Duties and Responsibilities of the IT Assistant

The primary role of IT assistants is to install, configure, and manage computer network systems for a business. They are responsible for ensuring that their company's IT network is functioning properly and is up-to-date.

IT assistants work for a wide variety of companies, including technology companies, educational institutions, healthcare facilities, businesses, and more. Basically, if a company has a computer network, it needs an IT assistant. IT assistants work exclusively in an office environment.

Duties and responsibilities of the IT assistant

To ensure that your business computer network runs smoothly and efficiently, IT assistants perform a variety of activities. We analyze various online job offers to identify these basic tasks and responsibilities.

Installation and configuration

In the event that your company purchases a new computer network, it will be up to the IT assistant to install and configure the new network so that employees can start using it as quickly as possible. In addition, new computer networks will need to be configured to meet the specific needs of the business.

Peripheral installation

Many devices must be configured to integrate into the computer network. These can include items like printers, keyboards, routers, modems, and smart devices. It is the responsibility of the IT assistant to configure these devices and ensure that they are functional and secure.

Maintenance and repair

Even if a computer network and all its peripherals are perfectly configured, problems will continue to arise daily. IT assistants should check for errors on the corporate network, repair failed devices, and help colleagues solve problems.

Help clients

If your company's IT network is used by non-business customers, IT assistants may be required to spend part of their time at a help desk to answer calls and emails about technology issues.

Keep records

As part of their ongoing work, IT assistants are generally required to keep detailed records of network configurations, device specifications, problems and solutions, and more. These documents help your company solve problems faster in the future.

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Computer Support Specialist Outlook

IT support specialists help with access difficulties, operating system and software malfunctions, and some even need to remove a screwdriver to open a laptop or PC. Considering the number of calls, face-to-face meetings, e-mails and, in some cases, chats they participate in daily, people in this line of work should show excellent communication skills. They must ask users the right questions to identify the problem, find a solution and guide them step by step through the solution.

Almost everyone raised their hand in frustration after what appears to be a million unsuccessful attempts to access their computer or over an hour struggling with a router to create a home network. When looking for help on the phone or on the keyboard and a little quiet, the person on the other side is usually a computer support specialist.

These tech experts work in a variety of contexts, from traditional offices to universities and call centers, but the main goal of men and women who often seek desperate help from users with IT problems is always the same: to provide assistance. That they need. Need in a friendly and effective way. "We need to make sure we know how to diagnose problems and resolve them quickly," says Guido Díaz, a computer systems analyst distributed at the Florida Department of Education. "Customer relations and problem solving are very important."

Instead of responding to general support requests, another segment of IT support specialists focuses on network problems. Known as computer network support specialists, these professionals receive many distressed phone calls and emails, but often revolve around network problems and come from employees within their workplace rather than customers or the public. . . In addition to responding and resolving problems in a timely manner, network support specialists solve problems in an organization's network computer system to discover potential problems and provide regular maintenance to ensure that all of its components are functioning properly.

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What Does A Desktop Support Technician Do

Computer network support specialists, also called technical support specialists, generally work in your organization's IT department. They help IT staff analyze, troubleshoot, and evaluate problems on the computer network. They play an important role in the routine maintenance of the organization's networks, such as backing up files to the network. Maintenance can be performed daily, weekly or monthly and is important for an organization's disaster recovery activities. Resolving an IT problem promptly is important because organizations depend on their network systems. Network support specialists can help your organization's computer users by phone, email, or in-person visits. They often work with network and IT systems administrators, who manage more complex tasks.

Computer user support specialists typically do the following:

Pay attention to customer descriptions of their computer problems.

Ask customers questions to correctly diagnose the problem.

Guide customers through best troubleshooting practices

Install or repair IT equipment and related devices.

Instruct users to work with new hardware or software, such as printers, word processing software and email.

Provide other team members and organization leaders with information on what gives customers the most problems and other concerns.

Computer user support specialists, also called help desk technicians, generally provide technical assistance to users of non-IT computers. They respond to requests for help by phone and email. They can usually help users remotely, but they can also visit the site so they can solve a problem in person.

Help desk technicians can solve a variety of problems that vary by industry and specific company. Some technicians work for large software companies or support services companies and must educate corporate customers on how to use company-specific programs, such as an electronic medical records program used in hospitals or medical offices. Sometimes they work with other technicians to solve problems.

Other helpdesk technicians work in call centers, answering simpler questions from non-commercial customers. They can guide customers through the basic steps to reestablish an Internet connection or solve problems with home computing products such as a Wi-Fi router.

