Need help trying to figure out a cert path

missjanaya

I am trying to figure out a good cert path for the two jobs below. I am not sure where to start with either. I have about 6 years IT experience and have all the MTA's and Comptia Strata.

Non Profitit Desktop Support

1) Manage all third party IT (onsite and two offsite locations.) contractors and the associated
budgets. This includes the IT needs for onsite and offsite team members.
2) Works with third party contacts to resolve technical problems with Staff desktop computing equipment and
software via phone call or in person one on one consultation.
3) Works with third party Help Desk and Network Operations staff as appropriate to determine and resolve problems
received from Staff.
4) Interact with numerous computer platforms in a multi-layered client server environment.
5) Ensure desktop computers interconnect seamlessly with diverse systems including associated validation systems,
file servers, email servers, computer conferencing systems, application servers, and administrative systems.
6) Trains and orients Staff on use of hardware and software.
7) Recommends and / or performs upgrades on systems to ensure longevity.
Assists in maintaining trouble records and, logging of IT Issues in the Portal system and maintain a
running log of issues (and time)addressed by this position.
9) Manage the contract and relationship with our Customer Contact Center (Total Outsourced Systems) partners to
ensure all of our needs and the needs of our ACE Graduates are being met.

NOC desk night shift position

• Respond and resolve client cases utilizing ITSM platform, procedures, and training. Awareness of service offerings and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are required.
• Understand Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) processes to support clients.
• Follow predefined ITIL Case Management and Change Management processes in place for each client when working to resolve client requests or outages.
• Monitor ticketing system and monitoring alarms. Respond/resolve cases in accordance with SLAs.
• Performs break/fix troubleshooting, server/software updates, and feature enhancements to Windows servers.
• Performs break/fix troubleshooting, IOS updates, and basic configuration support to Cisco switches, routers and firewalls.
• Maintain current knowledge of core service offerings and SLAs.
• Demonstrate, understand and is committed to the mission of Lumenate through performing behaviors consistent with the organization's values.
• Support and conduct self in a manner consistent with client service expectations.
• Provide troubleshooting and resolution for server/VM infrastructure issues.
• Provide one-on-one end-user problem resolution over the phone and via remote control tools
• Assist with the new client on-boarding process, including providing onsite support during the initial account go live, creating and maintaining troubleshooting documentation and ongoing service desk training of the client environment
• Diagnose and resolve end-user network or local printer problems including but not limited to PC hardware problems, email, Internet, VPN, and local-area network access problems.
• Responsible for any other duties as assigned.

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srabiee

I can't really give a recommendation based upon the job description, but I highly advise that you move away from low-level and vendor-neutral (CompTIA) certifications as soon as possible. Stick with vendor-specific certs in whatever IT career path you are interested in specializing in. Microsoft (MCSA), Cisco (CCENT/CCNA), Citrix, VMware (VCP), etc. Once you start down a path and do a bit of research, things will begin to make more sense and fall into place.

Soooo...what aspect(s) of IT are you interested in pursuing?

OctalDump

Two paths, a client/server oriented path, and a networking path.
For Networking, the obvious thing to do is get CCNA (optionally get Network+ first), get NOC job, get either more CCNA (eg CCNA security, CCNA wireless, CCNA cloud), or move onto CCNP as quick as you can. Take whatever training is offered.
For server path, some networking is still good, but you want to get into a path to MCSE based on where you are now. MCSE path could be MS cert in client OS or A+, then MCSA Server path (70-410,411,412), then an MCSE path depending on the environment you are working in.

Additional skills which are always useful are ITIL, Security (eg Security+), project management.
It's also worth exploring Cloud and Virtualisation. These are relevant to both network and server, but more so for server type infrastructure.

A good set to have is MCSA + CCNA + VCP-DCV + Security+ (or similar). It gives you a fair range of choice and opens many doors.

If those job descriptions are for recent roles you've held, then you should be able to get MCSA/CCNA/VCP/Sec+ fairly quickly, and then work towards whichever 'expert' track seems most appealing to you.