Careers - IT Helpdesk

If you are looking for a starting point for a career in IT, then a position as an IT Helpdesk Analyst or Service Desk Technician could be the right place to start.

What does an IT Helpdesk Job entail?

Primarily the position would involve dealing with calls and problems from customers (either internal or external) mostly via the telephone though in some cases email fault logging is also used. Calls would be managed using a software tool so that tracking and updating can be carried out until a resolution to the fault is completed.

Some Helpdesk roles involve some simple tasks that are performed by the 1^st line technicians (i.e. those answering the calls) such as resetting passwords, resetting printer queues, setting up accounts, modifying user preferences, basic “how do I” questions for common applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook etc.

What experience or qualifications do you need?

Some computer experience would be essential, i.e. ability to use a computer for basic functions such as email, internet and applications such as word processing and spreadsheets.

Customer service experience would be an advantage – telephone skills, dealing with customers, good management of stress would be great skills to have prior to applying for an IT helpdesk position.

Any formal IT qualification or Customer Service training certificates would be a distinct advantage – exams such as ECDL, MOS or MCAS for Microsoft Office and any hardware certifications such as CompTIA A+ and CompTIA Network+ would be extremely useful as this would mean you could provide a certain level of 1^st line support to the clients calling the IT Helpdesk for assistance.

What training courses are available to assist with obtaining an IT Helpdesk Job?

ECDL Training – European Computer Driving Licence: This certification course shows that that the student is fully-competent in the use of a personal computer and common computer applications and that they know the essential concepts of Information Technology. 

MOS Training (Microsoft Office Specialist) for Office 2003: This certification shows that the student has demonstrated advanced skills in using Microsoft desktop software, i.e. applications such as MS Excel 2003, MS Word 2003 etc.

MCAS Training (Microsoft Certified Application Specialist) for MS Office 2007 and Windows Vista: This certification shows the student possesses advanced business skills with the 2007 Microsoft Office system and Windows Vista.

CompTIA A+ training: This certification confirms a technician's ability to perform tasks such as installation, configuration, diagnosing, preventive maintenance and basic networking for a personal computer

CompTIA Network+ Training: This certification means that the student has gained the knowledge needed to configure and install Network components.

Customer Service Training: This course covers the following main areas – how to deal with customers, how to achieve customer satisfaction and how to provide great customer service

Stress Management Training: This course teaches important stress management skills and techniques to increase your productivity and maintain a positive attitude.

An IT Helpdesk role is the perfect way to start on a career within IT. Once you have worked for a year (or a little longer in some cases) and gained the appropriate knowledge and experience of working in an IT department, you can then decide if you wish to take a supervisory/management role or a more technical role for your next step on the IT career ladder.

The following articles may be of interest to you:

• IT Certfications
• Classroom Training vs Computer Based Training
• Computer Based Training
• Certification Basics
• Service Level Agreements: Information on SLA’s plus the training required by personnel operating in the service management field.
• ITIL Training: The ITIL (the IT Infrastructure Library) v3 Foundations certification training course prepares students for the ITIL v3 Foundations exams. It covers the core fundamentals of ITIL practices: service management as a practice, the service lifecycle, key principles and models, selected roles, processes and functions, technology and architecture and the ITIL Qualification scheme.
• Helpdesk Careers: Article to find out if an IT Helpdesk career is the right one for you.

• By: sandrar
• On: 11/09/2008 13:10:27
• In: Careers
• Comments: 5