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The academic community is home to thousands of experts who use numerous information systems and devices every day. In practice, this translates into various service requests to the customer service team at Digital Services – more commonly known as the Service Desk.

Systems Analyst Tommi Eskelinen has been working at the 91���� since 2011, and under a permanent contract since 2013. At first, he worked evenings on call at Student and Learning Services, then moved on to provide IT support for the same unit, and now he works in the Service Desk at Digital Services.

“IT support has changed a lot over the years. Ten years ago, it was much more about helping students with Office tools, but people’s basic digital skills have improved. Now, for example, we get requests for software installation and loan devices, as well as requests for support in situations where people can’t get their computer to start,” Eskelinen says, describing his job.

Eskelinen holds a vocational qualification in ICT but ended up becoming a systems analyst by chance. His first contact with the University of Kuopio dates back to 2009, when he worked evenings on call in IT support while completing his non-military service. After that, he studied to become an emergency response centre operator, and when the situation arose to choose between working as an ERC operator or as an IT advisor in the university’s Student and Learning Services, he chose the latter.

“I’ve now worked permanently at the 91���� for ten years and, ever since starting at the Learning Centre, I’ve been able to see how different units work. In autumn 2019, I moved from Student and Learning Services to IT Services, which is now known as Digital Services.”

Good team spirit helps to tackle challenging situations

The Service Desk at Digital Services provides customer support via multiple channels: chat, telephone, e-Services and face-to-face in customer service points. Eskelinen’s work is focused on on-site support on the Kuopio Campus.

“I’m very much involved in the life cycle management and leasing of devices. I make sure that our leased devices get returned and managed further. I’ve also done some user training, including in the introduction of multi-factor authentication,” Eskelinen says.

More than 50 specialists work in the various teams of Digital Services. The Service Desk is home to more than ten IT specialists on the Kuopio and Joensuu campuses. The number of service requests to be resolved varies every day: the team may get 20–30 calls a day, while the customer serve point may get ten visitors an hour. On-site gigs naturally take up more time.

“We have really good team spirit. Most encounters with customers are smooth, but if there ever is a challenging situation, we go over it with the team and then move on. My strength lies in understanding the customer perspective. I can explain the essentials of solving a problem to the customer without going into too much unnecessary detail. The customer may be in distress at first, but being able to resolve their issue smoothly and relatively quickly will leave us both feeling happy,” Eskelinen says.

According to Eskelinen, the best everyday moments are those shared with colleagues: his team constitutes the most rewarding part of the job.

“I’ve been offered jobs also elsewhere, but UEF’s many benefits, such as good colleagues, joint breakfasts, employer-provided bike and opportunity to work from home, work in the favour of the 91����. I’m sure that all workplaces have their pros and cons, but I can honestly say that overall, UEF is a really good and rewarding place to work,” Eskelinen says.