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Customer Story
Aug 21

Streamlining employee support with custom ticketing and workflows in Microsoft 365 from KEO

Digital Solutions Manager at KEO IT

Introducing a business case presented to us by KEO IT. See how they tackled rising employee support needs with custom IT, HR, and facilities ticketing solutions. Explore unique features and automated workflows implemented within Plumsail HelpDesk.

Contents:

 

KEO: 60+ years of experience in bridging inspiration and implementation

KEO is a multidisciplinary consultancy firm with over 60 years of experience in design, engineering, planning, project management, and construction supervision. From shaping iconic skylines to crafting sustainable communities, KEO serves clients and builds legacies for a better tomorrow. Its core values of agility, empathy, advocacy, pragmatism, dedication and integrity guides the expertise of its 2,600+ perceptive problem solvers who help clients shorten the distance between inspiration and realization.

Challenge: Meet the increasing demand for employee support in a fast-growing company

As a fast-growing company, we recognize the increasing need to provide timely and efficient support to our employees through various shared corporate services.

We manage most of our operations through Microsoft 365 and were looking for a solution to integrate into the existing platform seamlessly. It was also important for us to have customization options available due to the unique requirements of certain departments, which we will discuss further in the article.

Solution: Custom ticketing for IT, HR, and facilities with custom forms and automated workflows

After an extensive evaluation process, we decided to opt for Plumsail HelpDesk for SharePoint Online. We chose Plumsail over other solutions due to its robust features and seamless integration capabilities. The ability to integrate with Plumsail SharePoint Forms using a Power Automate connector was particularly valuable, as our users are already familiar with the Plumsail Forms interface. Additionally, the capability to integrate with SharePoint lists and other APIs through JavaScript customizations using Plumsail Forms Designer allowed us to tailor the solution to our specific needs. This integration helps us address challenges related to response times, service transparency, and overall employee satisfaction.

Setting up unique HelpDesk systems for different departments

We aimed to create multiple HelpDesks to provide dedicated support for HR, Facilities, and IT Services, ensuring each could be managed independently and accessed easily through the corporate intranet. Setting up the foundation for these HelpDesks was easy—thanks to the Plumsail HelpDesk installer, it only took a few clicks. Next, we implemented some customizations. Here’s a quick rundown of the result.

IT Service Desk: Help Desk with type-ahead search and API integrations

IT Service Desk handles diverse IT-related services including hardware/software requests, user access management, and issue resolution. For ease of work and management, we’ve implemented separate buttons for the most common types of service requests. This lets users quickly access pre-filled ticket forms, streamlining the process for both users and support agents, and improving data collection for reports.

IT Service Desk home page

IT Service Desk dashboard

Customized ticket forms made with Plumsail Forms capture detailed metadata, ensuring all necessary information is collected from the outset.

Telco Service Request form

Telco Service Request form

Power Automate facilitates approval workflows, streamlining the process and ensuring efficient ticket resolution. We use the standard set of features from the HelpDesk Power Automate connector.

One of the standout features implemented in this HelpDesk is a type-ahead search feature which helps users by providing a set of self-help articles as they fill in the ticket form, allowing for quicker issue resolution.

Type ahead search feature

Incident creation form with type-ahead search to help users find solutions quickly

We leverage the SharePoint OOTB search feature to search through the help pages based on the user query and suggest them to the user when they raise a new incident for quick assistance and resolution.

Another customization we have in place is the integration with our LMS (learning management system) that allows IT and information security training to be assigned directly from the service desk. We identify the need for trainings such as IT Security Awareness based the user's susceptibility to security attacks and simulated phishing campaigns. The users are then assigned such trainings from Plumsail HelpDesk by triggering a Power Automate workflow. The workflow then makes API calls to assign the specific training to the user.

LMS Integration flow

LMS integration flow in Power Automate

Additionally, the IT Service Desk integrates with various LOB systems through APIs, enabling access to additional metadata and improving the accuracy and completeness of request fulfillment.

HR Service Desk: Custom SharePoint Webparts & Power BI reports to track performance

HR Service Desk dashboard

HR Service Desk dashboard

HR helpdesk offers comprehensive HR services utilizing custom and OOTB SharePoint Webparts to present services based on job roles.

Employee portal

Employee portal

Service requests are created as tickets, categorized by request type. Custom Power BI reports track service effectiveness using HelpDesk data, providing valuable insights into performance and areas for improvement.

IT Service Desk overview report

IT Service Desk overview report

IT Service Desk trend report

IT Service Desk trend report

Jessica Singer
The HR Service Desk has significantly improved our HR operations at KEO. This intuitive platform allows us to efficiently handle all HR requests from employees, managers, and remote workers. Since its implementation, we've been able to address employee needs much faster, resulting in quicker resolutions and increased satisfaction. A key benefit of the HR Service Desk is the transparency it offers. Employees can track their requests throughout the entire process, which enhances their confidence in our HR services. Overall, Plumsail HelpDesk is an invaluable tool that has streamlined our processes and improved the employee experience at KEO.
Jessica Singer, Human Resources Associate Director, KEO Human Resources

FMA Service Desk: Automated workflows for metadata collection and approvals

FMA Service Desk dashboard

FMA Service Desk dashboard

The FM&A Service Desk manages various facility-related services with a similar approach to the IT Service Desk, using customized Plumsail Forms and Power Automate workflows for metadata collection and approvals. This desk addresses a wide range of facility management needs, ensuring efficient and effective service delivery.

Each service desk supports numerous additional services, ensuring that our employees have access to the support they need across various domains.

SharePoint HelpDesk provides our team with an efficient and centralized platform on which we receive and process in-house service requests, making it easier for us to manage and quantify our work in terms of supporting the business, both operationally and statistically.
FMA Service Desk Stakeholder

Conclusion

HelpDesk has been transformative, initially deployed for IT and rapidly extended across other divisions due to its effectiveness. We have processed over 100,000 user requests through HelpDesk, significantly enhancing our operational efficiency and customer retention. We have over 200 production workflows at the back of the service requests, leaving most service requests to “robots”. The support from the Plumsail team and the resources available on their forum have been instrumental in maximizing the system's benefits.

Shaju Mohammed
Plumsail HelpDesk has been an incredible tool to deliver value to the business and streamline key business operations.
Shaju Mohammed, Digital Solutions Manager, KEO IT

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