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What are the roles and responsibilities of a NOC technician?

A network operations center, or NOC (pronounced "knock"), is a centralized location where IT technicians directly support the efforts of remote management and monitoring software (RMM). NOC teams are widely used in the managed IT services space and represent an important service delivery factor for many managed service providers (MSPs).

These technical teams carefully monitor the endpoints they monitor and manage, independently resolve the problems that arise and take preventive measures to ensure that not many problems occur. The NOC teams are also heavily involved in high-level security actions and backup and disaster recovery (BDR) activities, ensuring 24x7x365 uptime for customers of an MSP.

What are the roles and responsibilities of a NOC technician?

NOC network engineer and technicians are responsible for monitoring the health, safety and capacity of the infrastructure in the customer's environment. They make decisions and adaptations to ensure optimal network performance and organizational productivity.

When an MSP action or intervention is required, NOC technicians can create alerts (or "tickets") that identify and classify the problem based on severity, alert type and other criteria. Depending on the relationship between NOC and MSP, technical teams can work together to resolve the problem (and identify its root cause to avoid future problems).

Technicians are classified according to "levels", which indicate the severity and difficulty of the problems they manage. The levels are numbered 1 (easier problems to solve, minor problems) and increase the capacity for more complicated IT problems. For example, in the event of a hardware failure, you can initially assign an alert to a level 1 technician. However, after further inspection, if the problem goes beyond the hardware failure, the ticket may have increased. to a level 2 or 3 technician.

NOC technicians constantly study anomalous network activities, make technical changes and can pool large resources, some of which only an internal IT service provider would rarely use to respond to emergency situations.

Computer Networking Specialist Job Description

Educational requirements

According to the United States Department of Labor Statistics (BLS), network specialists generally require higher education, and a bachelor's degree is often preferred for work. Several universities offer relevant major subjects such as computers, network technology, software development or information security. These programs teach basic and advanced topics on the basics of the network. Students can often take electives to specialize in a particular area such as security, network design or programming.

Certification

Several organizations and technology providers offer professional certifications that can be as useful as university education. To demonstrate a general understanding of the network, you can get either CompTIA Network + or Security + credentials. In addition, professionals working with specific network hardware or software can demonstrate the expertise of a particular vendor's technology by obtaining advanced and advanced certifications such as the Microsoft Technology Specialist Certificate or the Cisco Professional Network Certificate. . .

Other skills required

Computer network specialists must have excellent communication skills. They work with internal and external customers, providers and other IT professionals who need the ability to communicate in technical and non-technical languages. It may also be necessary to work individually and in groups. A computer network specialist may need to lift and carry heavy computing devices, travel, or install network cables or devices.

Job prospects and salary information

According to BLS, network and computer system administrators could expect an average 5% increase in jobs from 2018 to 2028, and computer network architects could expect an average growth of 5% over the same period. In 2018, the BLS reported that the average annual salary for computer systems and network administrators was $ 82,050 and the average salary for computer network architects was $ 109,020.

Computer network specialists maintain and monitor networks, communicate with providers and support users. Employers typically require candidates to have a bachelor's degree in computer related fields, and certification is also helpful. Employment growth for occupational fields related to computer networks is expected to be average between 2018 and 2028.

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Career as Computer Network Engineer

A Network Engineers’ duties include designing, maintaining and administering the organization’s networks. He has to maintain the smooth functioning of the day to day operations of the network monitoring bandwidth and implements new networks if needed. He has to perform disaster recovery operations and backup data whenever required. He is the point of contact for everyone within the establishment as well as the clients, in case of any failure in the functioning of networks. 

This is entirely a desk job and the work pressure mounts when an important project is midway and the networks do not perform well. A Network Engineer needs to find an alternative in such cases. Though it is said to be a 9 to 5 job, a network engineer will need to stretch his work time if an issue arises, such as virus-infected networks, IP Address exhaustion, etc. to solve the problems.

The Senior Network Administrator is the most popular job in the hierarchy of networking jobs, as it offers the best salaries in the networking industry. The average salary of a network administrator in India is Rs 7 to 8 lakh per annum.

The different types of specialization in networking are Specialization in Cybersecurity Operations, Network and Security Operations Specialization, and Systems and IT Infrastructure Operations Specialization. The best growth in the individual role in the networking industry is a network engineer. With years of experience, one can expect growth depending upon the nature of the company employed and the job hierarchy. The starting salary of an entry-level role in the networking industry may come to around Rs 2 to 3 lakh annually. It can even reach up to Rs 8 lakh per annum when the candidate reaches the network administrator role through constant skill enhancement and experience. 

