IT people live in an entirely different world. Do you know anything about IT support behind the scenes? I have one word for you. Perception. In some instances, the IT support team is based on perception. For example: The IT support behind the scenes could involve installing new servers, new firewalls, new applications, new processes, and new technology that the end user will never see. All the end user knows, is that I can’t receive my email,. or I can’t print. They have no idea about the IT support behind the scenes.
Who is a Better IT Person?
That is a question I have wrestled with for many years. True story. When I started my IT career, I was a pretty good tech. Not a great tech, but good enough. I could fix any printer, desktop error, blue screen, etc. But when it came to managing an email server and and Information store on an exchange server, I needed a little help. I brought in the IT director that was my predecessor. He is probably one of the best techs I have ever met. He rarely dealt with the users, but he created an amazing 30 server environment that was stable, efficient, backed up, and secured. If you ask any of those 200 users who was the better IT person, the would tell you I was. We would always have a chuckle about that. Perception. I am a people person, and he has the “IT personality”. No one really understood what he did, nor did they care. The just cared that when they couldn’t print, I would come there and fix it. Forget the fact that the network was stable, or that we both worked through the night on many occasions, and worked most weekends. We dealt with vendors to make improvements, implement upgrades and fix issues that sometimes antivirus or windows updates caused us a hiccup. That is IT support behind the scenes. No one really knows about it.
Running an IT Department
There is much more to running an IT department than supporting users, and how fast you can get to a user to resolve their issue. Keep in mind that to every user, their issue is critical and urgent. Very rarely can they wait. If it is a large site, Managers end up pitting the IT department against each other. Manager Joe wants the IT department there TODAY and Manager Susie wants the IT department there TODAY. Who do you listen to? The correct thing to do is to put in a process to make sure people understand the best way to call on the IT department so that everyone gets with they need on a timely basis.
Running an IT department is quite a bit different than being a good Tech. The management part is much different than fixing things. There are communication issues you need to put in place, processes and procedures you need to keep in place, constant vendor awareness, constant understanding of viruses that are out there, new technology, patches and fixes, etc. It’s a never ending job. IT support behind the scenes is a thankless job that the end user will never understand. It’s complex, it’s extremely technical, and it is what keeps your network alive.
In my career, I have been fortunate that my clients have understood what is involved in running an IT department, and truly appreciate the work the IT department does. Even though technology makes things simpler, it doesn’t make is any less complicated for the IT staff supporting it. Tier3MD is constantly working on IT support behind the scenes. If you don’t have to call us, or place a lot of tickets, I call that a WIN! We perform amazing tasks for our clients without them even knowing it. We are honored and humbled to have the outstanding customer base that we have. Thank you to all Tier3MD clients! You’re the best!
