ITIL or HDI? Why Not Enjoy the Benefits of Both?

For most people, calling technical support is somewhere near dental work on a list of fun things to do. Believe it or not, calling tech support for a computer problem doesn’t have to ruin your day. Working with technical support is all about communication as a smooth two-way interaction. The entire reason for your call is to communicate to the support person your need, what the problem is and for them to communicate back to you what you and/or they are able to do to fix your problem and enable you to return to a happier, productive day.

Having an effective support center is a valuable function for any organization. The best of both worlds is possible—improved incident management whilst providing a good, personalized customer experience.

HDI training and certification enables technical support professionals to develop the skills needed to provide excellent customer service. The HDI portfolio is compatible with frameworks such as ITIL®, Microsoft Certified Technical Support and CompTia A+.

I interviewed Simone Jo Moore, an experienced HDI and ITIL instructor to gain an understanding of the synergies between different frameworks like ITIL and HDI and how these synergies can enable organizations to improve customer experience, incident management and other interaction management skills.

Aurélie Dousset: How does HDI complement the ITIL framework and other established industry frameworks, standards, and methodologies?

Simone Jo Moore: The roles within the Support Centre encompass more than ITIL processes so ‘complement’ is the keyword when we talk about HDI, ITIL and other ITSM frameworks in the same sentence. With ITIL being one of the core frameworks used across all roles in IT, it is important that each role within the Support Centre also has a fundamental understanding of how their role impacts and uses the framework.

Aurélie Dousset: Can you share examples of HDI courses complementing ITIL?

Simone Jo Moore: For example, a core activity of a Support Centre Analyst is to manage Incidents. Therefore the HDI Support Center Analyst (HDI-SCA) course includes the key activities within the ITIL Incident Management process, but completes this knowledge with the HDI Certification Standards in customer experience, call management and other interaction management skills. In this way, the role becomes well-rounded and enhanced.

Aurélie Dousset: And what about cross-selling KCS training to your ITIL Customers?

Simone Jo Moore: In essence, the key product of a Support Centre is knowledge. And the key global best practice is Knowledge Centred Support (KCS). It is a principles-based methodology developed by the Consortium for Service Innovation. HDI includes the KCS Certification within its portfolio. Each role has a significant impact on the creation, structure and reuse of Knowledge. And Support Centre reporting capabilities hinge on the accuracy of how well these roles understand and apply Knowledge Management. So KCS is a naturally aligned methodology to complement the individual HDI role certifications.

In fact many ITIL processes (including incident, problem, change and release) are strengthened by knowledge management, for a fundamental reason: ITIL tells you the “why”, but not the (very important) “how”. So many support organizations that have adopted ITIL will be even more successful if they also adopt KCS. That is the thrust of a new collaborative white paper just released by AXELOS and HDI, on the Synergy between ITIL and KCS.

Aurélie Dousset: What is key to success for IT service and technical support organizations?

Simone Jo Moore: An organization needs to have a cohesive and aligned view of training within their overall ITSM strategy and business objectives. The reasons are many and varied but ultimately the capability of your people is the true driver to successful business outcomes.

To find the right combination of in-demand skills, credentials, and experience can be an expensive exercise so HDI commissioned a research report, The War on Talent, produced by Robert Half Technology. As an example, 63 percent of technology executives recently surveyed by Robert Half Technology, said that understaffing in the IT department negatively affects the company’s ability to implement innovative or emerging technologies.

Aurélie Dousset: What are the reasons and benefits for IT support organizations to send their staff on HDI training?

Simone Jo Moore: Here are eight reasons:

1. Whether your customers require initial training, validation of their skills or development to take on higher-level roles, HDI will help them achieve these goals;
2. The HDI Portfolio creates a strong platform on which to build the values and skill strength as a Service and Support Professional;
3. The HDI portfolio offers role-based training. Different people need different knowledge and skills and the timing of their education is also important, in relation to when they come into and how long they’ve held the role;
4. Since its inception, over 100 organizations have earned the HDI Team Certified Award that recognizes the team for its commitment to service excellence through the adoption of best practices and the acquisition of enhanced skills and knowledge;
5. The HDI Standards and course content provide a great tool for team leaders and managers in recruiting, training and performance review activities;
6. The HDI Standards are often used by hiring managers when screening potential employees to validate their quality, knowledge and dedication to customer service and support;
7. Although the organization benefits from having good capability, the individual also benefits from having professional credentials that are recognized on a practical level worldwide;
8. Sending staff on a HDI course sends a message of how seriously the organization is taking the adoption of service management principles and commitment to employee professional development.

For more inspiration, take a look at these two infographics on the Top 5 Reasons to adopt HDI and How HDI Complements Your ITSM Offering.

I would like to thank Simone Jo Moore for taking the time to answer our questions. Read more from Simone on her blog. You can contact her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter.

If you are interested in offering HDI to your customers, visit our HDI web page to learn more about the portfolio, and the ITpreneurs website to learn more about the HDI Training and Certifications.

Need more information? Please contact ITpreneurs.