Help Desk Software at the Helm: Trends for 2023

by | Oct 7, 2022 | Applications & Technology, CRM, ITSM

There are a million reasons why the term ‘help desk’ begins with ‘help’. A help desk software solution is to today what the wheel was to the Sumerians – a one-stop solution to a plethora of pain points. Many consider helpdesk ticketing tools to be the panacea for modern-day customer centricity. For today’s customers, turbulence-free service is non-negotiable. To such ends, incident management needs to be flexible, friendly, and real-time. So in order to match, businesses need stellar ticketing tools in place. Fortunately, a robust customer experience provider can make life 1000x easier for you by plugging in the right help desk tool. And well, how to achieve that? A Zendesk support partner might just be what you are looking for.

What is a help desk software solution?

A help desk software is a solution/tool that businesses use to optimize customer experience. The utility spectrum is broad – from managing support requests to tracking performance to bringing issues to resolution. Such tools singlehandedly streamline your enterprise IT, customer service, and a host of other business-critical units. In functional terms, these customer-facing ticketing software expedites the process of ‘organize-manage-respond-repeat’. Your business teams become happy and your clients happier, as a result. Goes without saying, a customer service software is essential for modern-day businesses to survive and thrive.

Did you know, 60% of high-productivity customer service teams count on an IT help desk solution to ensure smooth-sailing customer service?

However, customer satisfaction does depend a lot on the choice of your help desk tool. Smart businesses go for customer experience providers such as Zendesk for ensuring robust CRM. It includes a stellar ticketing software as a core offering. But, even smarter businesses put efficiency in the mix by shaking hands with a credible Zendesk support partner. It ensures to onboard all the latest advancements in help-desk technology for you.

Which help desk software features will trend in 2023?

Here are the help desk software features that will shine in 2023 and beyond.

  1.  Multi-channel ticketing
  2. Transparent incident resolution
  3.  Self-help first and rich in data
  4. Automated notification mechanism
  5.  Integrability with other software
  6. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) customization
  7. Reporting and dashboarding
  8. Compliance with security standards

1. Multi-channel ticketing

The more channels you are present on, the easier it is for you to reach your customers. This includes emails, phone, social media platforms, live chats, and more. With auto-trigger messages set for each channel (matched to the end user, platform, and the right mix of empathy), this strategy can reduce the first user-touchpoint time to as less as 60 seconds. Your customers do not have to raise a query and wait for ages to be acknowledged. As a result, the overall ticket turnaround time becomes significantly faster. Manual processes like emails/phone calls, on the other hand, involve a lot of cost, time, and human resources.

A streamlined multi-channel presence also means that your customers do not have to raise the same concern more than once. A help desk software tool syncs all your data in an exhaustive dashboard for your team’s quick reference and action. Onboarding a customer experience provider can be a business-smart choice in this regard.

2. Transparent incident resolution

A help desk ticketing software brings customer and customer success under one roof – in real time. It helps you track, categorize, and assign tickets to the appropriate agents via its automatic ticket categorizing feature. The path forward is transparent to the customers as well. They are able to track the status of their requests from start to finish, all the way to resolution. They have all interactions with the customer service representative at their fingertips and can refer to them at any time. Automation reduces turnaround time for them; they receive empathetic and professional responses. In a nutshell, they are empowered to be on top of the requests they raise. And, this improves customer satisfaction. So all in all, despite hundreds of customers, an IT help desk software can make the experience personalized for each of them.

The right Zendesk support partner can help you upgrade and personalize your incident management mechanism.

3. Self-help first and rich in data

The modern consumer is self-sufficient. S/he wants to be able to solve problems by her/himself before relying on others. And in this regard, a help desk software tool can be truly helpful. It allows you to store handy tools like FAQs, how-to guides, and help articles as your knowledge base. Your customers can access it at any time for quick reference and customer-level problem-solving. Any sound customer experience provider will always empower you with this capability. The functionality makes your team’s job easier.

Modern ticketing software tools are also made mobile-first to fit this bill. Their digital knowledge library is structured, updated, and optimized for multiple screens (mobile, tablet, laptop, desktop, etc.) for high-velocity incident resolution.

4. Automated notification mechanism

When it comes to a ticketing tool, automation has the last word these days. Automated help desk software tools collate requests across channels and create the corresponding tickets. The latter are then auto-assigned to respective customer service agents based on their expertise and/or the pre-defined parameters set by you. Automation gives you complete autonomy over the incident resolution process. Agents are kept informed and prompted throughout the process to prevent requests from being lost/forgotten. Automation makes the process so smooth that you end up with almost no request backlogs.

Read: the critical needs of modern Information Technology Service Management (ITSM)

The help desk software solution trends for 2023
The features that are going to shape help desk software solutions in 2023

5. Integrability with other software

A software standalone can only provide a certain set of features and functions. However, if it has the flexibility to integrate with other business software, it can provide much more robust and coordinated service experiences. There then remains no need to switch between applications during issue remediations. Cross-functional teams can collaborate without difficulty. The total process becomes time-saving and efficiency-boosting.

6. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) customization

Sound ticketing systems have the ability to incorporate Service Level Agreements (SLA). SLAs make the entire incident resolution process well-functioning and streamlined. Customers are made aware of the timeframe for issue remediation. Your agents and reps are made aware of all aspects involved in each request scenario. All activities are executed via pre-defined rules and templates. There is minimal manual intervention or room for last-minute decisioning on the spot. Apart from being super efficient, such SLA compliance also ensures that business targets are met with the best possible service standards.

That said, SLAs vary from business to business. Therefore, it is important that your helpdesk is customizable to meet this flexibility. A competent customer experience provider can help you adhere to all business-critical SLAs.

