Durham, NC - In today's technology-infused workplace, computers and phones are essential tools of almost every. When they don't work as expected, productivity suffers.

Duke staff, faculty and students submit nearly 100,000 IT help requests each year on topics from email and software to network connectivity and computer viruses.

Here's a look at what happens behind the scenes when a Duke user needs IT help:

• The Office of Information Technology's Service Desk provides front-line support, fielding more than 7,500 phone calls, emails, chat requests and walk-up visitors to the Link in Perkins Library every month. An analyst in OIT's call center creates a "ticket" for every request so it can be tracked in Support@Duke, a system that also includes a knowledge base of resolutions to common problems. About 70 percent of incoming "tickets" are resolved with that first call, according to OIT Service Desk manager Paula Batton.
• If the issue can't be resolved with that first call, the ticket is "escalated," or assigned to a different group that handles desktop support. An analyst in that group follows up with the customer, either on the phone or in person, to get additional details and troubleshoot the issue.
• If that group still can't resolve the issue, the ticket is escalated again to an IT group that specializes in that area. Those analysts try to replicate the issue and occasionally reach out to the vendor (such as Microsoft or Cisco) for further assistance. Once the issue is resolved, the desktop support group lets the user know.

The Support@Duke system - which was implemented this spring, replacing an older issue-tracking tool - offers new capabilities for tracking issues across the campus and health system, Batton said.

"This system makes it easier to identify bottlenecks and areas where we can improve service," she said. "We also can access the system and view details about a ticket from mobile devices, so if an analyst is nearby, we can go right to the customer and help."

President Richard H. Brodhead recently got some help from OIT when he accidentally deleted changes he made to a major talk. OIT was able to recover the changes he had made to the document.

"I bet I'm like a lot of people across the university: I use computers all day long, but when a problem arises, I need help," Brodhead said. "I'm enormously grateful for the competent, cheerful assistance I always get from OIT."