Tech support!

I served in technical support exclusively for 5 years straight. I still give tech support to this day, and even as National Sales Manager at Boeckeler I'd take tech calls. It is definitely a 2-way street. There's the tech support giver and the tech support receiver. I've read a couple other blogs about being on the receiving end of nightmare/bad technical support, but I'd like to share a view from the tech support giver side. I've discovered a handful of constants throughout the years about giving technical support.

Here are my top 5:

1.) "I need to speak to an engineer" - I used to answer the incoming lines some times when I was in my tech support role, so I was the first person most guys would hear on the phone. I'm female, and have a young sounding voice, so guy says, "Uhh tech support please." Me, "Oh okay I can help you." Him, "Oh no I really need to speak to an engineer or a technical person." Me, "Umm yup I can help you. What's the issue?" Once we got past that it was usually smooth sailing, but I just thought it was funny how many times that happened. A very few times they just refused to speak with me at all without even giving me a chance. That was when I'd pass them to my Director of Engineering, and he'd pass them back to me, "Oh you really should be talking to Victoria" haha

2.) The Scientific Method - Ahh the scientific method. I think we all probably learned it around the 6th grade. You have a question. An issue in the field. We come up with a hypothesis. A guess at what could be causing the problem. Then we test that hypothesis with a variable. If you change multiple variables you'll never find out the answer to the question - WHY! Why is the problem is happening? I don't understand how some people do not get this. When trouble-shooting you must apply the scientific method! I know, I know, sometimes they have a consultant breathing down their neck, or an end user screaming. You just need it to work! I get it! Although, in order to solve the problem permanently, we have to know why it is happening. Sometimes it takes jumping through some hoops to figure it out. Back tracking, or removing points from the flow is not always the fastest way, but it usually the surest way to fix the problem and fix it for good. The only way to truly figure out the WHY is to apply the scientific method, one variable at a time...

3.)  "I didn't press that button" - Are you sure, because that is the only possible way your equipment could be in that status. Some people just don't listen. "Please remove the power cord from the back of the unit." CLICK. "Ok the unit is off." "Did you just switch the power button on the front?" "Yea." "OKAY r-e-m-o-v-e  t-h-e  p-o-w-e-r  c-o-r-d" Maybe I have to talk slower.

4.)  "Can you hear me now?" - There's one guy in a deep dark basement, behind a rack, in another room from the main displays, and on a cell phone....Need I say more?!

5.) "What's a ground loop?" - Believe it or not I've had this question a number of times. Believe it or not ground loops can cause some crazy stuff to happen more than just buzz and hums.

As I saw these and other things over and over, it gave me small insight into human nature, and ultimately, it was a very rewarding role for me. You have this guy who is an "expert" in his field. He has come to stopping point in his job. He is frustrated. He maybe has read a datasheet or flipped thru the manual. Something just isn't right. He has tried everything he can think of, so he picks up the phone. He is now relying on me to fix his problem. I was a young whipper-snapper answering these calls and helping these guys out in the field, in the trenches, on the front line. I liked being in that role where they needed me, and I didn't get off the phone until the problem was resolved, whether it was my equipment causing the issue or not. My goal was to always have the call end with them saying, "Thank you so much! You were so helpful! We got it fixed!"

What have been your experiences on the tech support giver or receiver side?

My first blog (Part 2)

Thanks for coming back! This is part 2 of another post I started. Here's part 1. Continuing with my story.... I left Boeckeler in 2005, Hollaback Girl was on the radio, and I found myself in Houston, TX with my husband and his family. I went to work for an IT integrator, and I learned a lot there as well. I learned how to work for a big company, I learned some really great organizational skills, I managed a team of 8 people. I wasn't in a technical role, and I really missed AV. The AV industry is so small and close-nit. IT is a whole huge different world. I know the whole "convergence" thing is in full effect, but there is still a big difference between an IT integrator and an AV integrator. A handful of years went by, and we went back to Tucson, and I back to Boeckeler as the National Sales Manager. Is your head spinning yet?

I had a another great run there. I traveled. I loved visiting integrators and consultants. Everyone was really nice. People liked to hear about the Pointmaker technology and how their customers could use it. I was involved in production, new product development, R&D, marketing, the list goes on and on.  The decisions I would make on a daily basis could affect the whole company. It was fun! Sadly I left Boeckeler again, and had a short yet very fulfilling run with Stewart Filmscreen. I am obsessed with screen technology. Who'da thunk it that a passive device like a projection screen would have so much that goes into it?! I must do another post about screen technology!