7. Reporting and dashboarding

In-built reporting and dashboarding are at the heart of good IT help desk support solutions. KPI analysis can tell you whether your customer service is in line with the success you envision. Channel usage, ticket volume, ticket resolution time, first-response time, SLA compliance, agent activity, etc. are examples of such KPIs. Consolidated reporting leads to effective data visualization and decision-making. You can even automate the reports to reach you at specific time intervals with the help of a customer experience provider.

Here’s a screenshot of the leading help desk platform, Zendesk, working its magic with customer chat metrics. A Zendesk support partner can guide you in this quest for customer excellence.

Screenshot of leading help desk platform Zendesk spinning magic with customer chat metrics
Source: https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408888768410-Monitoring-real-time-chat-metrics

8. Compliance with security standards

Compliance with industry standards is a critical aspect of any help desk software tool. A help desk tool is a giant collaborative space. It involves various cross-functioning people, practices, and processes. Naturally, it means the involvement of a plethora of SLAs, password-protected documentation, and authorization. Non-compliance with security and safety standards can lead to system breakdown and even data breaches and loss.

Bring in help desk software zen with Zendesk

Zendesk is the world’s leading customer service software platform. From customer experience to customer satisfaction, Zendesk helps with all. Team up with the right Zendesk partner to catapult your customer service into customer excellence. Zendesk implementation not only results in happy clients, but also productive and agile sales, marketing, and customer service teams. As a customer experience provider, Zendesk’s offerings can be game-changing across verticals if leveraged right.

Estuate is a leading Zendesk Master Partner

Whether it’s implementation, training, consulting, optimization, apps, or integration, we are the most trusted provider of implementation solutions for Zendesk. We are one of the world’s leading Zendesk support partners.

Our Zendesk implementation plans are tailored to all business needs.

Zendesk Customer Service Management (CSM)

Our customer service and customized approach meet CRM needs across vertical business applications.

Zendesk IT Service Management (ITSM)

We provide industry-leading, simple, reliable, and cost-effective ITSM solutions for your modern business.

Zendesk Sell

Get a clear view of your sales pipeline and keep your team focused on the most valuable leads and deals with our Zendesk Sell support. We also have a dedicated recurring revenue app for Zendesk Sell, EZ$tream. It facilitates automated calculation of subscription metrics and revenue forecasting in a seamless way. Explore EZ$tream

Zendesk Sunshine Platform Development

Our Zendesk Sunshine solutions include complete platform development, implementation, migration, and support services.

Read the press release: Estuate Achieves Zendesk Master Implementation Partner Status

Our Zendesk expertise reflects in our consistent KPIs:

  • Core global system integration partner of Zendesk
  • Fast and secure migrations from any reporting platform
  • Out-of-the-box integrations and accelerators
  • 100+ successful Zendesk projects
  • Consistent CSAT: 97%
  • Cross-industry expertise
  • Flexible deployment models

So if you need any assistance in amping up in the customer service arena, we are right here to help

Can IT help desk software truly live up to the challenges of modern-day customer service? What are your thoughts? Let us know on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook. We would love to hear from you!

Cloud-based ITSM Spending: A rundown for 2022

by | Mar 1, 2022 | Applications & Technology, CRM, ITSM

Cloud-based ITSM Spending

IT lives in the cloud today. Naturally, most IT service management (ITSM) support models today are also cloud-centric. The competitive playing field out there requires smart cloud ITSM spending in 2022. And if you choose IT support as a service, it may be worth working with a Zendesk consultancy partner. Zendesk is one of the world’s leading providers of ITSM solutions. From compliance (like ITIL-based service management) to customization, read on to learn why the year belongs to premium cloud ITSM service delivery.

Cloud ITSM spending in 2022: top 5 areas to consider

  1.   Cloud computing
  2.   IT automation
  3.   Hybrid cloud
  4.   Cloud migration
  5.   ITIL compliance

Why should you invest in cloud ITSM solutions in 2022?

Cloud-based ITSM solutions are one of the best effort-saving inventions of the tech ecosystem. By providing a safe space for your colossal data, a cloud ITSM service delivery plan economizes your IT infrastructure costs. This saves you time to focus on core business strategies. So, invest in cloud IT support as a service in 2022. Turbo-charge your digital transformation, and continue to succeed in the tech ecosystem.

Read these 3 key reasons why ITSM is essential for your business.

The cloud-based ITSM market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 12.38% over the next 4 years. Some 68% of enterprises believe that cloud-based ITSM will continue to be a big push for growth for at least the next 3 years.

Cloud migration of legacy applications will be another ITSM strategy trending in 2022. This ITSM solution not only streamlines IT operations but also effectively addresses security gaps. Especially in today’s COVID-19 world, effectively managing remote teams/hybrid work models requires comprehensive IT support. More and more CIOs around the world are turning to IT support as a service and ITIL-based service management to fill these gaps.

Most tech-centric businesses across the world, irrespective of size, will invest in cloud migration and cloud computing in 2022. Turn to a solid ITSM service delivery partner to ensure your budgeting and spending go hand-in-hand.

Geographic growth rate of cloud ITSM (Information Technology Service Management) market (2020-25)
Geographic growth rate of cloud ITSM (Information Technology Service Management) market (2020-25)
Source: https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/cloud-information-technology-service-management-itsm-market
Read what a strong customer service software can do for your IT delivery.

What are cloud ITSM services?

Cloud Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) services refer to the integration of an ITSM platform with your business. The goal is to manage your IT network & operations in a better way and deliver services for greater end-user satisfaction. Implementation and maintenance of an ITSM platform like Zendesk is a classic example of such services. A Zendesk partner is the first stepping stone.

Customer experience is increasingly impacting revenue. Plugging in CRM for end-to-end delivery of IT services is a major trend among businesses today. Read these 5 reasons why your business needs a CRM software.

