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Ops 201 Class 03
IT Staff are tech's first responders, working directly with customers and the general public, as well as all of the personnel that work behind the scenes. This requires IT Staff to possess strong technical skills as well as strong interpersonal skills. In the industry, these are referred to as "hard" and "soft" skills, respectively.
While most organizations have several tiers or levels of support personnel, the help desk is the first line of support for users. When users experience a problem, they contact the help desk first for assistance. Ideally, the help desk can resolve the problem and the customer will be satisfied. Even if help desk personnel cannot fully resolve the problem, they need to provide assistance in such a way that leaves the customer with a favorable impression of the organization. In order to do so, help desk personnel need to have strong communication skills and understand the organization’s goals related to customer service. [^1]
[^1] The Role of a Help Desk Professional
Hard skills are skills that can be measured objectively by means of demonstrating technical knowledge, obtaining certifications or college degrees. These also can all be taught objectively, subjects like business, troubleshooting, security, and technical skills are examples of subjects that can be objectively comprehended and mastered.
Soft skills are much more subjective, and cannot be taught or measured so easily. Clear communication, empathy, critical thinking, reasoning, positivity, training ability, openness, asking questions, changing perspectives, evaluation of evidence or symptoms, technical writing, these are all examples of qualities that come more naturally to some than others, and have much to do with one's state of mind. They are, however, crucial to and IT Professional's ability to interface with customers, the public, and personnel effectively and in a way that creates value for the organization who employs them.
It is critical for IT Professionals to develop an array of both hard and soft skills in order to be as effective and efficient on the job as possible, as well as to ensure that they can enjoy professional growth and job security. Hard skills can get you the interview, but soft skills will get you the job.