Experience has shown that many of the IT issues staff may face upon returning to the workplace can be mitigated by some simple advance planning. UIS does not have the capacity to react immediately to urgent calls for support/equipment, and we urge you to take the following actions to help minimise downtime for your staff:
1. Plan for additional IT equipment staff will need for hybrid working
Many staff took their IT equipment home during lockdown and it is possible that equipment left in the workplace may have been moved or borrowed during lockdown.
If staff will be engaged in hybrid working, it may not be practical to keep moving this between work locations. We advise auditing your requirements for basic items so that these can be procured in time for their return to the workplace, for example:
- cables
- keyboards
- mice
- docking stations
- headphones.
The sooner your do this, the better. IT equipment is in short supply and lead times are now much longer than before the pandemic.
How to order additional IT equipment
For recommended equipment specifications and the procurement process, please see: Hardware purchases.
2. Switch on dormant PCs
PCs that have been switched off or only used intermittently will need updating which can result in hours of downtime if there are a lot of updates to install. If you have staff on site who are able to follow the instructions below, UIS can update these PCs remotely in advance of your staff returning:
- Start up any PCs that have not been in regular use during the pandemic and ensure they are connected to the ACN Network.
- Tell UIS which PCs have been started up by emailing the hostname to the UIS Service Desk at servicedesk@uis.cam.ac.uk.
01223 332999