Who is a cloud ITSM service provider?

As the name suggests, a cloud ITSM service provider is a business vendor who seamlessly brings your business together with a state-of-the-art ITSM platform. From assessing your existing IT infrastructure to implementing the cloud platform and customizing it as needed, these are solution partners for all your cloud IT needs.

What areas should you look out for in cloud ITSM spending in 2022?

According to Gartner, global cloud services spending is expected to exceed $482 billion in 2022. This is a significant increase from $313 billion in 2020.

Choose a cloud ITSM service delivery partner that can read and interpret the trends. The following areas will be good places for you to invest in 2022:

1.   Cloud computing

A cloud service infrastructure lets your enterprise technologies work more efficiently. In 2022, cloud computing infrastructure will make its presence felt in all areas of enterprise operations.  This will range from autonomous IoT (Internet of Things) to entertainment streaming, robust 5Gs, and cloud gaming. Cloud-based AR/VR (augmented and virtual reality) will also emerge on the scene.

Spiceworks Ziff Davis’ 2022 State of IT report, about 44% enterprises foresee 5G technology as a major IT capability in 2022. 54% of companies surveyed believe IoT will be a major budget driver.

2.   IT automation

IT automation is an area that will also climb the budget ladder this year. Companies will invest in cloud automation tools to smoothly complete tasks with minimal manual intervention. This is especially true in the context of the pandemic, where team operations are remote and mostly public web-based.

This finding is also supported by Spiceworks Ziff Davis’ 2022 State of IT report. 70% of IT organizations prioritized IT automation in 2020. The percentage however dropped to just 61% in 2021, but is now back up at 71% for 2022.

3.  Hybrid cloud

Modern IT businesses will invest in hybrid cloud solutions in 2022. This is a combination of an easily accessible, PAYG public cloud and a more mission-critical and secure private cloud that is exclusive to an organization. According to Forbes, hybrid cloud is also growing in demand due to rapid advancement of cloud computing. Companies are increasingly finding themselves amid multi-cloud environments from different suppliers. A hybrid cloud helps streamline the overall operation.

4.  Cloud migration

The efficiency of cloud infrastructure is leading more and more companies to migrate their IT assets to the cloud. This will also drive up the overall spending on IT infrastructure. As per SC media, 48% of businesses (surveyed) will migrate their IT applications to the cloud in 2022.

One of the main obstacles that companies face is in regard to the technicalities involved in a seamless migration. Working with an ITSM solution partner can help.

5.   ITIL compliance

The ITIL framework will continue to be critical to compliance and success at IT. A complete ITSM solution that conforms to ITIL-based service management allows you to focus on the IT strategy and get things done, rather than worrying about compliance.

Find your ITSM zen with a Zendesk partner

Zendesk is the world’s leading customer service software. Its ITSM offerings are among the most agile and top-end capabilities in today’s IT climate. Cloud ITSM solutions represent greater reliability, flexibility, scalability, and productivity, and in short, all that is Zendesk.

Watch a short video about the Zendesk service solution.

Who is a Zendesk partner?

A Zendesk partner is a third-party vendor that is officially recognized by Zendesk to implement its enterprise platform services in other organizations. Service providers, business process outsourcers, systems integrators, distributors, technology partners, ISVs, and value-added resellers can be Zendesk partners.

A Zendesk partner that has its accreditations in place is a catalyst for growth. For instance, look for compliance in the form of ITIL-based service management in your Zendesk partner.

Estuate is a Zendesk Master Partner in offering cloud ITSM capabilities

Estuate is Zendesk’s master implementer and solution provider. We offer industry-leading, simple, reliable, and cost-effective intelligent ITSM solutions for your modern business. Our comprehensive suite of ITSM services helps you redesign your processes to increase productivity, execute efficient service management operations, and gain data visibility. We distinguish ourselves through our:

  • ITIL-based service management & compliance
  • Configuration Management Database (CMDB)
  • Cross-domain and cross-industry expertise
  • Cost-efficiency and cost-effectiveness
  • Promptness in providing data security
  • Customer experience delivery
  • Open and flexible architecture
  • Improved user productivity
  • Rapid time to value
  • Cloud-readiness

To see our presence in the Zendesk partner ecosystem, please visit here

When it comes to cloud-based ITSM, we care about both Change Management and Governance, Risk & Compliance. Read more about our Zendesk ITSM offerings here

Want to revamp your cloud ITSM? Visit us. We are right here to help.

Do you think enterprises should invest in cloud ITSM in 2022? How much of an impact will it have?

Customer Service Software in the Age of Modern Business

by | Aug 17, 2021 | Applications & Technology, ITSM

This is what a typical Zendesk dashboard looks like (Zendesk Support).

In any business, customer service forms the core of overall growth and development. With advancing business technologies, no wonder, customer service software and cloud-based CRM (Customer Relationship Management) support have taken center stage today. And especially with ever-evolving customer needs, a robust support system is indeed needed for assisting users in the journey of discovery, usage, and troubleshooting.

Putting all this stress to rest, thankfully there are cloud CRM software like Zendesk. A Zendesk implementation plan is the gateway to reaching ultimate customer satisfaction.

However before delving into what Zendesk brings to the business table, let’s take a closer look at the central theme of this discussion – Customer Service.

Why Customer Service Matters?

Let’s decipher with an example. Suppose, one day you go shopping for some formal clothes. On entering the shop, you see no sales assistant at the entrance. As you wander further, you notice that the clothes are not grouped in categories – casual wear and business blazers hang in the same stand & the sizes are all mixed up. And while you are trying to make sense of all of this, a sales assistant comes up and tries to convince you to purchase perfume @ 50% off. Say, you finally manage to make your way out with the clothes of your choice, but now you are unable to locate the billing counter. Exasperated, you exist without making the purchase.

