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Earlier this academic year, Information Systems (IS) conducted a customer satisfaction survey. This survey was a key component of current efforts to better assess the needs of our customers in order to sharpen our focus in the future.
Almost 600 people – of whom 14% were faculty, 42% were students, and 44% were administrative/support staff – responded to the survey; a detailed report is available at http://web.mit.edu/measures/survey/report. We have reviewed and analyzed the responses, and although there is clear evidence that many of the customers surveyed were satisfied with the service offerings they receive from IS, it is equally clear that faculty are less satisfied with our services (see table).
The areas that we believe to be of most concern to faculty are highlighted below, along with a briefing on the current status of initiatives that we are pursuing to improve performance in these key areas. [For an overview of Information Systems click here.]
Communication
We recognize that communication between IS and the rest of the MIT community and especially the faculty is critical, and improving such communication is a top priority. Currently, we are pursuing a three-pronged communication initiative. A project team is exploring ways to allow personalization of IS's Web pages so that faculty and other customers can more easily and more rapidly find what they need (e.g., an answer to a question about whether or not MIT has a site license for software, or Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to alleviate waiting for a Help Desk response) when they need it. At the same time, we are looking at new ways to increase the timeliness and relevance of IS communication, and we are putting together a training program to increase the customer service and communication skills of IS staff.
Help Desk/Call Center Responsiveness and Support
It is clear that faculty find the quality and timeliness of Help Desk services to be uneven. Faculty respondents to our survey noted that sending e-mail typically gets better and speedier responses than calling the Help Desk, where responses tend to vary in quality from call to call (or visit to visit), and return contacts can take days or longer. Currently, students working under staff supervision provide most of the staffing for the Help Desk's Call Center. This staffing model is cost-effective and beneficial in that students not only bring technical expertise, but also considerable energy, creativity, and a cultural understanding of MIT to IS's help services. However, this staffing model has obvious limitations that contribute to the uneven quality of service perceived by faculty and other customers. We believe that we must explore a new mix of staff in the Call Center – one that increases the number of professional staff and reduces the number of student staff – to provide better customer service, better problem-solving, fewer handoffs, and higher numbers of promptly answered calls and resolved questions. We have already implemented a Call Center Facilitator role to monitor Help Desk calls and adjust assignments; this has decreased the time spent on hold and increased the percentage of calls answered. We are also exploring expanding our hours of operation to better mirror the work patterns of the MIT community.
Remote Access Service
In survey responses, faculty noted that the Tether dialup service is "slow, clunky, and almost impossible from overseas," as well as excessively expensive relative to commercially available Independent Service Providers (ISPs). We will continue to maintain the Tether service as it provides functional connectivity for faculty, students, and staff who live off-campus and do not need or have access to faster cable modems or DSL services. At the same time, we will continue to explore other connectivity options. Tether rates will become $10/month effective July 1, 2001.
Higher-Speed Network Service
Our goal is to deliver ubiquitous 100 Mb/s network service to the desktop at MIT. The largest impediments facing us are the needs to replace aging wiring and address the lack of communications (phone) closets that can accommodate 100 Mb/s network services. We are committed to extending 100 Mb/s service throughout the campus as rapidly as space can be identified for communications closets. Given current space assignments, space for these new closets will often need to be provided by departments, laboratories, and centers who desire 100 Mb/s service in their areas. Work is currently underway to build new closets and completely rewire Building 8; we are currently investigating doing the same in Buildings 1, 3, and 68. Similar work has recently been completed in Buildings 66 and 33. We are also carefully reviewing campus buildings to identify where 100 Mb/s service can be delivered from existing facilities. Costs associated with this work are generally covered by the network rates. (Network rates are set to cover the full cost of providing network service. These costs are not subsidized; nor is there a surplus to subsidize other services.)
Network Installation
It is clear that faculty want quicker response times between requests for network connections and their installation. Last summer, a team was formed to focus solely on the voice, data, and network installation process. This team will work to do a better job of acknowledging requests, improving scheduling and timeframes, and keeping customers informed. As we gain more experience with these new processes, we will publish performance measures for this work.
Wireless Service
By the end of June, 2001, we expect to provide wireless network service (IEEE 802.11b) to all of the Institute's classrooms and libraries, as well as some public areas including the Student Center. For customers directly connected to MITnet, there is no additional cost for wireless service. IS will work with those departments, laboratories, and centers who wish to extend the wireless infrastructure into their areas.
Desktop Computing and Hardware Support
We recognize that current faculty needs for desktop computing are generally met. Our goal is to maintain the current satisfaction level while expanding the services we make available. We are currently in a rebidding process to select a new preferred vendor for hardware purchases; this should improve the level of service and price advantage over our current preferred vendor, NECX. We expect the new vendor to be in place by September, 2001.
Software Support
Recently, IS put in place a Software Release Team to make necessary customizations to software (e.g., so that it does not impair the functioning of another supported application), and then package, document, and distribute it for installation. This has addressed many outstanding issues in the software support area. Additional improvements continue to be made. For example, we are working to announce forthcoming software releases in a more timely way, and to follow these announcements with an equally timely software release. We are exploring additional volume licenses for software, paying special attention to academic needs, and developing an easy guide for finding useful information about software.
Web Development
We recognize the increasing interest from faculty in using the Web for course-related materials. Faculty Liaisons (f_l@mit.edu) and other consultants in IS provide office visits, and the staff in the Electronic Media Creation Center (EMCC) are available to help. We are also working with the Registrar to upgrade classrooms to support increasing use of electronic media.
In summary, we are committed to moving forward in each one of these areas. We appreciate your responses to our survey and your interest in Information Systems, and we recognize the critical importance of working with you to align our future efforts with your needs and the needs of the whole Institute. Please feel free to send e-mail to me with any comments or suggestions about this article or IS.
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