OCR Text |
Show TI "VI E S November 26, 2014 7 Team Hill gets new app to solve computer issues By Air Force Space Command Public Affairs A s the Air Force Enterprise Service Desk (ESD) goes virtual, Team Hill will see a new application on their computer allowing them to immediately tackle and fix their minor IT issues. The Virtual Enterprise Service Desk (vESD) is an application that allows the user to solve common issues and self-initiate trouble tickets for e-mail, desktop, laptop, and mobile devices and will eventually include network, software, hardware and other user account capabilities. The application allows for status checks of any current trouble ticket, feedback submission and provides further contact information for more help. The application began rolling out across the Air Force in stages, starting with Joint Base San Antonio - Lackland, Texas, I and Peterson AFB, Colo., in Oct 2014. After those locations, the app will be implemented across the major commands in stages. Hill AFB is scheduled to have vESD implemented on Nov. 30. Users who experienced account or network problems over the last few years have called a central customer service center. With a customer base of over 650,000 people, the ESD's automated phone system had been significantly overburdened, which led to a cascade of inefficiencies. Not immune to the fiscal challenges so familiar across the Air Force, the 67th Cyber Wing advanced on a new approach to customer service necessary to solve this complex problem. "Back in February, the average call wait time was around 20 minutes, but during peak periods this could easily run up to an hour," said Col. Chad Ra- duege, commander of the 690th Cyberspace Operations Group. "That's a 60 minute wait just to tell an ESD technician that you have a problem. Coupled with the ESD's backlog, our return to service time took up to seven days. That's unacceptable." The ESD is transforming to more efficiently empower users to find solutions to their technical challenges as well as leverage new automated programs to eliminate the need for a call center. It is important to note the ESD is not closing. It will still exist. It is simply transforming its business processes to more proactive tasks. "The ESD continues to modernize and retool in order to address the call wait times and return to service rates," said Lt Col. Mark Reith, commander of the 690th Network Support Squadron and responsible for the ESD. "It started with an on- line tool called MyGAL and then we added IA0 Express. These tools drastically improved user experience. Today the average wait time is 5-10 minutes and users should expect an average return to service time of about half a day. The vESD app is the final piece of the new IT support model, and it comes just in time before the Air National Guard migration into the AFNET." With vESD, the user simply clicks an icon on their desktop, answers some simple questions and the software attempts to repair. The customer has effectively reached a virtual ESD technician immediately. Similar to the human technician, vESD will attempt repair based on the user's response to questions and will perform its own "health check" of the user's computer. If it can't resolve the problem, vESD will automatically initiate a trouble ticket and route HILL RETIREE TURNS it immediately to the appropriate office at one of the Network Operations Squadrons or the local Communications Focal Point, depending on the problem identified. "Historically, about 70 perecent of all tickets (worked by the ESD) are minor issues that could be resolved through this type of automation," said Reith. "The remaining tickets are generally forwarded to other offices for resolution because it is beyond the expertise of the first line technician. vESD is great because it either resolves the minor issue or routes the ticket to the right back shop office. Instead of waiting for someone to answer the phone, the tough tickets are created and routed to the right specialist faster." The ESD will continue to be an important part of IT supSee APP I Page 8 Base Exchange 101 gift cards, personalize I holiday care packages = By Army &Air Force Exchange Service Public Affairs IH BENJAMIN ZACK/Hilltop Times Star Cafe waitresses Amanda Alcaraz (center) and Peggy Roberts (right) sing "Happy Birthday" to Shirley Ball (left) as he celebrates his 101st birthday at the Clearfield restaurant on Thursday. Ball and a small group of friends have been going to the Star Cafe for coffee every morning for years, and the restaurant staff helped organize the party. Air Force crash rescue vet celebrates at Star Café BY DANA RIMINGTON Hilltop Times correspondent C LEARFIELD —There are two things in Shirley Ball's life that remain constant — every morning he eats breakfast at the Star Café in Clearfield, and every year his birthday rolls around, this year reaching 101. Ball's memory is still sharp, according to the café waitresses who serve him every morning, as evidenced by Ball's recounting of several life stories before even getting to the birthday cake as he gathered in the café with friends and family for a birthday celebration Thursday. Ball recalled the moments he worked on the crash rescue team at Hill Air Force Base, seeing men as blackened by burns as the coffee pot sitting next to him on the table, or the time a pilot crashlanded on base, begging Ball to shoot him because the pilot was burned from head to toe. Ball cut the pilot's seat belt and sent him to the hospital, but the pilot died 10 days later. Ball's daughter Sherryl Hart says her father rarely talked about the bad things in his line of work, especially when it came to pilots killed on base when they crashed. "He focused on the good and interesting parts at work," said Hart, recalling a story her father told of training three men while working at Hill. See BIRTHDAY I Page 10 ill Air Force Base — According to a recent National Retail Federation survey, gift cards will be the most requested gift this year with 62 percent preferring a gift card over any other item. For Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines, their gift card of choice is the one that can be redeemed at military exchanges from Okinawa to Oklahoma. The Army & Air Force Exchange Service is making it easy for any American to send their support with an Exchange gift card that service members can use for electronics, snacks or a good book. "An Exchange gift card empowers troops to choose items that make their lives easier wherever they are called to serve," said the Hill AFB Exchange's Mark Downs. "The needs of an Airman here at Hill AFB are different from the Airman in Afghanistan. An Exchange gift card allows service members to get exactly what they need to make the holidays brighter" While only authorized military shoppers can redeem Exchange gift cards, anyone can send one by simply calling 800-527-2345 or logging on to www. shopmyexchange.com and clicking "Purchase Gift and Phone Cards" at the bottom of the page. From there, Exchange gift cards, ranging in values from $10 to 5500, can be addressed to a specific Soldier, Airman, Sailor or Marine or sent to "any service member" through the Fisher House Foundation, Air Force Aid Society, Warrior and Family Support Center or NavyMarine Corps Relief Society. The gift cards can be redeemed at Exchanges in all 50 states and more than 30 countries. For more information, contact El Berry, Hill AFB Base Exchange, at 801776-0277 or email or berryel@aafes.com . Hill Tax Center seeks volunteers during tax season By 75th Air Base Wing Legal Office E ach year the Hill Air Force Base Tax Center offers tax preparation services for military members, retirees, and their dependents. These services can save hundreds of dollars per client in tax return preparation costs. Over the past few years, the Tax Center has saved military and retiree families over $1 million in tax return preparation costs. The Tax Center is seeking volunteers to help in continuing to provide these services to military members and their families. The Tax Center will open late January 2015 and remain open until mid-April 2015. The tentative schedule for the Tax Center is as follows: • Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. • Closed weekends and holidays Appointments will also be available with tax center managers. During busy days, the Tax Center may have to stop walk-ins early to ensure those that are currently waiting are helped before closing the center. In order for the Tax Center to provide accurate advice and tax preparation, volunteers will be trained on the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. This training is mandatory for all Tax Center volunteers. Volunteers will attend a class the first or second week of January, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Training will cover such topics as tax law changes, how to prepare taxes, and issues specific to the military. In addition, all volunteers will receive copies of the IRS training package as a reference. The tax center is consid- ered an alternate duty site during regular duty hours. Therefore, work at the Tax Center needs to be approved through your supervisor and commander. Volunteers may be eligible for up to 10 hours of free childcare a week plus other benefits through the Airmen and Family Readiness Center. For more information, contact Lance Thaxton at 801-586-6455 or Capt. Trevor Smith at 801-777-6792. |