Customer service is that business practice that never loses relevance. The above example of a physical store can easily apply to a business website. And, this is exactly where a customer service software comes in handy.

Customer Service Software: Your Key to Creating Customers for Life

Smooth customer experience (CX) is a business game-changer. However as you scale up in size, manually addressing all customer service requests can be challenging. For tracking & collating all requests at one place, driving action-packed reports from them and simultaneously optimizing the response rate – you need modern CRM support. To accommodate the expanding scope of customer service, the world’s leading cloud CRM company Zendesk has a range of offerings in its ambit. Here are some of the core benefits of plugging in an efficient customer service software like Zendesk:

Super-responsive helpdesk – A prompt resolution of queries is one of the sure-fire ways of garnering customer loyalty. Nearly 47% of all customers consider 24/7 support to be non-negotiable. To address the need, a sound CRM software makes the smart use of digital FAQ libraries, chatbots, and community forums. Even when your customer service team is off the clock, not a single query goes unacknowledged. However, too much automation without human touch can also make for a bad experience. Though customers should be empowered to avail self-service, they should not feel abandoned. The right choice of customer service software is critical here.

Watch: Zendesk’s ingenuity toward delivering stellar CX

Flexible ticket management – Funnel all customer queries, issues, and suggestions in a single place, categorize them in sub-groups, troubleshoot immediately or schedule – a robust cloud CRM support kickstarts an automated workflow for your business and minimizes the room for human errors. A Zendesk implementation plan additionally incorporates macros for easier process automation – freeing up your customer support team to take up tasks that require greater human interaction. It is also quick in assigning a unique reference/ticket number to each query, making tracking and resolving easier both in the short and long runs. Better lead-to-conversion ratio follows suit.

Advanced analytics & custom reports – A good customer service software is often defined by its analytical prowess. It helps you capture trends in the customers’ purchase behavior and foster relationships by leveraging data-driven information. Zendesk CRM support encompasses customer analytics to help you interpret how your clients interact with your brand offerings. It further provides insights on how this experience can be improved. The customer service software is best-in-class in offering data visualization using easy point-and-click functions and intuitive dashboarding.

This is what a typical Zendesk dashboard looks like (Zendesk Support).

Cloud-based CRM Support Dashboard – part of Zendesk Implementation Plan | Source: Zendesk

Also, Zendesk APIs are configured around REST which provides a great deal of flexibility in terms of resources and methods.

Third-party integrations – Higher the number of third-party software you can integrate with your core business with, higher the avenues you can cater to. Zendesk makes space for over 100 third party integrations. Salesforce, Google Analytics, and SugarCRM being classic cases in point. This helps you to quickly respond to the evolving market demands and identify what fits your business needs the best.

Customized offerings – When it comes to customer service, personalization is the key. Every end-user likes brand offerings to be tailor-made to their needs – zone, country, industry, age group, etc. Toward this, Zendesk accommodates multi-locale configurations (time-zone & languages) and group rules (auto-redirection according to query), among other key offerings. Such personalization augments product eligibility, compatibility, and eventually up- and cross-selling. So if you want to add a personal touch to your brand, invest in robust CRM support. Having a Zendesk implementation plan is a great start.

World-class branding – Collate all of the above features, put them in one customer service software, and leverage. You are sure to arrive at a smart and reputable brand image that is reflective of your holistic values, mission, and vision. Your web/mobile interface is the first place where your potential customers meet you. It must be distinguished enough to set you apart from your competitors. And, a cutting-edge customer service software will help you achieve that. Zendesk implementation plans have a complete helpdesk customization option (CSS rebranding) in its kit. When utilized optimally, it can be an absolute game-changer.

It’s Flexible, It’s Easy, It’s Zendesk!

The cloud CRM software accommodates all of the above features and beyond. When empowered with Zendesk, not only are your customers happy, your sales, marketing, and customer service teams also communicate better. They work more cohesively toward the business goals. You bulk up on efficiency, and cut down on cost.

Estuate is Zendesk’s Master Implementation Partner

From implementation, training, consultancy, optimization, Zendesk apps, and integration, we are Zendesk’s most trusted Implementation Solution Provider. 

Our Zendesk implementation plans are customized according to your business needs.

  • Zendesk Sell
    Get a clear vision of your sales pipeline, and keep your team focused on the highest value leads & deals with our Zendesk Sell support. 

Read: Estuate Achieves Zendesk Master Implementation Partner Status

Our Zendesk expertise reflects in our consistent KPIs:

  • Core global system integration partner of Zendesk
  • Quick and secure migrations from any reporting platform
  • Out-of-the-box integrations and accelerators
  • 100+ successful Zendesk projects
  • Consistent CSAT: 97%
  • Cross-industry expertise
  • Flexible delivery models

So if you are looking to unlock the next level in customer service, we’re right here to help.

What are your thoughts on having a customer service software? Do you think it helps?

3 key reasons why ITSM is essential for your business.

by | Mar 30, 2021 | ITSM

In today’s fast-changing technological world, companies must keep pace with emerging innovations, adding value to their business and offering improved customer service. Today, ITSM has become quite crucial for businesses, similar to ever-changing technology. It is more important than ever that IT organizations embrace ITSM to align themselves with customer needs and provide exceptional, low-cost service delivery. Enterprises need state-of-the-art IT technologies, which help achieve their job performance, automate IT processes and recognize problems within an established system to control the availability of resources and improve customer service.

IT Service Management (ITSM) is now the most prevalent paradigm for IT resource management. ITSM offers a streamlined, process-based IT management approach, which emphasizes delivering business value by establishing and managing IT services that help and facilitate profit-making business functions. IT service management is a way of implementing, maintaining, and providing IT services to meet an enterprise’s needs. It ensures that the resources, processes and technologies are adequately integrated to produce value. Efficient ITSM enables IT to consider and implement justifiable enhancements that have a tangible impact.

