Introducing a third-party ticketing system to your Microsoft environment is like giving your workforce a smartphone when they’ve been using a landline.
Of course, they could log issues with the old ticketing system.
But the sheer ease and convenience of a Microsoft ticketing system ensures that they log every issue, meaning problems are solved more quickly and the entire IT system runs more smoothly.
Better yet, integrating third-party ticketing system software like DeskDirecor to Microsoft Teams, Sharepoint and Power Automate is actually very simple.
The challenge is not integrating the system; it’s making sure you introduce it in the right way.
And that is why we believe IT leaders should consider four key questions to ensure they have a clear strategy and make the most of the possibilities the Microsoft integration presents:
1. How effective is your current ticketing system?
Why it matters:
One of the key benefits of integration is increased usage. But to achieve that goal, you need to understand how employees currently engage with your ticketing system. What’s taking up too much time? What are the most common factors that stop employees from using the ticketing system or portal? And how do your employees currently think about ticketing?
Analyzing these factors will help not only plan your integration, but shed light on how you introduce it to employees to ensure maximum usage and the most efficient operations possible.
Factors to consider:
End-user experience
The most useful data here is employee feedback: how do they feel about the ticketing systems? Do they understand the benefits of an effective ticketing system? Would they appreciate being able to issue tickets directly from Microsoft Sharepoint or Teams? And do they want to use more tickets? Make sure you consult with a wide range of end-users across multiple departments to collect honest feedback and understand the current perception of ticketing in your organization.
Business objectives
The efficacy of your ticketing system has far-reaching consequences. If the current system is sapping up time and resources, it likely impacts the overarching efficiency of your IT systems. It’s important to note the ways your current system impacts your larger business objectives, so you can set clear goals for the new integration.
2. What is your team’s ideal ticketing process?
Why it matters:
Any successful integration should be working towards a clear goal. There will be many questions to answer, such as how automation fits into the process and which integration to use. Without a clear vision for the project, these questions become roadblocks - slowing down the process and likely leading to a ticketing system that doesn’t help you meet your organization’s objective.
Factors to consider:
Daily operations
Use your business objectives as the basis to map your ideal ticketing process in collaboration with multiple key stakeholders and team members. How will ticketing fit into your daily operations? How do you want each department to use ticketing? How do you want the overarching IT system to operate? Which processes can be automated?
End-user experience
What kind of experience do you want end-users to have? What do you want their experience to be when submitting a ticket? When should they get updates on their open tickets?
Employees will not use a ticketing system if it is too difficult or time consuming. Your new system needs to fit around your employees’ workflow, and make ticketing as straightforward as possible.
This is why DeskDirector is so popular: it enables you to embed ticketing into Microsoft Sharepoint and Teams - the platforms your employees already use everyday. Employees across your business can log and resolve requests without the costly context switching most ticketing systems require.
3. How will you integrate your ticketing system with your Microsoft environment?
Why it matters:
Once you have a map of your ideal Sharepoint and Teams ticketing system, you need to determine how the logic will be configured. DeskDirector enables seamless integration, but it’s still crucial to have a clear plan for how the system will operate within your Microsoft environment.
Factors to consider:
System interoperability
How do you want DeskDirector, Teams, Power Automate and Sharepoint to work together? It’s essential that end-users don’t experience any friction between the system they use, so that issuing and resolving tickets becomes a natural extension of their daily activities, rather than a frustrating excursion.
Technical barriers
What are the most likely technical obstacles you’ll face? And how can you preempt and solve them? DeskDirector has a reliable team of experts on-hand at all times to respond to your technical difficulties, as well as a customer success team to support integration. But it is still valuable to plan in advance, to make integration as quick and frictionless as possible.
4. How will you measure the success of integration?
Why it matters:
As you likely discovered in question one, the efficacy of a ticketing system is not always easy to pin down. But the ability to set clear expectations for all key stakeholders, measure your results objectively and demonstrate how successful the integration has been is essential to ensure the project runs smoothly.
Factors to consider:
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Which metrics will you use to measure the success of the integration - and over what time period? This will have a direct impact on how smooth the integration is, as people have a natural tendency to alter their behavior to maximize whatever factor is measured. You should therefore make sure each metric you choose is tied directly to the overarching business objectives you wish to serve.
Accountability and roles
Who should be responsible for which aspects of the integration? How will they be held accountable? It may be beneficial to select a small group (or individual) that is in charge of the integration and can delegate tasks in an efficient manner.
Make Your Microsoft Ticketing Integration a Success with DeskDirector
Integrating a ticketing system into your Microsoft environment is a game-changer for ambitious organizations, unlocking a new level of efficiency, visibility, and confidence in your workforce. If you’re interested in learning more about DeskDirector’s Microsoft Teams integration, watch this free webinar.
And if you want to see DeskDirector in action, book a demo today.