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NOC Engineer Job Description

The NOC engineers provide technical support for network connectivity issues and ensure that they are stable. You can monitor the security and capacity of the infrastructure. NOC engineers can also work independently and efficiently in a team environment on critical projects to complete them. Our integrated engineers are motivated and show leadership skills. We welcome diversity and encourage healthy debates and discussions.

How do we need your help?

Monitor network servers and applications to minimize downtime

Make sure that trouble tickets are fixed in time and contact customers by email or phone

Installation, updating and troubleshooting of application software.

Configure and maintain hardware devices, including routers and firewalls, as needed

Troubleshooting, troubleshooting, isolation and repair.

Operational support for system hardware, software and peripherals.

DCS Map connects to the network and configures the router on the VPN switching platform

Monitor common threats, DOS attacks, and viruses

Perform VoIP and video data management, network analysis and system backups, as well as documentation and reports.

Career paths of NOC Senior Engineer: what's next?

You have shown that you are familiar with your work and are now ready to advance your career. As technology advances, so does the demand for system requirements. For this reason, companies are looking for Global Network Operations Centers (GNOCs) with experts in various fields worldwide to ensure seamless connectivity and operations. He has 10 years of experience as a senior engineer at the NOC and is up to the challenge.

Older NOC engineers can switch to the role of a senior systems engineer. Her responsibilities include managing and maintaining IT tools and systems, identifying and solving problems, and developing automated frameworks. There is the role of the IT manager who monitors a company's IT infrastructure and provides training, updates, procedures, documentation and technologies. The role of the IT director includes the administration and control of IT operations for an employer and the establishment of close relationships with providers. Another career path is that of the Chief Information Officer (CIO), who is responsible for making decisions within a company's reporting framework, such as: For example: evaluating strategies for services and products, monitoring development teams and determining which devices should be purchased. From now on there is the IT Vice President who monitors the technology initiatives, updates for all projects and IT changes of a company. This role is also responsible for creating budgets, approving purchases, and developing policies and relationships with suppliers.

The jobs listed generally require a bachelor's degree with a master's degree as a preferred employer choice and in some cases an MBA. Industry and management certifications as well as years of experience are essential. Not only do they need excellent communication skills, they also need to be able to work independently, lead effectively and make important decisions for the entire company.

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Network and Computer Systems Administrators Career Path

While some employers only need a university degree or an associate's degree, most require a bachelor's degree in an area of ​​computer science or information science. There are degree programs that focus on the computer network and system administration. However, since administrators work with computer hardware and equipment, a degree in computer or electrical engineering is usually acceptable. Programs in these areas often include courses in computer programming, networking, or system design.

Job prospects

The projected percentage change in employment from 2016 to 2026: 6% (as fast as the average)

(The average growth rate for all professions is 7 percent.)

Go on

Network administrators can become computer network architects. You can also become a manager in IT departments such as computer and information system administrators.

Licenses / Certifications

Organizations generally require that their network and computer system administrators be certified for the products they use. Certification programs are usually offered directly by providers or vendor-independent certification providers. The certification confirms the knowledge and use of best practices required by network and computer system administrators. Microsoft and Cisco offer some of the most common certifications.

Average Pay: How Much Do Network and Computer System Administrators Earn?

Annual salary of $ 79,700

$ 38.32 per hour

Computer networks are important components of almost all organizations. Network and computer system administrators are responsible for the daily operation of these networks. They organize, install, and support a company's computer systems, including local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), network segments, intranets, and other data communication systems.

What do network and computer system administrators do?

Network and computer system administrators typically do the following:

Determine a company's system requirements and install network hardware and software.

Perform the necessary updates and repairs on networks and ensure that the systems are working properly

Ensure the security of networks and computer systems

Evaluate and optimize network or system performance.

Add users to a network and assign and update security permissions on the network

Training users in the correct use of hardware and software.

Interpret and fix problems when a user or automated monitoring system notifies them of a problem

Administrators manage desktops, cell phones, and desktops in an organization. They ensure that email and data storage networks work properly. They also ensure that employees' workplaces function efficiently and remain connected to the central computer network. Some administrators operate telecommunications networks.

Administrators can help network architects design and analyze network models. They are also involved in decisions about purchasing hardware or software in the future to update their company's network. Some administrators provide technical support to computer users and may also oversee computer support professionals to help solve user problems.

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