Technical Support Manager Certification 5-days class includes training, certification exam, and take home tools Register online and get a free book! Register online with a credit card and save $175 !

Overview

Technical Support Manager Certification program is designed for technical support managers. This course, developed in conjunction with forty leading IT companies, offers an opportunity to achieve an industry-recognized one-year renewable certification. In today’s competitive market, this program can provide the distinction that sets individuals and companies apart as the best in the technical support industry.

The 32-hour CSM course is uniquely created to provide training on the standard fundamentals of management, relative to the support environment and to enhance the inherent skills and knowledge of the support manager. This course focuses specifically on the most common management elements that occur in the technical support center, including leading, coaching, and facilitating a team while managing a dynamic service product. This course also prepares participants to take the Certified Support Manager Certification exam. Successful completion of the exam results in recognition by the foremost certification board in the service and support industry. This recognition demonstrates to your customers that your Support Center is comprised of talented professionals who have mastered the skills necessary for excellent service and support delivery.

Requirements:

Technical Support Manager Certification course is designed for managers who possess a foundation of basic management skills.

The course begins with a review and quiz on a set of pre-class reading materials. These materials are sent to each participant 2 weeks prior to the class start date. Participants are strongly encouraged to register at least 2 weeks in advance to allow time to complete these pre-class assignments.

Each participant is required to bring the pre-class reading materials as well as a laptop with a CD drive and with MS Excel, Word, and Powerpoint installed. These will be used as tools during the course. All other materials and tools will be provided. Homework is assigned for most evenings of the course. Please plan for study time outside of class.

Look at this agenda!

Section One

• Managerial Leadership and Behavior

  • Discuss the benefits of a well-founded and communicated values system in a knowledge organization.

  • Use the REM (Resourceful, Evaluative, Maximizing) Model in managing performance and motivational issues.

  • Identify the three managerial systems that make up the foundation of an effectively managed support organization.

  • Plan for change and assess the impact of change on the support operation.

  • Analyze the business maturity levels of subordinates

• Understanding the Service Product

  • Compare and contrast the key similarities and differences of service products and tangible products.

  • Express and explain the unique nature of service products.

  • Examine and explain the nature of support solutions as service products.

  • Manage for quality in the design, development and delivery of the Knowledge Product.

  • Examine and illustrate the open systems view of Customer Support Center Management.

  • Compare, define and describe the differences between support agent solution delivery and customer self-service.

  • Express the definition of Knowledge and the definition of a Service Product as they are used in the support organization.

• Managing Strategically at the Support Center Level

  • Categorize and explain the strategic relevance of support offerings to subordinate support practitioners.

  • Explain how support offerings contribute to the overall strategies of the organization.

  • Select and design service strategies that compliment the company's product strategies.

  • Examine the support strategy and manage support center operations consistent with corporate strategies.

• Decision Making for Support

  • Identify the production resources of the support center.

  • Recognize and explain how decisions affect the production resources of the support center.

  • Recognize and assess the impact of risk, bias, past experience and the political environment on the decision making process.

  • Identify who should make which decisions: individual, team, manager, or outside entity.

  • Evaluate and recognize how to define and change the level of empowerment of each individual in the support organization.

  • Evaluate the costs and benefits of centralized and decentralized decisions.

  • Identify and describe the elements of a sound decision making process.

  • Use the multi-criteria decision tool to identify and select the best-fit alternative when dealing with multiple criteria.

Section Two

• Customer Focus and Satisfaction

  • Formulate customer satisfaction survey questions to maximize the value of customer responses to the operation.

  • Identify important characteristics of an event survey and how to avoid the most common pitfalls.

  • Employ a variety of useful tools to analyze survey data.

  • Identify the three survey questions that comprise a useful customer loyalty index.

  • Analyze case study information, identify process and data anomalies and recommend remedial actions.

• Performance Measurement and Metrics

  • Recognize the characteristics of a good performance system.

  • Recognize the characteristics of a good performance metric.

  • Determine whether a correlation exists between two metrics and measure the strength and direction of that correlation

  • Enumerate and describe the four pillars of a Balanced Scorecard system.

  • Create key performance indicators as part of a Balanced Scorecard system.

• Training and Career Development Plans

  • Recognize the role of the manager in employee training.