Need for ITSM

Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) is the collection of processes and practices often used by IT organizations to manage IT services during their life cycle. ITSM aligns the priorities and practices of the IT organization with those of the business. ITSM lowers IT costs, allowing companies to get the most out of their IT investments. It standardizes processes using a more formal documentation framework, mitigates different risk forms, including monitoring of financial costs, and improves management. Every company, regardless of size, is engaged in IT service management in some way because it ensures that incidents, service requests, issues, changes, and other facets of IT services are handled in a seamless manner.

Importance of ITSM in Business

One of the main reasons for implementing an ITSM system by businesses is to improve the overall quality of its service delivery. From a business standpoint, ITSM aids management in better understanding IT’s business impact, requirements, and cost-cutting strategies. ITSM lowers organization risks, decreases employee dependence, and enables sustainable and productive operations. An ITSM approach fills the void between expectations and assists companies in their transformation. A good ITSM encourages standardization and continuity in terms of resources and procedures, which helps businesses to be more agile and responsive. Another critical function of ITSM is to oversee a company’s processes and IT activities to ensure compliance with various regulations.

Here are the key reasons why IT organizations implement ITSM

Customers can self-serve and self-help with ITSM

The ITSM provides a self-service platform that allows users to quickly access problem-solving information through a knowledge base. ITSM self-service offers consumers an incredibly cost-effective route to resolving well-understood IT incidents or addressing basic requests without needing assistance from initial IT operators. ITSM allows businesses to build and manage a repository of all available resources that can be accessed at any time. Self-service improves operational performance, lessens manual workload, and reduces the time and cost of handling IT incidents.

Business processes in ITSM are centralized and optimized

ITSM is a process-oriented approach to IT management aimed at aligning the IT organization’s service delivery activities with the needs of the market. With proper IT service management, everyday operations within the organization can be streamlined and centralized. The centralization and optimization of service management processes allow information systems departments to better track their operations and achieve substantial efficiency gains.

ITSM adds strategic value by automating key processes

ITSM software systems help improve IT management through the automation of key processes. Automated workflows replace inefficient manual processes with more effective, compliant, and safe operations. With the implementation of ITSM, IT departments now have automated reports and key performance indicators (KPIs) to track and assess the performance of their IT services. Automation services allow business managers to adapt, design, and control workflows without any coding, thereby saving time and money while improving quality and consistency.

Companies must strategize and evolve in response to market competition in order to provide a unique experience to their customers and add value to their businesses. Companies can improve their productivity by using advanced IT services, which allows them to better leverage their resources and become proactive while concentrating on better service quality and goal achievement. It should be known that with the aid of a good software solution, the ITSM implementation is much simpler. So, if you’re excited to revolutionize your business with ITSM, we suggest starting with Zendesk ITSM, a fantastic tool based on ITIL best practices

