Ring! Ring!
Me: IT Department, this is Daniel.
Caller: Uhm, …. Hi.
Me: Hello. Can I help you?
Caller: I don’t know. I need help.
Me: OK. Well, you’ve reached the after hours tech for the IT Department. Do you need tech support?
Caller: I don’t know.
Me: OK. Why did you call this number.
Caller: My computer is not in my office.
Me: Did you lose your computer? Or do you need to access information in the office?
Caller: I need all my staff to access the server.
Me: OK. How many people? And what do they need to access in the office?
Caller: uhm 8. I have 8 sales people.
Me: Great. 8 sales people. How many other people do you need to have remote access to the office systems and network?
Caller: uh … me. Marty, the sales manager. Kathy in HR, I think. the two ladies in accounting. How many can I set up to for this remote access?
Me: That depends upon a few things. What internet speed do you have in the office? What applications will your staff be using? Do you need cloud storage and virtual desktops? Or just VPN access to the systems in your office?
Caller: I don’t know what any of that means.
Me: OK. Let me ask a few more questions and we will get this figured out.
Caller: I’ve been drinking. I’m about to lose everything. Can you help me?
Me: Yes, I think I can. But I need you to be able to answer questions. So, let’s talk, tomorrow. What is your phone number and when will you be in the office?