l l l l What is the status of a particular job? What step is it in? Has it printed out yet? Do I have a problem with my terminal? Logistical  Support The most common user support you will deal with is logistical support. This will include the need for new or different equipment to meet the command’s mission or   current   equipment   that   needs   corrective maintenance, or scheduling preventive maintenance. Forward this type of user support to the division chief or the division officer, since it requires the relocation or the acquisition of equipment. Trouble  Calls As  the  technician,  you  will  be  receiving  and responding to trouble calls. When the user calls to submit a trouble call, remember to get all the required information: * User’s name; l Type of trouble encountered; . Date and time; and l Job being done when the trouble started. The preceding is only an example of what might be included on the trouble report at your command. Your command  will  have  the  reporting  procedures  for submitting trouble reports, with an example of a trouble report. Each command has a specific trouble call format and a tracking procedure. CUSTOMER  LIAISON When  involved  with  or  communicating  with  the user (customer), you must use tact and diplomacy. You must be able to understand and resolve the requests of the  customer.  You  will  also  have  to  deal  with discrepancies and explain problems to customers. You must be able to independently recognize and resolve discrepancies  and  be  knowledgeable  enough  to  know when you can resolve a discrepancy and when to refer complex problems to your supervisor or leading chief. MANAGING  PRODUCTION Once you become a shift supervisor, you will be res- ponsible for managing the scheduling and operation of all  production  activities  associated  with  computer  process- ing within your shift. You will monitor the workflow and make adjustments to meet changing requirements. 1-8 During your work shift, one of your many jobs will be to monitor job/production status on a regular basis to determine if there is any actual or potential slippage in the schedule. It will be your job to balance operations resources and optimize workflow. There will be times when you must make adjustments in the sequence of work (within the constraints of the overall schedule) to optimize  productivity.  In  computer  operations,  you must be able to examine problems that have occurred during production and initiate corrective action within operations or with the users. THE SCHEDULING ENVIRONMENT AND REQUIREMENTS Schedulers  and  production  control  coordinators  are responsible for coordinating the work efforts of many people. They prepare, distribute, and maintain produc- tion schedules for their AIS facility or data center. They analyze  job  requirements  (old  and  new)  to  determine the impact each job has on production resources. They also  inform  the  LPO  or  division  chief  when  scheduling requirements  will  exceed  computer  system  resources. In short, schedulers act as coordinators from the time a request is received until a job is successfully completed. The scheduler is responsible for keeping the AIS facility’s  assembly  line  running  as  smoothly  and efflciently as possible. Schedulers ensure that jobs are scheduled and entered into the production job stream at the proper time. They also ensure that all necessary resources  are  available  to  maintain  a  constant  workflow throughout  the  AIS  facility. PEOPLE,   PLACES,   and   THINGS   are   the important factors of a scheduler’s job. The first factor is PEOPLE. You must learn to deal with various personalities. The second factor is PLACES. You have to learn what goes on in other fictional work areas. The third factor is THINGS. You have to cope with run times, deadlines, computer hardware and software