal email traffic that stays within your corporate firewall. For more details, visit Email Guard spam and content filtering.
- ProSight Multi-Factor Authentication with Duo: Identity Validation, Endpoint Policy Enforcement, and Protected Single Sign-on
Progent's Duo authentication services incorporate Cisco's Duo technology to protect against password theft through the use of two-factor authentication (2FA). Duo supports single-tap identity confirmation on Apple iOS, Android, and other personal devices. With 2FA, when you log into a protected online account and give your password you are asked to verify your identity via a device that only you possess and that is accessed using a different ("out-of-band") network channel. A wide selection of out-of-band devices can be utilized as this second means of ID validation including an iPhone or Android or wearable, a hardware token, a landline telephone, etc. You can designate several validation devices. For details about ProSight Duo identity authentication services, visit Cisco Duo MFA two-factor authentication services.
- ProSight Shared Help Desk: Outsourced and Co-managed Call Desk Services
Progent's Co-managed Service Desk offers a smooth supplement to your in-house network support team. User interaction with the Help Desk, delivery of support, problem escalation, ticket creation and tracking, efficiency measurement, and maintenance of the service database are consistent regardless of whether incidents are resolved by your corporate network support organization, by Progent's team, or a mix of the two. You have complete flexibility to extend or shrink your part of technical support work as needed. Progent takes care of startup installation and provisioning of the professional services automation (PSA) software as well as documentation, validation and training. To find out more about ProSight Co-Managed Call Desk, see ProSight Shared Support.
- ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM): AI-based Threat Analysis and Ransomware Defense:
Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) is an endpoint protection (EPP) solution that utilizes cutting edge behavior analysis technology from SentinelOne to guard physical and virtual endpoint devices against modern malware assaults such as ransomware and email phishing, which routinely evade traditional signature-based anti-virus products. ProSight ASM protects local and cloud resources and provides a unified platform to automate the complete threat progression including blocking, identification, containment, remediation, and post-attack forensics. Top capabilities include one-click rollback using Windows VSS and real-time system-wide immunization against new threats. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, reseller, and integrator. Read more about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) next-generation endpoint protection and ransomware recovery with SentinelOne technology.
- Progent's Patch Management: Software/Firmware Update Management Services:
Progent's managed services for software and firmware patch management offer businesses of all sizes a versatile and affordable alternative for evaluating, validating, scheduling, implementing, and tracking software and firmware updates to your ever-evolving information system. In addition to maximizing the protection and functionality of your IT environment, Progent's patch management services free up time for your in-house IT staff to focus on line-of-business initiatives and activities that derive the highest business value from your information network. Learn more about Progent's patch management support services.
Why Pick Progent?
As a Microsoft Gold-Certified Partner, Progent offers your users quick and convenient contact with a proven Service Desk team ready to deliver technical support. Progent has years of background delivering phone support for IT systems that incorporate Microsoft products. Progent's focus is on earning the Call Desk a positive image as a major contributor to your organization's success. Progent attempts to fix rather than merely monitor issues, and Progent's goal for established clients is to resolve at least 80% of Service Desk service requests on the first call. First-call success is an important driver in lowering Call Desk expenses, enhancing the image of the IT group in general and the Help Desk in particular, and raising client productivity and satisfaction.
How to Get Started with Progent's Shared Network Service Desk Support
To find out additional information about Progent's Co-managed IT Help Desk Call Center Services, phone 800-993-9400 or refer to Contact Progent.