HDI

The More the Merrier!

The 2008 HDI Practices and Salary Survey is up and collecting data!

If you have had a chance to peruse the 2007 Practices and Salary Survey results you have found that much of the survey is broken down by support center size, industry, and type of support (i.e., internal/external/blended). We have had a great response from this added benefit to the report. We have also had feedback saying you want more of it. This is great! We love to know that you are looking at and using data to drive decisions in your support centers!

In order to do this we need you! More participation in the survey gives us more options on how to analyze and report the industry’s data. We need a certain number of surveys in each demographic in order to report the results for that area. So if you would like to see the 2008 Practices and Salary data sliced and diced for your demographic we need to hear from you in two ways:

1- Respond to this blog by letting our research team know how you would like to see the data broken down. For example, is there a certain industry to which you want to be able to compare your support center? If so, on which metric(s) would you like to compare? Let us know!

2- Take the survey! Follow the link below to take the survey AND send the link on to others in your demographic categories. Maybe this year we can report the results not only for the IT support industry, but at an even more meaningful level for YOU! Complete the survey by July 21st:  www.thinkhdi.com/takethesurvey2008

Bonus – in addition to adding value to the 2008 results, all survey takers will receive a free copy of the 2008 report, AND be entered into a drawing for a Tom Tom Navigation System!

Feel free to submit any comments you may have about the HDI Practices and Salary Survey. We are always happy to hear from you! ~ Jenny Rains, Research Analyst, HDI

Future Possibilities of the HDI Community

Two things have recently captured my attention.

The first item is the newly released HDI Focus Book “The Support Center in 2011: A Report on the Future Trends Facing the Support Industry”. The second item was the meeting minutes from the Feb 2008 Local Chapter Officer conference call.

How do these two items fit together? They’re both about change.

In the August 1st 2007 “The Muns Report”, Ron wrote, “We must envision the future to see new possibilities in everything that we do.” The Support Center in 2011 Focus Book is about the vision of change in our industry. When you read this Focus Book, you’ll see how it hit the mark.

The Feb 2008 Local Chapter Officer meeting was devoted to questions concerning the recent acquisition of HDI by ICMI/CMP. One of the questions asked was “what is driving the purchase?” The response identified a business focus change for ICMI/CMP. With print media showing decline, IMCI/CMP has started diversifying into membership based associations.

So what is IMCI/CMP buying when they acquire a membership based community? They’re buying you! Of course not you literally, but you as a paying member of HDI. The acquisition of HDI by ICMI/CMP is about change in the HDI community.

Existing community venues such as the HDI Annual Conference & Expo, which hosted more than 2800 participants in 2008, are growing. In addition, the Local Chapter network has increased in the opening of new chapters and interest toward starting new Local Chapters. The number of HDI Forums is now at eleven.

Several people I’ve talked with over the past couple years have expressed frustration that they live in an area that cannot support a Local Chapter. While the SPIN webinars act as a surrogate by providing outstanding content based presentations, it still doesn’t address the social interaction of networking a Local Chapter provides. Looking at the possibilities, could the HDI Blog be the start of that social network for those members living in geographically challenged locations?

What do you see as the future possibilities of the HDI community?

Ed Bano has fourteen years of IT Support experience and has been the IT Service Desk Supervisor for the past twelve years at the Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM) in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Ed has been on the HDI Strategic Advisory Board since 2006 and currently serves as the Vice President of Programs for the HDI Southern Virginia Chapter.