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Behind the Scenes of SAS Customer Support

Essentially SAS Customer Support is a telephone-based helpdesk running from 0900 to 1730 on weekdays. When you call us on 01628 466933 you always speak directly to a technical expert, rather than someone who is just a call handler. You should normally get through to one of these consultants immediately; if not, record your message - a flashing light will tell us there's a message waiting and we'll respond as soon as we can.

Please try to remember to provide your customer site number ready when you call - this can often help resolve issues more quickly, as we search for information based on this number.

We have 20 dedicated support consultants, who in turn have access to a vast pool of technical consultants and resources worldwide. They also have access to a huge network of information at the touch of a button. A sophisticated call logging system - SIRIUS - ensures calls are managed in the most speedy, accurate and efficient manner. The SIRIUS "traffic light" system ensures we resolve the queries within the agreed Service Levels and that we can update customers on the current status.

So how do we actually resolve your calls? We can answer many queries there and then, on the phone. If not, a variety of options are open to us. First we can search through a number of knowledge bases on SIRIUS. Most of the queries we receive are ones we have already addressed, and we can see any track logged worldwide to find the answer. Alternatively the answer could be in SAS Notes, which you can also access directly at http://support.sas.com/.

This system enables us to escalate problems to the most appropriate specialists at Marlow or elsewhere in the world, and ultimately to the developers at SAS global HQ in Cary, US. Whoever is currently working on your query, it retains its original tracking number, so you can call any time to check on its status.

In addition to the telephone helpdesk we answer a lot of questions by e-mail via our EMITS system.

UK support consultants are split into two teams to best meet the needs of customer enquiries:

The Intelligent Architecture team specialises in support for the back-end functions, installation and the set-up of the software. Typically they answer questions on data access, warehousing, SAS Integration Technologies, SAS/SHARE® and SAS/CONNECT®, plus all aspects of configuring and using SAS on a variety of operating systems.

The Business Intelligence team specialises in supports front-end analytical functions such as SAS/STAT® and SAS Enterprise MinerTM, and from a development perspective, AppDev StudioTM, SAS/AFTM and SAS/IntrNet®.

Additional Customer Support Activities
Customer Support consultants also contribute to a variety of other activities. For example they visit customer sites to provide technical support directly, often in partnership with SAS Consulting. They also teach a wide range of SAS courses in partnership with SAS Education.

Finally, please remember you can always get in touch for out-of-hours support requirements such as weekend upgrades.

SAS is always there to help - visit our global web page, http://www.support.sas.com/ or the UK site http://www.sas.com/offices/europe/uk/services/cust_support.html for more information.