Putting the “Global” Into Global Service Desks for the Pharmaceutical Industry

There are a number of factors to consider when choosing a global service desk solution. You need expert IT and technical support services but as a pharmaceutical business, it is also important for your solution provider to have direct industry expertise. There is also the international nature of your operations to consider, where facilities, teams, and staff can be located in different parts of the world.

The hint is in the name “global service desk” – global – but identifying a partner that ticks all the required boxes can be challenging.

Essential Requirements

We covered key requirements when choosing a global service desk provider in a recent blog. Here is a brief summary:

• Outsource – outsourcing your IT and technical support requirements brings extensive benefits to your operations, including getting access to a broad range of high-quality skills that can be difficult to develop in an in-house team.
• Local – as a company that supports pharmaceutical facilities in Ireland, we understand the importance of having expertise on-site.
• Pharmaceutical expertise – this is often one of the most overlooked requirements not least because it is also the most challenging to achieve. That said, partnering with a provider that has direct pharmaceutical industry experience will deliver substantial benefits to your operation. That experience should not just cover IT, but also operational technologies in the lab and on the factory floor.
• Engineers – the knowledge and skill levels of the individuals providing the support are also important. For us at Westbourne IT, qualified and experienced engineers are a minimum requirement.

What About the Global Aspect?

While there are some pharmaceutical companies that have facilities in one location, many have operations in different countries and jurisdictions. This can create a challenge when choosing a global service desk solution.

As an example, let’s say you partner with a global service desk solution provider that has engineers based in Ireland. What happens when one of your teams in Asia or North America needs technical support? Can they only get support during Irish working hours? Is the support only available in English?

Supporting Your Facilities and Teams Around the World

The above scenario is far from ideal, so there are two additional essential requirements that we need to add to the above list:

• Follow-the-sun capabilities – your global service desk should have 24/7 capabilities, where your teams can get expert technical services wherever they are and whenever they need it. This is especially important given the extensive financial, reputational, and contractual repercussions that come from production or quality process downtime. Having round-the-clock access to pharma-specific, engineering-level technical support helps to prevent unplanned downtime and keeps projects on track.
• Multilingual capabilities – it is also beneficial to partner with a global service desk provider that has multilingual capabilities to improve communication with members of your team in different locations.

The Westbourne IT Approach

In summary, the ideal global service desk solution for your pharmaceutical company should include the following essential requirements:

• Outsourced to an expert provider
• Local staff in key locations
• Pharmaceutical industry experience, including GMP qualifications
• Qualified and experienced engineers
• 24/7 availability
• Multilingual capabilities

Not only is that an extensive list of requirements, but it is also niche, so it calls for a niche solution provider.

At Westbourne IT, we have structured our global service desk solutions to meet the needs of global pharmaceutical companies with laboratory and/or manufacturing facilities in Ireland. Here’s what you can expect when you choose us as your global service desk solution provider:

• Outsourced to an expert provider – we have extensive experience providing global service desk solutions.
• Local staff in key locations – we have placed engineers in client facilities in Ireland, the US, Japan, and other countries on a short or long-term basis.
• Pharmaceutical industry experience – we have direct pharmaceutical industry experience supporting standard IT platforms and equipment as well as those specific to pharmaceutical laboratories and production environments.
• Qualified and experienced engineers – each member of our team is a qualified engineer with pharmaceutical industry experience.
• 24/7 availability – in addition to our operations in Ireland, we also have offices and engineers in New Zealand, giving us follow-the-sun capabilities.
• Multilingual capabilities – our teams in Ireland and New Zealand have engineers who speak multiple languages, including the main European and Asian languages in addition to English.

To discuss your requirements for a truly global Global Service Desk solution, please contact us at Westbourne IT today.

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