A Preview of the European IT Services Initiatives

Attendees of the next EMEA IT Services and Support Community meeting can expect a packed agenda with a host of critical and industry-advancing topics. On October 20th, as part of the two-day CompTIA EMEA Member Conference, executives from a variety of IT businesses will gather to not only discuss important IT services issues, but to lay the foundation for the tools, programs and other initiatives that will address those concerns for the IT channel.

Who attends the EMEA IT Services and Support Community meetings? Service-oriented directors and executives from IT service provider businesses, manufacturers, distributors and other industry thought leaders. This is a strong collaborative group; open to CompTIA members with an interest in helping advance a number of diverse services team initiatives. The topics for this session will include Green IT and Managed Services, as well as discussions concerning the group’s other ongoing initiatives and initial planning for 2011 activities. Current initiatives of the IT Services and Support Executive Forum include: defining the Green IT service provider, creating a cost-to-serve benchmark, and developing industry standards for damage caused by end-users. In addition, the group is working on a compilation of industry best practices and is formulating goals to address a number of other significant technology services business issues.

The members meet face-to-face on a quarterly basis to learn, share and form work groups to plan next steps. Between the live events, community members get together for monthly phone/web conference session where they review the progress of the teams, plot the subsequent steps and discuss any challenges they’ve encountered. Throughout the process, CompTIA provides support and resources to accomplish the community’s goals; from research and educational content to marketing tools and third-party support. Here are a few of the current initiatives we’re working on:

Green IT Service Provider definition: Members of the community will discuss what being a Green IT services provider actually means and work out common descriptions for the industry. Another goal is to identify blocks within the standard service and support value chain; including parts, repair, disposal and others to be defined by the members of the working group. The intention of the initiative is to develop a future CompTIA Green IT Provider credential; an association assurance that an IT business is providing Green-friendly services.

Cost-to-Serve Benchmark: CompTIA would like a “second edition” of the benchmark developed as a 2009 initiative to offer association members at no cost, and to extend its geographic reach to include North America. Select members will be engaged in the design and planning process to ensure the proper data is collected that will address the right business problems.

Industry Standards for Damages Caused by End-User Customers: Several computer manufacturers (i.e. Acer, HP, DELL and Toshiba) are collaborating to solve an industry-wide problem: warranty fraud. The entire tech community has a vested interest in the creation of international standards to ensure customers understand the repercussions of deceptive practices and benefits of following proper warranty procedures. Finding a balance between customer satisfaction and claims is a challenge and your input will truly be appreciated.

See the IT Services and Support Community website for additional session details and to register for the CompTIA EMEA Member Conference. We hope you’ll attend the services meeting and look forward to seeing you October 20^th!
[podcast]http://www.comptia.org/media/mscloud_initiatives.mp3[/podcast]