Now, I believe reading software reviews are usually a waste of time. They are written by either a disgruntled customer who has had a poor experience or to the other extreme where you read all vendors claim to include the same great qualities you are after and in the end up making your decision even harder than is needed. By researching these articles you hope to find that honest opinion that will help in your decision making. I have just finished an implementation of SysAid which has been quite the ride and I would like to share with you an honest opinion of the solution, where it falls down, the many features and potential of the solution and the benefits. By reading this SysAid Review, hopefully, it may give you a helping hand when deciding on your next help-desk ticketing solution whether it be SysAid or another vendor.
I have been working in I.T for almost 20 years and used a number of different solutions so I have come to know what I like and what I dislike and what features I was after. I sat down and made a list of desirable features I would look for in a help-desk ticketing system. Not all of these are important but if I could tick a lot of these boxes then I would be happy.
In no particular order
- Ticketing system designed around ITIL and ITSM.
- Ticketing system with ticket automation. Automates tickets that are emailed in.
- The ability to assign workflows to Service requests
- Problem Management.
- Asset management system.
- Change management
- Has a Mobile app.
- Self-service portal.
- Cloud solution.
- Integrates with LDAP.
Going by the basic list outlined above, SysAid ticked all of the boxes and more. After speaking with a Sales rep, SysAid sounded too good to be true. At the same time, I spoke to 3 other vendors and when it came to not meeting my expectations or list of demands these Vendors slowly were crossed off the list until SysAid was the last Standing. Even though SysAid claim they can do everything you ask, and it does, I will warn you that it will come with difficulties.
Implementation.
After being promised the world and all my desires would be met, it got to the implementation process and outside of the stand and quite a basic customisation it seemed like all other automation and configuration was a real hassle and the changes were made to be more complicated than they were. You are assigned an hour a week with your SysAid consultant where at the end of each session you are left wondering what was actually accomplished and wait another week to do it all over again. We now have a great working system but beware that the process can be drawn out and painful.
Note that after implementation, if you require any further customisation you will expect to pay an absorbent amount for each simple change. If you are considering SysAid, make sure that you cover this in detail. I found that my yearly subscription for my team was close to $10k. For a single easy change to my environment, I was quoted $5K per change. Whether it be a case that they do not realise who they are talking to (a seasoned I.T professional), whether they got their currency exchange rate severely incorrect, or they just do not have the qualified staff to make simple changes easy. This alone is a sore point that would have deterred me from this solution if i had known.
Extra Features
SysAid goes above and beyond by including many extra features from built-in password services to allow users to change their password, Patch management, Network monitoring and MDM (Mobile device management). These at the time were great selling points. If you currently have in place a solution for any of these IT services, I would recommend that you keep with these services. SysAid’s attempt to provide these extra services fall short in comparison to other solutions on the market.
Lets look at the Positives
SysAid is based on ITIL and this makes SysAid stronger than other comparable solutions in the market. Each of their tools is built in a way to steer you to use proven methods to help you become more efficient. Even if you have to change the way you typically would do things, it often results in better processes.
SysAid has almost everything your IT staff will need to efficiently manage the company assets and help desk processes all in one location. If you use different systems for Asset management, Ticketing and network monitoring, then SysAid may be a solution that can integrate all of these services into one. SysAid can definitely aid in enhancing the process of first response to the business internal requirements, and also for those companies that offer all of these services will fit as a wonderful solution to It is a great combination of help desk, asset management, remote control and IT activity analysis solutions, in one simple, easy-to-access platform
SysAid provides a fully customisable experience for IT administrators. Every form can be customised with fields you require and a layout to suit your environment. When combined with using templates, it becomes a powerful tool to automate tasks and cut out tasks that are not necessary. Most solutions on the market are limited to their features and will dictate how you will use the system. With SysAid, almost all features are highly customisable to your organisation’s needs.
The price is very comparable to other solutions on the market and includes many tools that others do not.
Cons
As discussed earlier, one of the biggest downfalls with SysAid is the implementation process. The system is extremely difficult to configure and you will find that you will get to a point that you are actually wanting more than what you get out of the box. To have these changes made, whether they be big or small, be prepared for a large invoice.
Support is something I am most disappointed with. I was promised that tech support would be available to me when needed but in the space of a week, 4 out of 5 calls went to an automated answering service and when using an online chat portal, it’s a bit hit and miss on whether you will get support. I am in Australia and after investigation, I found that due to time zones they begin work again at around 5 pm on Monday Australian time. So if any of their Australian customers have major issues on a Monday they will not get support all day which is very disappointing. Again, something that was not mentioned during the whole onboarding process.
The company is based in Israel and they are to actually speak with one of their representatives, hard to understand and really struggle to fully understand the real problems you are having until the issue is explained a few times. I find when using the chat portal they are really great if it is a level 1 issue but anything technical there will often be a lengthy wait for a response and will usually result in turning into email correspondence. 2 weeks later I will then get a random email asking me if the issue is resolved even though nothing has been actioned. You would think that a company that sells a product based on support would focus more on their own support.
Mobile apps for Android and Now iOS is broken or severely limited functionality and VERY outdated compared to other ITSM’s apps.
Final thoughts
SysAid is a great product and without going into too much detail it has the potential to be a great product and for your organisation, can be a great fit. Automating processes and attaching workflows to different types of service requests are 2 main selling points and due to the flexibility of the customisation, you can really build a great tool for your team. I just want to stress to you that the road that you take to reach your desired solution with SysAid can be long and painful. I am 12 month into my implementation and even though I have a working solution which I can see some benefits, I still believe I am 6 months from really seeing some benefits. My advice is to read some more reviews and take note of similar comments to what’s written in this blog.
