Microsoft, ServiceWare join for knowledge-based tech support

Users of Microsoft products will see greatly improved customer service and technical support thanks to a new "knowledge exchange program" between MSFT and ServiceWare. ServiceWare will use information from the knowledge base of Microsoft's online technical support site to enhance its own Knowledge-Pak knowledge bases, which will in turn supplement MSFT's support site. With this partnership, users and help desk personnel will have access to the same up-to-date and relevant tech support information.

Hugh Bishop, senior VP of enterprise business applications for the Aberdeen Group, thinks that it is more imperative than ever that corporate help desk employees and their end users are armed with the most up-to-date and relevant technical support information. "It makes sense that ServiceWare and Microsoft combine their existing resources and continue to share information to improve technical support services available to both corporate help desk personnel and end users," he said.

"Having access to technical information right from [the] source will allow us to deliver a more comprehensive and usable range of information to customers," added Rick Joslin, ServiceWare's VP of knowledge products.

MSFT customers want to integrate tech support knowledge bases with their own help desk systems, said Kurt Samuelson, Microsoft's content manager for enterprise services. By working with ServiceWare, Microsoft provides its customers "with the answers they need within the help desk system tailored to their company."

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