How to Climb the IT Job Ladder: From Help Desk Support to Systems Engineer
The Information Technology field is one of the most rewarding and challenging career fields in the world today. It is one of the only career fields that changes almost on a daily basis, and requires you to be up on the latest trends in order to keep pace and stay relevant. I’ve been in the IT career field for 20 years and it has been an amazing experience to say the least. What I experience in my work now is not what I experienced when I first started 20 years ago, and it’s not just about the technology I was using, either. Everyone has to start somewhere, and since I’ve experienced the highs and lows of climbing the IT ladder, I want to share some tips with you. My hope is you can feel good about kick-starting a career in IT, or get an understanding of what you need to do to keep climbing and have success.
YOU HAVE TO START SOMEWHERE
A wise old man once told me, a journey of 10,000 miles begins with one step…Okay, no one actually told me that – but it’s a good adage to think of as you approach a career in IT. How do you take that first step? Let’s focus on a couple of different jobs you can do to get off to a good start in your IT career.
Bottom of the Ladder: Help Desk Technician
The help desk technician is the first stop for almost anyone that is having trouble with their IT assets, printers, laptops, desktops, email, passwords, printers, printers, printers (ok, you get the gist). In most organizations, when there is an issue with an employee’s IT, they are either going to open a help desk ticket through their web interface or they are going to pick up a phone and call the help desk. As a help desk tech, you are on the other end of that ticket, and you are answering the phone. Like a first responder in an emergency (hey, email is an emergency!) the help desk technician is tasked with triaging the issue. If it’s a password reset, it’s likely the tech can do it. If the issue involves a user needing a copy of their Exchange .pst file, you will send the ticket to the Exchange Admin queue. You are a traffic cop, keeping things moving and fixing small things where you can.
Disclaimer, this job generally doesn’t pay too well. But if you are just starting out, this is the job you want. You will learn if you pay attention to what goes on around you and ask plenty of questions. This is also a job where you might have some down time, which if utilized productively can prove to be a great time to study for certifications or read up on what you don’t quite understand. This is exactly what I did 20 years ago, and it helped me get to the next step. Don’t think of it as a dead end, it’s more of a stepping stone.
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