There are a number of key characteristics that IT support professionals should demonstrate in order to complete their job effectively. It is often difficult to assess whether individuals have the practical skills and correct attitude to work in your company or department, but keeping an eye out for some of the aspects below will give you the best chance of signing a star player.
Problem Solving Skills
The most basic necessity for IT support professionals is to have good problem solving skills. This takes the form of a general attitude and way of thinking. Not everyone possesses this troubleshooting ability, so it is important to assess this in the interview process.
Experience
Everybody has to start somewhere. With the correct training, apprentices, interns, and graduates are able to gain the experience they need to improve in their job. However, if you are looking for an instant success, candidates should have a wealth of practical experience in their CV.
Self-Development
As with all professions, there is always an element of self-development necessary to excel in your role. IT support professionals must demonstrate a willingness to learn and improve through proactive research as well as practical experience.
Availability
IT support departments – internal or external – must be available to the people that need them most. This means being accessible for both everyday and emergency support within agreed times of day. In offering a 24-hour service, the department must deliver the goods.
Availability is also important in the context of quick response times, so IT support professionals must be quick on their feet and responsive to user requests and issues. For support departments as a whole, they must:
- Acknowledge and recognize all urgent and non-urgent queries
- Have the ability to physically visit users and address their problems
- Be available in their own physical location and welcome visitors
- Operate a highly efficient IT support system
Diplomacy & Communication
While many people consider IT professionals to be somewhat socially inept, this has to be considered a fallacy! IT support must have unrivaled communication skills in order to work together with end users, and maintaining patience is key when dealing with the combination of difficult problems and frustrated people.
By the nature of the profession, inevitably there will be less savvy users that require assistance, and perhaps their problems aren’t always so severe. Hiring a support professional who can diplomatically address these issues without patronizing users is key to maintaining good relationships.
Commitment & Devotion
IT support professionals must be committed to the cause. In a bizarre way, these individuals must be committed to reducing the need for their services. Candidates must be enthusiastic about improving themselves, their skills, and their value to their company.
IT support must also be devoted to assisting users in their education and improvement. Better understanding among users reduces unnecessary work in the future, and helps them to develop reference points and their own problem solving capabilities.
Positivity
If an IT disaster occurs, it is important to know that the people in charge do not crumble. No matter how much frustration there may be with failures in a key system, the issues must be fixed. Maintaining a positive outlook is essential to approaching these problems in the right way.
For information about the IT help desk software that we provide at iSupport, get in touch by calling (888) 494-7638. You can also contact us online.
