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Helen often has unexpected circumstances that require her to skip a shift and she is unhappy with the system. The current system requires her to e-mail out to all desk captains to request someone to take her shift. She states that many times people are more than willing to take over her shift because shifts are paid. However, she believes that the system can be improved. As I was interviewing, I noticed a sticky note on the computer telling the desk captain that many people were confusing the name of a current resident with that of a previous resident. Helen informed me that the sticky notes are the main method of passing on details from one worker to the next.
Interview #4 - Sanya
Sanya is a senior at MIT majoring in computer science. She has been working as a desk worker for Bexley Hall for three years, seeing it as an “awesome way to make money.” It is worth noting that Sanya is currently enrolled in 6.813, but she did not know the intentions of the interview until after the interview concluded.
Sanya spends most of her shift “just sitting” but her duties include addressing letting guests in and handling packages. When the doorbell rings, the desk worker has to walk around the corner to open the door. She admits that the current policy is that residents are supposed to receive their guests, but this policy is not followed closely.
Receiving Receiving packages is a process that is as precise or imprecise as the deskworkersusceptible to human (desk worker) errors. When packages are received, they are logged on a computer using a new logging recently implemented system. The desk worker logs the delivery company, the name of the resident, and the number of packages received. The system then emails out to residents who received packages. Outgoing packages require desk workers to email out to all other desk workers that there is an outgoing package.
There is no way to log whether a package has been picked up or not. This has lead to people not finding packages after they received an email saying a package has arrived. The reasons for this include (in order of frequency) a desk worker not searching for a package in the proper place, the email being sent even when a resident received an emailby mistake, or potential theft. There has never been a confirmed case of package theft, but some packages have “disappeared.”
Scheduling for desk workers at Bexley Hall involves the desk captain (an elected resident of the hall who has previous experience as a desk worker) sending out a Google Doc where desk workers submit the hours they are working for the entire semester. Seniority (semesters working) dictates how many hours can be taken per week. If a desk worker cannot work his shift, he emails out to all other desk workers (captain included) and the first person to respond picks up the hours.
Special cases that Sanya noted included “concerned parents” and “people on official business.” Although rare, there have been cases where When concerned parents called call Bexley asking about their child, a resident. The , the course of action is to email the resident and no further action is taken. When people on “official business” such as contractors or facility workers come in, desk workers are often confused and the interaction there varies.
User Classes
We have identified three main user classes: student workers, desk captains, and desk managers.
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