Prem Shankar Patel
Senior Manager
Prem brings nearly three decades of analytics and information management experience to Estuate. He is a recognized expert who has received several awards over the years. In 2003, he was awarded the Center of Excellence (CoE) Champion Award for introduction of advanced training and certification for BIDW architects and consultants. In FY03-04 and FY04-05, he received the Best Faculty of the Year Award for his significant and effective contribution as a faculty member in the delivery of BIDW training. Previously in 2005, he received the Feather in My Cap (FIMC) Award for defining metrics for BIDW projects and establishing organizational norms. Prior to joining Estuate, Prem worked in various strategic positions at Wipro Limited and R S Software (India) Ltd. He holds an M. Tech in Computer Science from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
Nagaraja Kini
Founder and Chief Financial Officer
Nagaraja has more than two decades of engineering, business development, consulting, alliances and management experience in software development, integration and implementation. He has worked extensively with global teams to consistently simplify ERP implementations for businesses. Nagaraja brings with him the commitment, willingness, and capability to anticipate and act on the continually evolving needs of a business.
Prior to founding Estuate, Nagaraja served at Oracle as Director in Application and Industry Solutions group within Global Sales Support. Nagaraja holds a Master of Technology in Industrial Electronics from the National Institute of Technology, Surathkal, and a Bachelor’s in Engineering from the SJ College of Engineering, Mysore, India.
Nagaraja Kini
Founder and Chief Financial Officer
Nagaraja has more than two decades of engineering, business development, consulting, alliances and management experience in software development, integration and implementation. He has worked extensively with global teams to consistently simplify ERP implementations for businesses. Nagaraja brings with him the commitment, willingness, and capability to anticipate and act on the continually evolving needs of a business. Prior to founding Estuate, Nagaraja served at Oracle as Director in Application and Industry Solutions group within Global Sales Support. Nagaraja holds a Master of Technology in Industrial Electronics from the National Institute of Technology, Surathkal, and a Bachelor’s in Engineering from the SJ College of Engineering, Mysore, India.
Marc Hebert
Chief Operating Officer
Marc joined Estuate in December, 2008 as its first Chief Operating Officer. Marc is a recognized expert on offshore outsourcing. He has appeared on CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight, was interviewed in Investor’s Business Daily, and has been widely quoted in major media publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, Financial Times, New York Times and Boston Globe on offshore outsourcing. He is recognized as an “IBM Champion” for his role in expanding the market for IBM’s Information Lifecycle Governance product line.
Prior to Estuate, he served in leadership roles at large global corporations, including as the CMO at Virtusa Corporation; EVP, Marketing and Alliances for Sierra Atlantic; and Vice President for eight years at Oracle Corporation. Marc holds a Bachelor of Science degree in experimental psychology from Harvard University, and an MBA from Stanford University.
Marc Hebert
Chief Operating Officer
Marc joined Estuate in December, 2008 as its first Chief Operating Officer. Marc is a recognized expert on offshore outsourcing. He has appeared on CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight, was interviewed in Investor’s Business Daily, and has been widely quoted in major media publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune, Financial Times, New York Times and Boston Globe on offshore outsourcing. He is recognized as an “IBM Champion” for his role in expanding the market for IBM’s Information Lifecycle Governance product line. Prior to Estuate, he served in leadership roles at large global corporations, including as the CMO at Virtusa Corporation; EVP, Marketing and Alliances for Sierra Atlantic; and Vice President for eight years at Oracle Corporation. Marc holds a Bachelor of Science degree in experimental psychology from Harvard University, and an MBA from Stanford University.
Seemakiran Upadhya
Global Delivery Head and Managing Director, India
Seemakiran brings to Estuate more than 25 years of experience in the IT industry. She has been successful in building high-performing teams for the Delivery, Sales, and Operations departments. She was instrumental in setting up Estuate’s India center. Prior to joining Estuate, Seemakiran worked at Satyam, where she developed, tested, and implemented software projects in Oracle Technologies across multiple domains. She is highly proficient at working with a global client base.
Seemakiran holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering from Karnataka University.
Seemakiran Upadhya
Global Delivery Head and Managing Director, India
Seemakiran brings to Estuate more than 25 years of experience in the IT industry. She has been successful in building high-performing teams for the Delivery, Sales, and Operations departments. She was instrumental in setting up Estuate’s India center. Prior to joining Estuate, Seemakiran worked at Satyam, where she developed, tested, and implemented software projects in Oracle Technologies across multiple domains. She is highly proficient at working with a global client base. Seemakiran holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering from Karnataka University.
Prem Shankar Patel
Senior Manager
Prem brings nearly three decades of analytics and information management experience to Estuate. He is a recognized expert who has received several awards over the years. In 2003, he was awarded the Center of Excellence (CoE) Champion Award for introduction of advanced training and certification for BIDW architects and consultants. In FY03-04 and FY04-05, he received the Best Faculty of the Year Award for his significant and effective contribution as a faculty member in the delivery of BIDW training.
Previously in 2005, he received the Feather in My Cap (FIMC) Award for defining metrics for BIDW projects and establishing organizational norms. Prior to joining Estuate, Prem worked in various strategic positions at Wipro Limited and R S Software (India) Ltd. He holds an M. Tech in Computer Science from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
Prem Shankar Patel
Senior Manager
Prem brings nearly three decades of analytics and information management experience to Estuate. He is a recognized expert who has received several awards over the years. In 2003, he was awarded the Center of Excellence (CoE) Champion Award for introduction of advanced training and certification for BIDW architects and consultants. In FY03-04 and FY04-05, he received the Best Faculty of the Year Award for his significant and effective contribution as a faculty member in the delivery of BIDW training. Previously in 2005, he received the Feather in My Cap (FIMC) Award for defining metrics for BIDW projects and establishing organizational norms. Prior to joining Estuate, Prem worked in various strategic positions at Wipro Limited and R S Software (India) Ltd. He holds an M. Tech in Computer Science from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
Sreekantha B. S.
Head Strategic Projects
Sreekantha brings to Estuate more than 33 years of experience in IT. He has successfully sold and delivered over 130 turnkey software projects worldwide for various clients across a variety of sectors - from software, finance, manufacturing, utilities, services, and more. Prior to joining Estuate, Sreekantha led Buzznet (a Malaysian software company) for 17 years and Inventa Corporation (a US-based software company having an office in Malaysia) for 6 years.
Through his experience, Sreekantha brings in-depth knowledge of software engineering, delivery, and implementation of software projects across all technology sectors that have emerged over the last 30+ years. Sreekantha holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics & Communications from Mysore University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Newport University, USA.
Sreekantha B. S.
Head Strategic Projects