So long story short, or short story long I have since moved back to Texas. Loaded up the cars and headed out like the Beverly Hill Billies. "There's oil in them thar hills!" We are definitely here to stay.  I love Texas. For those of you that have met me in person, you will know that now everything is NOT bigger in Texas. (Thanks to Mark Coxon for that joke)

In my job search I wanted to make sure I found a place where I could grow. A place where I could be myself. A place with people who were warm. A place with mentors. I chose Synergy because I knew the owners from when I called on them as a manufacture. I knew the work they did, and I knew they did it with integrity. As a manufacture, our products didn't leave the door unless they were checked, re-checked, and checked again. There is no "good enough." Product goes to market almost damn near perfect. That is the mentality I like to have, and I knew I needed to find a place like that....

I started with Synergy on Oct 7th. Coming from the manufacturing side of AV there are things I bring to the table, but there's a lot I have to learn. Knowing the difference between DVI-D, DVI-I, VGA, and how to solder an RS-232 cable isn't going to help me convince IT Director he needs video conferencing. Knowing the Pointmaker at the component level is not going to get me into Big Oil Executive's office to sell him a complete global AV solution. It is so interesting having to shift my paradigm and completely change the way I talk to people. The few accounts I've seen so far have been a big mix of completely non-technical, way more tech knowledge than me, and some where in the middle. I feel this is going to be my biggest challenge in this new career is learning how to talk to the end user. It's only been 2 weeks, so I'm sure there will be many more challenges to uncover!

So that's me. That's my first blog. Please comment with any critiques on my post, any wise words of advice about blogging, or working with end users, or anything else.

Oh I almost forgot my call to action, stay tuned and check back often for new posts!

Victoria

My first blog! (Part 1)

If you find yourself here reading this, I'm not sure how you got here, but welcome! This is my first blog post ever! I've been wanting to blog now for a while. I've read many blogs about blogging. I've read tips like, "blog about what you know," "give your readers information they want," "put in a call to action," etc etc. Well, I've been racking my brain for a while about "what I know." What can I blog about? Hmm, I know about AV, I know about dogs, I know about playing poker, I can play almost every song on Rockband drums on expert, I can juggle, but what do I *REALLY* know that I could blog about that people would find interesting? I really haven't figured it out yet, BUT I hope to write posts on somewhat regular-ish basis, and just see what comes out. I will try to give information to my readers, but more-so I hope to also gain information! For this first blog post I want to give my readers a little insight about myself and where I am in my career. (Does this sentence sound boring to anyone else? Eh, it'll have to do for now. We press on.)

I am currently a sales executive for the *best* AV integrator in Houston...ok ok I'm a little biased, and sorry to any of the competing area guys who may be reading this. Seriously though, I chose to come and work for Synergy AV because I just knew they were different. Let me back up though, and start at the beginning....

I hated high school. Anyone out there that can relate? I seriously dreaded getting up, going to class, dealing with mean girls, etc. etc. I did enjoy learning, and I had some great teachers along the way, but overall if I had to relive my high school years I think I would jump off a building first. After high school I just couldn't imagine another 4 years of classes, so I threw myself into the job market. I felt like college was for doctors and lawyers, and no one I knew used their actual degree in their work.

I started out as a receptionist for Boeckeler Instruments, Inc. in Tucson, AZ. (AKA the manufacture of hardware based video annotation Pointmaker) After about 6 months I was promoted to sales/marketing, and I was thrown into the world of AV! I'll never forget my first industry trade-show. I remember it like it was yesterday! How many of you can think back and remember your first trade show? Mine was NAB in Vegas....and I wasn't even old enough to gamble yet. I had 2 great mentors at Boeckeler, and at the time I didn't even realize how much of where I am now I owe to those 5 years I spent there. It is so nice now that people use that word, "mentor." I'm seeing it more and more. Hopefully it will help young people really realize what they have in front of them. Maybe I'll write another post about mentoring/being mentored. In the mean time, here's one of the best blog posts I've read on the subject: http://blog.infocommblog.org/allvoices/archives/2546 (Look at me giving my readers information!)

Anyway, one of my main responsibilities at Boeckeler was technical support. I didn't even know that I liked technology, but WOW! It amazed me that a tiny thin flat board with all those little parts and connections was the basic basis for all tech products. I was determined to figure out how and why the Pointmaker worked down to the component level. So when a guy called me on the last day of commissioning and the Pointmaker didn't seem to be accepting commands from his control system I could say, "Well, do you have pins 7&8 tied together? We need those for communication"  I had to learn other manufacture's products too, "By the way, XYZ switcher doesn't really play well with RGB sync on green, can you do a different sync?" I love technical support, and I think I'll do another blog post on that too.

I left Boeckeler in 2005, and found myself in Houston, TX (To be continued...)