Case Study: Automating the Customer Support Ticketing Process

Project Overview: A six-month project was initiated to streamline the company’s customer support ticketing process by automating over 30 manual touchpoints. The goal was to reduce the time customer support specialists spent creating tickets and enable users to submit tickets with all required information directly through the company’s intranet. By automating this process, the company aimed to enhance efficiency, reduce the workload on customer support teams, and improve the overall user experience. The project was completed on time and within budget, resulting in significant time savings for the customer support team.

Scope and Objectives:

• Automate over 30 manual touchpoints in the customer support ticketing process.
• Enable users to submit support tickets with all necessary information through the company’s intranet, removing the need for direct contact with customer support.
• Free up customer support specialists from ticket creation tasks, allowing them to focus on more complex user issues and dedicated support.
• Ensure the system captures all required information for each ticket submission to reduce back-and-forth communications.

Stakeholders:

• Internal Stakeholders: 5 members from the IT, customer support, and operations teams.
• Third-Party Vendors: 3 members responsible for updating the company’s IT infrastructure and configuring the automation tools.
• End Users: Employees and customers who would use the automated ticket submission process through the intranet.

Challenges:

• Extensive Discovery Phase: The project required a thorough discovery phase to identify all the information needed for the automated ticketing system to function seamlessly. This involved mapping out over 30 manual steps, understanding the specific user inputs required, and ensuring the system would reduce errors in ticket submissions.
• Resource Changes: Midway through the project, a key project team member was reassigned to a different initiative, requiring swift adjustments to the resource plan to ensure the project stayed on track.
• Infrastructure Update: The company’s existing IT infrastructure needed to be updated to support the new automation tools. This added complexity, as the infrastructure work had to be completed in parallel with the development of the ticketing process, without disrupting ongoing support operations.

Execution:

• Discovery and Planning Phase: The project began with a comprehensive discovery phase where the project team worked closely with customer support specialists to map out the existing ticketing process. Every manual touchpoint was analyzed, and key information required for each ticket submission was documented. This phase ensured that all necessary data fields and process steps were accounted for in the automation system.
• Automation Design and Infrastructure Update: The next phase involved designing the automated workflow for ticket submission. In tandem, the IT team worked with third-party vendors to update the company's infrastructure, ensuring it could support the new system. This required careful scheduling to avoid disrupting the existing customer support process.
• Resource Reallocation: When the project resource change occurred, responsibilities were swiftly reassigned, and additional team members were brought in to fill gaps. The project plan was adjusted to reflect these changes without affecting the timeline.
• Testing and Deployment: The automated system was tested rigorously using various ticket scenarios to ensure all user inputs were captured correctly, and the system reduced the number of incomplete or inaccurate tickets. After successful testing, the system was deployed on the company’s intranet, where users could begin submitting support tickets directly.

Results:

• On-Time and On-Budget Delivery: The project was completed within the six-month timeline and adhered to the budget. Despite the challenges with resource changes and infrastructure updates, the team stayed focused on the project goals and managed risks effectively.
• Significant Time Savings: The automation of over 30 manual touchpoints saved the customer support team over 40 hours per week. These time savings allowed the team to allocate resources more effectively, focusing on providing better and more personalized support to users with complex issues.
• Improved User Experience: Users could now submit tickets through the intranet without needing to contact customer support directly. This reduced the response time for simple issues and provided a more convenient experience for employees and customers.
• Enhanced Accuracy and Efficiency: The automated system ensured that all required information was captured at the point of ticket submission, reducing the need for follow-up communications. This led to quicker ticket resolution and fewer errors in the ticketing process.

Key Takeaways:

• Thorough Discovery is Essential for Successful Automation: The extensive discovery phase was critical to understanding the complexities of the manual process and ensuring that the automated system captured all necessary information from users. Without this attention to detail, the project could have faced significant issues post-deployment.
• Effective Resource Management: When faced with resource changes, the project team was able to quickly reassign tasks and bring in additional support. This flexibility ensured that the project stayed on track despite internal staffing shifts.

Parallel Execution of Infrastructure Updates: By carefully coordinating the infrastructure updates with the development of the ticketing automation, the project avoided delays and maintained operational continuity.

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