  • Differentiate the need for training from the need for performance coaching.

  • Develop and inspect objectives for training.

  • Create and review individual training and development plans.

• Hiring for the Support Center

  • Develop selection criteria for filling an open position.

  • Employ steps in hiring process.

  • Interview using a systematic approach.

• Performance Management and Retention

  • Recognize the role of the manager in the performance of employees.

  • Calculate the cost of attrition versus the cost of Performance Management.

  • Use the Coaching Analysis technique in managing performance problems.

  • Identify the steps in the face-to-face discussion with problem employees

• Operations Management and Productivity

  • Use operations analysis tools in managing the support center operations.

  • Complete a statistical process control analysis of the incoming calls in your support center.

  • Use learning curve analysis in planning for call center staffing.

  • Determine the key elements of scheduling support representatives in a demand environment.

  • Create a staffing plan using the M/M/s queuing model to determine the required staff for a real time call center.

• Financial Management

  • Calculate the YTD projected variance of the actual expense to the annual planned expense.

  • Generate a Going-Rate analysis of an annual expense plan.

  • Calculate Net Support Profit and Net Support Profit Rate.

  • Create a linear forecast and an exponential forecast from recent historical date.

  • Determine whether a linear forecast or an exponential forecast is the best fit for your historical data.

  • Calculate a seasonality adjustment rate.

  • Generate a seasonably adjusted linear and exponential forecast.

  • Measure the relative value of current and future cash flows.

  • Develop a cost-benefit analysis and determine the Net Present Value of a project, future investment, or purchase.

  • Use a cost benefit simulation to determine the likely outcome distribution of a proposed project

• The Support Value Chain

  • Describe and appraise the contributions of the support organization to the overall value chain of the company.

  • Recognize how to enhance value for the customer by managing service product development.

Certification Exam

Once the course is completed, a written certification exam is given and graded by the instructor. Participants are notified of their status by email post class. Those who obtain a passing score receive a plaque suitable for mounting from the SSPA, the governing body of the individual certification program, designating the candidate as a Certified Support Manager.

Special bonuses for on-line registration!

Register from this web site and receive a complimentary help desk book from the Resource Center^* . To learn more about these bonus items, click on the open book icons to the left of each title.  Choose from these books:

How to Measure Customer Satisfaction
Coaching for World Class Customer Support
Managing the Implementation of New Support Systems
How to Establish and Maintain Service Level Agreements
Motivating and Managing Help Desk People
Revolutionizing Support Staff Training
Using Service Goals & Metrics to Improve Performance
Effective Leadership for the Support Organization
How to Select and Use Outsource Services

* Normal shipping and handling fees apply

Class Schedule

Oct 13-17	Heathrow, FL	Orlando Veritas ()
Oct 20-24	Portland, OR	Mentor Graphics ()
Nov 3-7	New York	Venue to be Announced
Dec 8-12	Atlanta, GA	Venue to be Announced
Jan 19-23 '04	Irvine, CA	Venue to be Announced
Jan 26-30 '04	Orlando	Venue to be Announced

Class begins at 10:00 AM on the first day and 8:00 AM on all other days and ends at 5:00 PM on the first 4 days and at 12 noon on day five.

Dress is business casual.

Registration Fees

The per student registration fee for this seminar is $3500, and includes:

• The seminar

• Course materials, and certification exam.

• Breakfast, lunch and refreshments.

• Excel tools.

• Helpful industry whitepapers.

• Job aids

And, if you register online with a credit card, you'll get a 5% discount and save $175.00!

Payment is due prior to the seminar.  If payment is not received, a credit card hold will be required for participation.  This card will only be processed if payment has not been received within two weeks following the conference.

Cancellation Policy.  Registrants may cancel up to fourteen days in advance of the seminar start date for a full refund, less administrative fees of $400.  Or, you may transfer your registration to another member of your company at no additional charge.  Registrants canceling within fourteen days of the seminar will receive credit, less administrative fees of $400, toward any other Resource Center seminar.  In the unlikely event that a seminar must be cancelled, you will be notified at least one week prior to the seminar date. Seminar provider is not responsible for losses due to cancellation including losses on advanced purchase airfares.

Seminar agenda subject to change.

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