We’re approaching the end of our Core Values in Action series! This year, ApplyBoard is taking a closer look at our six core values and some of the ApplyBoard team members who go above and beyond to uphold them.
Today, we’re thrilled to spotlight Haroon Rashid, Team Lead, IT Service Desk India. Haroon undoubtedly lives and breathes Innovating and Improving. His manager, Greg Errey, Senior Manager, IT, shares that “Haroon has always been an A-plus player on our team. He really looks for opportunities to improve on our current procedures and processes and encourages the entire team to look for ways we can improve our day-to-day workflows.” He went on to say that Haroon “is truly a champion of Innovating and Improving.”
Keep reading and watch the video below to learn what Innovating and Improving means at ApplyBoard and how Haroon exemplifies it.
Innovating and Improving at ApplyBoard
ApplyBoard is built on a foundation of Innovating and Improving the international education sector, and we model the hallmarks of this core value in the work that we do every day. As ApplyBoardians, we are committed to empowering each other to challenge the status quo, showing up curious and digging deeper, and taking risks and learning from our mistakes. These principles collectively embody ApplyBoard’s culture of ongoing innovation and improvement.
Learn more about an ApplyBoardian who goes above and beyond to Make Work Fun.
What Innovating and Improving Means to Haroon
Since May 2021, Haroon has been helping ApplyBoard on our mission to Educate the World initially as an IT Analyst and more recently the Team Lead of our IT Service Desk in India. He and his team are the first point of contact for all IT-related issues, and are responsible for providing end user support and services and maintaining a reliable IT infrastructure. Haroon shares that “our IT Service Desk Team plays a vital role in the success of all teams and as a result, shares a stake in the organization’s success.”
Haroon truly sees the value in showing up curious and digging deeper. He has taken ownership of Innovating and Improving the IT ServiceDesk’s policies, procedures, and processes and often investigates areas where the team sees an increased amount of support requests. Greg explains that Haroon consistently “looks for opportunities to identify where there are gaps in our procedures and our processes and tries to find ways to fill those gaps.” This “ultimately leads to better customer experience and opportunities for the team to drive efficiencies and just generally improve the way that we’re doing our work on a daily basis.”
Haroon is always looking for new ways to innovate and improve ApplyBoard’s IT Service Desk team processes. His perspective on analyzing team members’ ticket updates and standardizing problem tracking is essential to his systematic issue management approach. Through defining clear ticketing guidelines, standardizing ticket categories, and regular training and onboarding, his team can better manage historical documentation and references related to submitted issues.
“Ultimately,” Haroon says, “these efforts lead to increased efficiency, improved issue resolution, and enhanced collaboration within the team.”
How Haroon is Innovating and Improving
Haroon’s leadership and dedication were pivotal during a recent software transition project, where he spearheaded innovative efforts to enhance and optimize the new software. Greg tells us that Haroon “took this opportunity to work very closely with stakeholders and teams throughout the organization to understand and evaluate use cases. His goal was to understand overall what the company was using the tool for and find a solution that would replace it adequately and fulfill all those use cases.”
Haroon explains that “his investigative work helped to properly identify the new program as a functional and significantly less costly alternative to the software ApplyBoard was using before.” But he didn’t stop there. Haroon also created the end user document requirement for this software replacement rollout, which he worked on cross-functionally to make available for all ApplyBoardians on ApplyGuide, our internal knowledge hub.
Haroon, we can’t thank you enough for all of the ways you’re pushing boundaries to help ApplyBoard become the best version of itself. Your commitment to Innovating and Improving inspires us to do the same. We’re very fortunate to have you on our team. Keep shining!
Are you someone with an Innovating and Improving mindset? Check out our open roles on the ApplyBoard Careers page.
