A Help Desk Support Analyst, also known as a technical support analyst, user support specialist, or help desk technician, is an IT professional who mentors and improves the efficiency of computer users in an organization. This role requires having an in depth knowledge of one or more applications and systems so as to be able to quickly and effectively help users, whether internal (users) or external (customer), with their problems.

Duties of a help desk support analyst include providing answers to computer users' problems, supplying training and feedback to those users to lessen the occurrence of future problems, troubleshooting difficult or unusual situations, and suggesting workflow improvements to management. Help desk support is generally an introductory technical role. A good understanding of PCs, operating systems, networking and applications, whether in-house or shrink-wrapped, is necessary. Equally important, however, are strong interpersonal skills such as effective listening, empathy, patience, and the ability to careful walk a user through problem resolution steps either remotely or in person. In terms of remote support, the capacity to visualize what's taking place on the user's desktop is hugely beneficial.

A person may consider entering this field after attaining a non-technical university degree or a one or two year computer diploma from a local technical institute. However, a person with a Computer Science or Computer Engineering university degree won't regret the solid hands on experience that a help desk support job will provide at the start of a technical career. Also, some formal training in particular products or technical areas is highly recommended. The aptitude to troubleshoot problems under pressure, and the ability to defuse excited and sometimes irate users or customers, are also valuable traits.

A help desk support analyst will, in time, move on to more advanced technical roles, such as system or network administrator, application developer, or database administrator. In doing so, this person should also move up the salary ladder.

Salary information is so dependent on an IT professional's particular skill set, experience and geographic location. However, diligent help desk support personnel may be remunerated with salaries around $35,000 to $45,000 USD.

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A Network Administrator, also known as a systems administrator, LAN administrator, information systems administrator, network operations analyst, network technician, or junior network engineer, is an IT professional who manages an organization's PCs and LAN network. This management includes rolling out new equipment, as well as performing corrective and preventative measures on existing equipment.

Duties of a network administrator, for which nearly every network out there requires at least one, include the installation, configuration and maintenance of PCs, networking equipment and network operating systems. As well, a network administrator must deal with patching systems where necessary as well as locking down systems so that only authorized personal can access and use them. Network administration is a rather highly technical role. A good understanding of network operating systems, network equipment and networking protocols is essential, as well as a basic ability to program scripts and batch files. However, relatively strong interpersonal skills are also important, as the network administrator must understand the networking needs and problems of users and be able to address those issues in a timely fashion. Lastly, a network administrator must be diligent at documenting the network as well as be proficient at troubleshooting problems, often under tense situations. This includes knowing when to give up trying to be the hero when solving a problem and having the humility to go to outside sources for help.

A person may consider entering this field after attaining a Computer Science or Computer Engineering university degree or a one or two year computer diploma from a local technical institute. However, some Network administrators are quite proficient without this recommended educational background. Either way, at least some dedicated training and related certification in one or more leading network operating systems is highly recommended as is training and certification on network equipment and protocols. A large dose of caution is also important as is the ability to plan for what-if scenarios and to remember to provide management and users with a heads up on system changes and upgrades.

A network administrator often moves on to becoming a network or systems engineer and reaps higher salary rewards as a result. As well, those with exceptional communication and interpersonal skills often slide into management roles, but not generally until first becoming a network or systems engineer.

Salary information is so dependent on an IT professional's particular skill set, experience and geographic location. However, fairly experienced network administrators can attain salaries around $50,000 USD.

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PC Specialist


A PC Specialist, also known as a computer technician, desktop support specialist, assistant system administrator or junior network administrator, is an IT professional who manages an organization's PCs, including client and server computers, laptops and handhelds.

Duties of a PC specialist include: the installation, configuration and upgrading of PCs; diagnosing and troubleshooting problems with PCs; performing preventative maintenance on PCs; connecting PCs to both the local network and the Internet; setting up printers; tweaking settings and adding hardware on PCs to improve their performance; and enabling peripherals on PCs. A PC specialist is a somewhat technical role. Also some operating system knowledge is a big asset. Quite strong interpersonal skills are also important, as the PC specialist must be a patient and careful listener in order to quickly and accurately get to the source of a user's problem. Moreover, a PC specialist should be an adequate writer for recording PC settings and solutions to problems, and well organized so that he or she can easily find these documents, as well as manufacturer manuals, at a later date.

A person may consider entering this field after attaining a non-technical university degree or a one or two year computer diploma from a local technical institute. However, a person with a Computer Science or Computer Engineering university degree won't regret the solid hands on experience that a PC specialist job will provide at the start of a technical career. Also, some formal training and certification in particular products or technical areas is highly recommended. The aptitude to troubleshoot problems under pressure, and the tact to politely train users to be smarter about how they use their PCs, are also valuable traits.

A talented PC specialist will generally soon move on to more advanced technical roles, such as system or network administrators and engineers. This person's salary should advance in lock step with his or her newer job roles.

Salary information is so dependent on an IT professional's particular skill set, experience and geographic location. However, fairly experienced PC specialists can attain salaries around $40,000 to $50,000 USD.