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IT front office deals with users and customers, while backroom IT personnel are involved in system programming and maintenance. They diagnose and resolve problems, and act as intermediaries between system users and backroom IT administrators. They also deal with external customers.
Information Technology (IT) employees are responsible for managing the collection, transmission and storage of data on computers and telecommunications devices. An IT front office deals directly with members of the public or employees of a particular company. The term “front office” is used to distinguish this department from backroom IT personnel who are involved in system programming and maintenance, but who have little or no direct contact with system users or company customers.
Many large companies have an IT front office, and some companies may have an office in every workplace where the company operates. Employees of large companies usually need access to computer systems, telephones, fax machines and other telecommunications devices. If a system or software fails, employees may find themselves unable to complete their basic job functions. In such cases, affected employees can contact the IT front office and an IT representative creates a file and attempts to find out the cause of the problem.
IT front office representatives often work with corporate employees or customers by phone or email. Some problems are related to user error and can be easily resolved by providing the user with simple instructions. If a problem cannot be fixed easily, an IT representative may need to physically inspect the computer terminal or telephone system that is malfunctioning. IT employees are trained to perform minor mechanical repairs such as fixing leaky wires or replacing damaged components, but when faced with major mechanical problems, IT reps often have to send equipment back to the manufacturer for troubleshooting.
Large companies sometimes have to contend with network-level computer viruses or software problems that can have a major impact on productivity. While IT front office representatives aren’t always equipped to resolve such problems, these representatives act as first responders and diagnose problems so that they can differentiate between a localized problem and a serious network problem. IT representatives usually act as intermediaries between system users and backroom IT administrators when important issues are being investigated.
In addition to providing internal support to company employees, an IT front office can also deal with external customers. Satellite television providers and Internet companies are among the companies that employ full-time IT support engineers. These employees field customer calls and attempt to resolve minor issues over the phone. IT support technicians can hire outside contractors to visit customers’ homes and address mechanical issues. In complex cases, IT front office personnel report issues to programmers and technical consultants who do not have direct interactions with customers.
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