Sreekantha brings to Estuate more than 33 years of experience in IT. He has successfully sold and delivered over 130 turnkey software projects worldwide for various clients across a variety of sectors - from software, finance, manufacturing, utilities, services, and more. Prior to joining Estuate, Sreekantha led Buzznet (a Malaysian software company) for 17 years and Inventa Corporation (a US-based software company having an office in Malaysia) for 6 years. Through his experience, Sreekantha brings in-depth knowledge of software engineering, delivery, and implementation of software projects across all technology sectors that have emerged over the last 30+ years. Sreekantha holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics & Communications from Mysore University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Newport University, USA.
Piyush Singh
Practice Head - Insurance
Piyush has fifteen years of work experience, including one year with Estuate. Piyush holds a Master of Computer Applications degree from Bharati Vidyapeeth University, Pune. Piyush is a highly accomplished professional with a wealth of experience in IT services and product engineering. Piyush has worked with PwC and Accenture in the past and his last positions were Delivery Manager and Dev Lead respectively.
He has received the Great Performance award from PwC and the ACE award from Accenture. Piyush has also delivered many end-to-end projects on a medium to large scale.
Piyush Singh
Practice Head - Insurance
Piyush has fifteen years of work experience, including one year with Estuate. Piyush holds a Master of Computer Applications degree from Bharati Vidyapeeth University, Pune. Piyush is a highly accomplished professional with a wealth of experience in IT services and product engineering. Piyush has worked with PwC and Accenture in the past and his last positions were Delivery Manager and Dev Lead respectively. He has received the Great Performance award from PwC and the ACE award from Accenture. Piyush has also delivered many end-to-end projects on a medium to large scale.
Subbarao Satyavolu
Chief Delivery Officer, Americas
Subbarao is a results oriented Senior Leader with 30+ years experience in Enterprise Solution Consulting, Enterprise Program Management, Digital Enterprise Transformation/IT Modernization, Product Engineering, Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC), IT Service and Operations Management (ITSM/ITOM) and Strategic Account management. Global experience in building & managing high performing teams in solving complex business & technological challenges for the clients
Subbarao is a proven problem solver with extensive experience in the IT industry. He has been recognized as an outstanding performer by his employers, Hitachi/Sierra Atlantic and Computer Sciences Corp (CSC). Subbarao has also been certified in Six Sigma and Project Delivery Excellence by CSC University. In addition, Subbarao is certified in Supply Chain Management and IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL). Subbarao holds an M. Tech in Computer Aided Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur and has also completed an Executive Development program at Cornell University in New York.
Subbarao Satyavolu
Chief Delivery Officer, Americas
Subbarao is a results oriented Senior Leader with 30+ years experience in Enterprise Solution Consulting, Enterprise Program Management, Digital Enterprise Transformation/IT Modernization, Product Engineering, Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC), IT Service and Operations Management (ITSM/ITOM) and Strategic Account management. Global experience in building & managing high performing teams in solving complex business & technological challenges for the clients. Subbarao is a proven problem solver with extensive experience in the IT industry. He has been recognized as an outstanding performer by his employers, Hitachi/Sierra Atlantic and Computer Sciences Corp (CSC). Subbarao has also been certified in Six Sigma and Project Delivery Excellence by CSC University. In addition, Subbarao is certified in Supply Chain Management and IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL). Subbarao holds an M. Tech in Computer Aided Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur and has also completed an Executive Development program at Cornell University in New York.
Satya Bobba
SVP, Global Head of GRC and Customer Success
Satya Bobba brings more than 20+ years of experience in building market-leading enterprise SaaS products and solutions. Her experience spans engineering, cloud strategy, business development and customer success. Her passion is to help customers achieve GRC goals while simplifying their processes and reduce implementation costs. She brings more than 14 years of domain experience in building and delivering GRC solutions to top enterprise customers across Financial Services, Life sciences, Hi-Tech, Healthcare and Quality verticals.
Prior to joining Estuate, she worked at MetricStream as AVP Cloud Strategy, Global Head of Platform Engineering and Head of Advanced Engineering GRC Products and Services. Earlier in her career, at AOL and Netscape she held technical roles in enterprise server technologies and personalization frameworks. She has a bachelor degree in Computer Science from Andhra University.
Satya Bobba
SVP, Global Head of GRC and Customer Success
Satya Bobba brings more than 20+ years of experience in building market-leading enterprise SaaS products and solutions. Her experience spans engineering, cloud strategy, business development and customer success. Her passion is to help customers achieve GRC goals while simplifying their processes and reduce implementation costs. She brings more than 14 years of domain experience in building and delivering GRC solutions to top enterprise customers across Financial Services, Life sciences, Hi-Tech, Healthcare and Quality verticals. Prior to joining Estuate, she worked at MetricStream as AVP Cloud Strategy, Global Head of Platform Engineering and Head of Advanced Engineering GRC Products and Services. Earlier in her career, at AOL and Netscape she held technical roles in enterprise server technologies and personalization frameworks. She has a bachelor degree in Computer Science from Andhra University.
Prasanna Kulkarni
Vice President - Sales and Marketing
Prasanna is a seasoned Technology & Sales leader with over two decades of valuable global experience. Prasanna has been with Estuate for the past 5 years, leading the Sales and Marketing department with excellence. Prasanna holds a Bachelor of Engineering from GCoE, Amravati and a Stanford Advanced Program Management qualification from Stanford Center for Professional Development. Before joining Estuate, Prasanna held various leadership roles at HCL, Wipro, Nihilent Technologies, and Godrej.
Prasanna Kulkarni
Vice President – Global Sales and Marketing
Prasanna is a seasoned Technology & Sales leader with over two decades of valuable global experience. Prasanna has been with Estuate for the past 5 years, leading the Sales and Marketing department with excellence. Prasanna holds a Bachelor of Engineering from GCoE, Amravati and a Stanford Advanced Program Management qualification from Stanford Center for Professional Development. Before joining Estuate, Prasanna held various leadership roles at HCL, Wipro, Nihilent Technologies, and Godrej.
Stanley Perumala
Global Practice Delivery Lead
Stanley Perumala is the Global Practice Delivery Lead with 8.6 years at Estuate. He holds a Masters degree in Computer Science from International Technological University, which is his area of specialization. Stanley has 16 years of experience and has held various positions at Netpace, Cognizant and Hewlett-Packard. He has received multiple accolades for his achievements such as building an innovation segment with zuora and leading the BRM practice.
Stanley is a key contributor for the BRM practice, having built the team from the ground up and building the core team for the same.
Stanley Perumala
Global Practice Delivery Lead
Stanley Perumala is the Global Practice Delivery Lead with 8.6 years at Estuate. He holds a Masters degree in Computer Science from International Technological University, which is his area of specialization. Stanley has 16 years of experience and has held various positions at Netpace, Cognizant and Hewlett-Packard. He has received multiple accolades for his achievements such as building an innovation segment with zuora and leading the BRM practice. Stanley is a key contributor for the BRM practice, having built the team from the ground up and building the core team for the same.
