14. Calls to the Helpdesk are classified as Urgent, High Priority or Routine and allocated a priority rating ('Helpdesk Grace period') in which the call should be resolved, or a suitable response made.
15. Performance points are awarded for those calls that are not resolved (or suitably responded to) within that grace period. These performance points are 0.1 performance points for routine calls, 0.2 for high priority and 0.4 for urgent calls. There is a ratchet system to increase the value of individual points awarded. If the response period exceeds twice the grace period, then the points are doubled, if it exceeds three times the grace period then the points are trebled.
16. At the end of each performance month, the Helpdesk produces a report detailing those Helpdesk calls that were not resolved within that grace period, and the points awarded.
17. The total figures from the report are entered into a spreadsheet to calculate the 'Helpdesk' performance deduction. Each service has a maximum allocation of Helpdesk performance points. At the end of each month a deduction is calculated for each of the services based on the number of points incurred in that performance month. There is a reduction mechanism to 'reward' those services that met the Service Audit performance threshold (subject to a maximum of three points). For example, if five points are awarded for Internal Cleaning Helpdesk calls. The deduction could be 5 x £300 = £1500. However, if the service audit had achieved the thresholds for that service, then the formula for rewarding this would reduce the actual points awarded to two points and the deduction to £600.