Conference Programme

During the Conference you will:

Discover how you and your organisation can deliver an exceptional IT support service
Gain inspirational, practical and actionable ideas which we guarantee you'll implement on your Service Desk
Mingle and interact with your industry colleagues
Enjoy the opportunity to get away from the day-to-day office life to consolidate your thinking and service strategies

Day 110 June 2008

8.30 - 9.00

Registration and coffee

9.00 - 9.40

Let The Ride Begin!, Kirk Weisler, Chief Morale Officer

Grab a coffee and a donut, mingle with other delegates and kick off your conference with a fantastically fun and lively session. We promise to get you in the mood for the greatest SDI Conference experience of your life!

Kirk promises to energise you and the rest of the audience in this 'wake up' session designed to get you in the mood for a fun and exhilarating conference experience. Plus he will show you ways to make your team's culture a 'More-Better' place to work and play.

If your world of work causes you to deal constantly with issues like disengagement, rampant cynicism, sarcasm, negativity, burnout, being overwhelmed, toxicity, apathy and if sometimes you are even feeling these yourself - this workshop is perfect for you! If you believe your workplace can feel better, do better, and be better than it does right now, and if you have a desire to take it to higher ground - you must not miss Kirk's session.

You'll leave this session with a very clear understanding of what workplace culture is and how to make it "MORE BETTER" by positively and powerfully influencing it with proven cultural best practices. Some of the "MORE BETTER" principles with which we will practice and play include establishing traditions, the deliberate use of stories, more meaning-filled recognition, inspiring vs. requiring, readership leadership, being more question-able, and being more contagious.

Finally you'll learn about how language and the purposeful use of words can and does set the tone not just for your conversations, but for the very culture of your workplace. Words are living things that can go to work for us, or against us. You'll learn how changing your language, can change you life, and make for "MORE BETTER" Work and a "MORE BETTER" World!

9.40 - 9.45

Chairman's Welcome, Howard Kendall

9.45 - 10.30

Keynote - Paul McGee, Absolutely MAD for Customers

In his highly motivating and exciting presentation Paul gives practical advice in order to MAD (Make a Difference) in our competitive 21st Century world.

It's the people stupid! Paul explores why great product and great systems do not always equate to great service. This insight reveals how people's attitudes to customers makes a difference and is the critical factor in driving superior service.

Encounters in Excellence. He'll also explore the factors that customers judge your service on revealing specific areas you must address in order to retain and delight your customers.

Listen up. Finally Paul will explores the skill of active listening, its importance in dealing with both our internal and external customers and how to meet the emotional as well as the practical needs of customers.

10.30 - 10.50

Coffee/exhibition/activities

10.50 - 11.35

Choose one of the following three presentation streams:

Strategy Stream

Andrew Watson, Chief Information Officer, British Transport Police

Service Desk: The Launch Pad To Service Improvement
Management Stream

Amanda Birch, IT Service Desk Manager, Equiniti

Motivating your Service Desk
Service Delivery Stream

Jason Kirk, Central Services Manager, Atkins

Running the Service Desk: Find out the Hard Way that good is not good enough, and then making it better

11.35 - 12.20

Choose one of the following three presentation streams:

Strategy Stream

Paul Osborne, Head of Customer & Service Management, O2

Turn Customers Into Fans

More

The UK mobile market is one of the most fast paced competitive sectors in the world. O2 has proudly gained competitive advantage through a differentiated customer experience which 'turns customers into fans'. Experience how the O2 Service Desk has successfully delivered this challenge.
Management Stream

Steve Wignall, Head of Service Point, Barclays

Leading your team to Service Desk Success

More

Discover what makes a brilliant Service Desk and how great leadership is the key to shaping and driving a successful team. Expect a challenging and at times irreverent view from Steve on the world of Service Desks, with lots of top tips on how to create success for your team.
Service Delivery Stream

Tony Brough, GSM Country Lead, DHL

View from the outside - Combining People, Process and Technology

12.20 - 13.45

Lunch/exhibition

13.45 - 14.45

Service Desk & IT Support Excellence Awards Presentations and Voting

14.45 - 15.30

Small Group Discussions

Your chance to discuss an IT service issue relevant to you and your organisation. Share ideas and swap best practice with like-minded peers in this informal discussion session. Choice of worskshop topics to follow.

15.30 - 15.45

Coffee

15.45 - 16.30

Choose one of the following three presentation streams:

Strategy Stream

Douglas Howe, Deputy ICT Director, NHS

ITIL - The Journey of Discovery
Management Stream

Jawaid Bhatti, Technology Group Operations Manager, Greater London Authority

Get IT right, stripped bare!

More

Passionate about service delivery, Jawaid gets right to the root of why we exist, what we do and what our customers want from us.
Cutting through traditional ‘IT Service’ to focus on the concept of ‘Service’, Jawaid elaborates on examples of best practice for outstanding service to provide you with a virtual-briefcase of tools and techniques that you can take-away and use with confidence.
He also provides an insight into creating the right team structure with the ingredients and skills to meet your customers’ expectations, and look at the role of the leader and how to keep your team interested and on message.
Service Delivery Stream

Iain Bodsworth, European Customer Interaction Manager, Epson

Implementing Successful Service Desk Technology

16.30 - 17.20

Keynote - Adrian Webster, Create a Winning Service Management Environment

Adrian's addictively inspirational presentations help people at all levels to make a very real difference in their workplace. Brilliantly motivating, hilariously funny, completely different and very effective.

Drawing on his vast amount of practical experience as a motivator and team builder, Adrian brings to life a whole new world of fun motivational terminology and characters that everyone can instantly identify with, take away and put to good use.

He cuts through complex motivational psychobabble, making it fun, relevant and useful. You will come away feeling inches taller, with big grins on their faces, fully armed - ready for success.

For those who need to manage, lead and motivate their service and support teams to a high performance culture. This session will focus on releasing potential, breeding winning attitudes, achieving outstanding results with limited resources and bringing everyday individuals together to really start delivering. Less talk more action.

17.20 - 17.25