Prakash Balebail
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Prakash brings more than two decades of software development & implementation experience, including over 16 years in several key roles in Oracle Corporation. His management principle has been to provide commitment to continuously improve how he serves all of his customers, partners, and employees by anticipating their needs and exceeding their expectations through a culture of creativity & forward thinking.
Prior to founding Estuate, Prakash was the Senior Director in Oracle Applications Global Sales Solutions team, which built complex Oracle E-Business Suite application demonstrations for Sales activities. Additionally, he had leadership roles in the development of Oracle’s much-acclaimed Business Flow Accelerator (BFA) for the E-Business suite. During this time, Prakash also built the highly-regarded India operations team from the ground up. Prakash holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from Karnataka University in India.
Prakash Balebail
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Prakash brings more than two decades of software development & implementation experience, including over 16 years in several key roles in Oracle Corporation. His management principle has been to provide commitment to continuously improve how he serves all of his customers, partners, and employees by anticipating their needs and exceeding their expectations through a culture of creativity & forward thinking. Prior to founding Estuate, Prakash was the Senior Director in Oracle Applications Global Sales Solutions team, which built complex Oracle E-Business Suite application demonstrations for Sales activities. Additionally, he had leadership roles in the development of Oracle’s much-acclaimed Business Flow Accelerator (BFA) for the E-Business suite. During this time, Prakash also built the highly-regarded India operations team from the ground up. Prakash holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from Karnataka University in India.
Geetha Somayaji
Vice President Finance & Human Resources
Geetha brings over two decades of experience to Estuate in her role as an accomplished leader of Finance and Human Resources. Since joining the company in 2011, she has been instrumental in developing the financial infrastructure of the company alongside the founders, and she has come to be known a a cherished mentor to many within the organization. Geetha holds a Bachelor’s of Business Administration and Accountancy from Bangalore University, India.
Prior to her role at Estuate, she worked in payroll processing and tax returns for Gene's Fine Foods and Jay's Tax & Keeping Services. In her personal time, Geetha enjoys exploring the outdoors and spending quality time with her family.
Geetha Somayaji
Vice President Finance & Human Resources
Geetha brings over two decades of experience to Estuate in her role as an accomplished leader of Finance and Human Resources. Since joining the company in 2011, she has been instrumental in developing the financial infrastructure of the company alongside the founders, and she has come to be known as a cherished mentor to many within the organization. Geetha holds a Bachelor’s of Business Administration and Accountancy from Bangalore University, India. Prior to her role at Estuate, she worked in payroll processing and tax returns for Gene's Fine Foods and Jay's Tax & Keeping Services. In her personal time, Geetha enjoys exploring the outdoors and spending quality time with her family.
Brad Rickman
Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)
Brad Rickman is Estuate's Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) providing oversight and leadership for customer success, sales, marketing as well as strategic partnerships. He is passionate about building customer relationships that grow multiple years over through delivering world class value as a technology partner. Brad has over 30 years experience in the software and technology industry in verticals of telecom/media, retail and ecommerce, financial Services, utilities and healthcare.
Prior to Estuate, Brad was CEO of SmarTek21 for six years, a technology services company where he led a team that grew top line revenues by 3X and EBITDA by 5X in his tenure. Prior experiences include Senior leadership positions in sales and marketing at T-Mobile, Ericsson, Deloitte, and six early stage software companies that grew to market values of over $1B.
Brad Rickman
Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)
Brad Rickman is Estuate's Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) providing oversight and leadership for customer success, sales, marketing as well as strategic partnerships. He is passionate about building customer relationships that grow multiple years over through delivering world class value as a technology partner. Brad has over 30 years experience in the software and technology industry in verticals of telecom/media, retail and ecommerce, financial Services, utilities and healthcare. Prior to Estuate, Brad was CEO of SmarTek21 for six years, a technology services company where he led a team that grew top line revenues by 3X and EBITDA by 5X in his tenure. Prior experiences include Senior leadership positions in sales and marketing at T-Mobile, Ericsson, Deloitte, and six early stage software companies that grew to market values of over $1B.
Ron Judd
SVP, Business Development
Ron Judd is a client-focused and problem-solving senior leader who focuses on balancing business impact and technology for clients. Ron's curious nature challenges teams to discover "how the client benefits in both quantifiable and qualitative results." Ron brings deep domain knowledge in technologies, including digital transformation, enterprise resource planning (ERP), experience management (CX), governance, risk & compliance (GRC), IT service and operations management (ITSM/ITOM),
content management (WCM), hierarchical decision analysis, tech-debt reduction programs, application programming interfaces (API), robotic processing automation (RPA), and chatbot, from across financial services, healthcare, consumer products, retail, and manufacturing industries. With over 30 years of experience in client engagement roles, Ron focuses on developing and maintaining relationships across organizations.
Prior to joining Estuate, Ron served in sales, marketing, and product leadership roles with IBM, SmarTek21, RoadBotics, InMoment, OpenText, Interwoven, PictureTel, and NEC Japan, as well as several early-stage technology startup firms. Ron lives and works in the Greater Boston area with his wife and family and maximizes his personal time by spending it with family, officiating college soccer, and taking care of several horses. Ron graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) with degrees in Business and Computer Science.
Ron Judd
SVP, Business Development
Ron Judd is a client-focused and problem-solving senior leader who focuses on balancing business impact and technology for clients. Ron's curious nature challenges teams to discover "how the client benefits in both quantifiable and qualitative results." Ron brings deep domain knowledge in technologies, including digital transformation, enterprise resource planning (ERP), experience management (CX), governance, risk & compliance (GRC), IT service and operations management (ITSM/ITOM), content management (WCM), hierarchical decision analysis, tech-debt reduction programs, application programming interfaces (API), robotic processing automation (RPA), and chatbot, from across financial services, healthcare, consumer products, retail, and manufacturing industries. With over 30 years of experience in client engagement roles, Ron focuses on developing and maintaining relationships across organizations. Prior to joining Estuate, Ron served in sales, marketing, and product leadership roles with IBM, SmarTek21, RoadBotics, InMoment, OpenText, Interwoven, PictureTel, and NEC Japan, as well as several early-stage technology startup firms. Ron lives and works in the Greater Boston area with his wife and family and maximizes his personal time by spending it with family, officiating college soccer, and taking care of several horses. Ron graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) with degrees in Business and Computer Science.