Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2003. / Field problem. Includes bibliographical references.

Abstract Effective and Quality Technical Support in Business to Business Partnerships with focus on the High-Tech (Semiconductor Industry) Products Fred Kishwahili Byabagye, MSE The University of Texas at Austin, 2011 Supervisor: Kyle Lewis Co-Supervisor: Tony Ambler My choice of this thesis topic is very much in line with my passionate desire to contribute and share my experience in the area of Business to Business (B2B) technical support while continuing to explore the constantly evolving challenges involved when a corporation that makes semiconductor products (Original Semiconductor Manufacturer) has to provide effective and efficient quality technical support to another corporation (Original Equipment Manufacturer) that uses the semiconductor product in designing a final product. For example, how does an Original Semiconductor manufacture (OSM) such as AMD or Intel provide effective technical support to an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) such as HP or Dell? This partnership has to be well managed to ensure continuous technical support from new product conception through the sustaining phase of the product. This area of business to business technical support is not well understood because of company Intellectual Property (IP) issues and propriety information involved. This type of activity happens under Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs), behind “firewalls” and varies from corporation to corporation. Most people have had experience with or have heard stories about customer service issues between an individual consumer customer and a corporation selling a product (such as buying a PC/Laptop from Dell or HP). This thesis will not explore this area since it is very familiar and well understood. First, by drawing on my observations spanning 16 years working in different customer facing areas for AMD and noting the changes that have taken place in the way B2B technical support has evolved, I will constantly point out scenarios that continuously come up in an effort to deliver quality and effective customer technical support. Second, there is a lot of literature available that explores how the semiconductor industry has changed from companies being component sellers to “solutions providers”. Historically, technical support used to be considered as only necessary after a product had gone into production. However, that model has changed in the current environment of more complex products such as Microprocessors (CPU), System-on-a-Chip (SoC), and Accelerated Processing units (APU). For B2B customer technical support to be effective and high quality, it has to meet and exceed the customers’ expectations throughout the product life-cycle. / text

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, August, 2008. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Student Number : 8609118F - MSc(Eng) project report - School of Electrical Engineering - Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment / Technical support organisations (TSOs) and service groups are becoming increasingly important in the upkeep and maintenance of the highly sophisticated and optimised automation equipment and systems that drive production in the mining and manufacturing industries. This study presents a methodology for designing and analysing the performance of a TSO, with a view to ongoing optimisation. The method of approach is the ‘System Dynamics’ (SD) simulation technique, which has at its core a mathematical model of the organisational unit, and which attempts to model its behaviour over time. The organisational design is based on Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) principles. It was found that the System Dynamics modelling approach was useful for a technical support organisation. For managers and organisational strategists, the quantitative ability of SD provides an intuitive and practical way to evaluate the impact of different structural and operational scenarios in response to ever-demanding business imperatives.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Drexel University, 2005. / Includes abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 97-104).

The widespread distribution of personal computers (PCs) throughout organizations has made a substantial impact on information systems. Additionally, the tremendous growth of the Internet has changed the way business is carried out. As the user population evolves into a much more technical and demanding group, their needs are also changing. With this change, Management Information Systems (MIS) departments must develop new ways of providing service and support to the user community. This study investigates the relationship between information systems support structures, support services, service quality and the characteristics of a diverse user population. This includes investigating technical support issues influencing user satisfaction. This study attempts to improve the understanding of the support function within MIS. The results of this study clarify the support needs of the users and identify user satisfaction factors, as well as factors relative to the quality of the support received. Six streams of prior research were reviewed when developing the research framework. These include: user support, end users and end-user computing, identifying and classifying user types, information centers, user satisfaction, service quality and other sources of computer support. A survey instrument was designed using the (UIS) user satisfaction instrument developed by Doll and Torkzadeh (1988) and the SERVQUAL instrument as modified by Kettinger and Lee (1994). The survey was distributed to 720 individuals. A total of 155 usable responses were analyzed providing mixed results. Of the ten hypotheses, only four were rejected. The finding of this study differ from those in earlier studies. The variables that were found to be significant to the users for service quality are the method of support that is provided to the user, i.e., help desk or local MIS support and the support technician's experience level. For user satisfaction the location of the service personnel made a difference to the end user. As with service quality, the support technician's experience level added to the users' satisfaction with MIS support. The results of this study are pertinent to managers of MIS departments as it clarifies the support needs of the users and identifies issues of user satisfaction and service quality.

Magister Commercii (Information Management) - MCom(IM) / Companies are putting in place systems that might assist in attaining their business goals and vision to improve the running of their business processes. Companies are looking at Business Intelligence (BI) as a means to attain a competitive edge over competitors, predict future trends, improve strategic decision making, facilitate quick and reliable decision making, or make the day-to-day running of business easier. The study looks at the perspective of middle to top management on the context of BI, with main focus on the technical capabilities of BI within medium to large companies in South Africa. To obtain factors relevant to the South African business context, an online survey was conducted with various sectors of South African industry. The study is part of research conducted collaboratively by the University of the Western Cape and Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences in Germany. It focuses on exploring usage of Business Intelligence Systems (BIS) together with Corporate Performance. Online surveys were conducted that targeted medium to large companies in Germany and South Africa by questioning middle to top management on issues surrounding BIS and Corporate Performance. On this basis online survey approach was taken to ensure required number of participants would be covered and approached. Therefore, the research adopted stratified sample method for the online survey. Stratified sampling enabled the expansion of the research by gathering and collaborating participants responses on the research question and eliminate the possibilities of unreliable sample from large population.

Thesis (M.P.A.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 2001. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2921. Typescript. Abstract precedes thesis as preliminary leaves [1-2]. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-97).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004. Directed by John A. Copeland. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 79-86).

Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Jason S. Bergtold / Technical support for products after the sale is commonplace in today’s businesses. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) provide technical support to their dealer channel for resolution of complex product issues. Technical support staffing levels can vary by product type, product complexity, and production volumes, and case volumes. This research seeks a better understanding of appropriate staffing levels between three product lines for one OEM. The objective of this paper is to develop a model for monthly and weekly average case volumes for the three product lines, based off of historical case volume data. This data is used to predict a product line’s (platform’s) workload based off the month of the year. The output of each platform’s monthly case volume is then used in an optimization model to determine optimal staffing levels for each platform, based off the time of the year. The models developed for each platform use a linear relationship which regresses workload on a set of binary variable for the months of the year. Each of the models developed provided statistically significant coefficients for months which contain the platform’s highest workload. The outputs from these models are used in a mixed integer nonlinear programming optimization model to determine staff level of full time equivalent (FTE) employees at each platform. Each of the three scenarios utilized in this research provide similar trends and staffing levels for each of the three product lines. Results of this research are of interest for the management of technical support staffing.