The client context
A large pharma company (5,000+ employees) wanted to rebuild their help desk into a true service experience. The team was strong, but the setup wasn’t designed to scale or deliver consistent support. Outsourcing made financial sense, but leadership didn’t want an offshore-only model. Onsite coverage, bilingual support, and a high-touch employee experience were non-negotiable.
There was also a human layer. Ten long-tenured team members were part of the existing setup, so the transition had to be handled with care — clear communication, respect, and as little disruption to the business as possible.
The challenge
The client needed a partner to help them move from a basic help desk to a real service desk — with clear service levels, simple workflows, and visible ownership without losing the culture they cared about.
They needed a model that could deliver:
- A smooth, respectful transition for long-tenured team members
- A partner who understood a complex, regulated environment
- Onsite presence, bilingual support, and after-hours coverage when needed
- Better value without cutting corners on quality
- A service that could scale and support the business, not just process tickets
Quality had to go up. Costs had to stay in check. Knowledge transfer had to be handled carefully. And the change had to feel safe for people who’d been there for years.
They weren’t looking for a vendor. They wanted a steady partner who could steward the transition and lift the day-to-day employee experience.
The Solution
A redesigned service desk, built from the ground up
We rebuilt the service desk from the ground up including job descriptions, role competencies, workflows, escalation paths, and the overall team structure. We also put SLAs, KPIs, a scalable knowledge-base plan, and a formal service catalogue in place so it ran like a true service operation, not a typical internal department.
We also treated the launch like a product rollout. We branded the service desk and its offerings so employees knew what it did, what to expect, and how to use it. The result felt like a business inside the business — clear, consistent, measurable, and aligned to real goals. And with better structure and smarter processes, costs came down without cutting quality.
A thoughtful, people-first transition
Ten existing team members needed support through the change. We led a careful change plan, overseen by a dedicated project executive on our side.
We provided outplacement support to help people land in roles that matched their skills and goals, managed knowledge transfer with care, and protected team morale throughout. Many of those individuals are still in touch with us more than a decade later — which says a lot about how respectfully the transition was handled.
A high-quality, scalable operating model
We launched the new service desk with:
- One onsite manager
- Seven highly skilled Level 1 and Level 2 support analysts
- Offsite leadership and performance oversight
- Monthly reporting, SLA tracking, and continuous improvement
- Clear employee communication to support adoption
As the business grew, the model evolved into a six-person desk-side team supported by offshore global Level 1 resources — keeping the onsite, high-touch experience while adding flexibility and improving cost efficiency.
The Result
The modernized service desk quickly became a reliable, high-performing function that employees trusted. The shift to a branded, business-like service model created clarity across the organization and set new expectations for quality and accountability.
What we’re most proud of is the team behind it — highly effective, consistent, and delivering measurable results every day. They’ve become known inside the organization for their professionalism and responsiveness, regularly receiving unsolicited positive feedback from managers across the business.
The internal group that championed and launched this initiative was also recognized for their leadership in this space, and we were genuinely proud to see their work celebrated.
Most importantly, the transition of long-standing employees was managed with transparency and care, absorbing some into our team and supporting others into new roles that advanced their careers, all without disruption to day-to-day operations.
Over the years, the model continued to evolve as the business grew, maintaining its stability, adaptability, and high-touch approach. Today, after more than 18 years of partnership, the service desk remains a strategic part of the organization — modern, measurable, and deeply aligned with the employee experience.
