Did you start @ the Help Desk ? if so, how long did it take to land a new role ?

teksource1984

Fellow members,

I would like to know for all those who started their careers by doing help desk/desktop support work.

(A) How long it took you to move up the ladder, (B) what was your new position and were you satisfied. (C) Also, what did you do, new cert, degree or nothing at all . Please let me know. I ace help desk interviews but always end up leaving the job because of frustration.

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NinjaBoy

teksource1984 wrote: »

Did you start @ the Help Desk?

Yes and no... My first real IT position was as an IT Technician, however all tech's were on a weekly rota of helpdesk, workshop and field tech duties.

teksource1984 wrote: »

(A) How long it took you to move up the ladder?

From that role to my next one was about 2 years.

teksource1984 wrote: »

(B) what was your new position and were you satisfied?

My new role was Senior IT Technician at a different place. Yes, I was satisfied at that point in time. And used that position for my next one...

teksource1984 wrote: »

(C) Also, what did you do, new cert, degree or nothing at all?

I finished off my Degree (BSc Computing). Also did my MCSA, A+, Network+ and the Epson Stylus Basics Engineering Course (for inkjet printers). At work tried to get my hands on everything for experience. This includes PC builds & installs, networks, servers, telephones, AV (and installs), cybercafes, mobile trailers (mobile PC suites that had satellite internet), etc...

-Ken

Ryan82

Yes and I hated it. Spent 1.5 years in that role.

Try to take advantage of the opportunity. Some help desk positions will have a lot of deadtime that you can use to study college classes or certs. You might as well better yourself in the meantime. A lot of people watch tv or surf the internet. I always try to learn something.

Some people get stuck in the help desk arena and never seem to make that jump to desktop support or whatever is the next move in their perspective career. If you demonstrate potential for things greater than the help desk, have done your time in the position and your current employer tries to keep you at the help desk, look for something better.

Just my 2 c

Monkerz

- Yes and No, I started as an on-site IT Analyst, but was considered help desk by people higher up.

A. I was in the roll for exactly 3 years before landing my new one.

B. I am very satisfied, my new roll is Network Engineer.

C. Gained A+, Net+, CCENT and CCNA.

Hypntick

Network help desk for almost 3 years. Uh I didn't get the chance to move up, they froze hiring and laid everyone off a couple of months back, so i'm still unemployed. While I was there I got my A+, Net+ and Sec+.

edit: To be fair they froze hiring about a year in due to the economy. Main reason I stuck around was lack of other options and they also said they were working to get the dept expanded when they lifted the freeze. They also offered the chance to move with the new company that took over the dept. they just didn't make it attractive enough to even consider picking up and moving a few states away. Not to mention everyone i've spoken with that did go says that the grass wasn't exactly greener. I think I made the right choice.

N2IT

teksource1984 wrote: »

Fellow members,

I would like to know for all those who started their careers by doing help desk/desktop support work.

(A) How long it took you to move up the ladder, (B) what was your new position and were you satisfied. (C) Also, what did you do, new cert, degree or nothing at all . Please let me know. I ace help desk interviews but always end up leaving the job because of frustration.

I started as deskside support or top whatever you want to call it. I was there for 2 years. I expanded my role there to some low level system adminstration to mid range servers. RS 6000, HP3000, and AS400's. That was short lived so I moved onto Real Estate for 2 years I was awful at it. However I started doing leasing and I was damn good at that. I would pull down some hefty commissions and they would actually place me on the "hard" to lease properties. If I have a natural skill it's sales. So anyway after 2+ years of that I landed my first true helpdesk gig with a manufacturing company. They were great to me, but not much advancement, but I learned a lot. I mean a lot. So after 2 years of that I took a junior project management position which evolved into a tier 2 team lead position. I was also involved in reporting. After 6 months of that there were talks of the team disolving so I took a tier 2 position back at my old company. How weird I know lol. That is where I am at today. I do about 30% networking and the rest is tier 2 remote support. I do deskside support from time to time, but usually it's remote.

SteveLord

I managed to avoid it. First job was an deskside IT guy/jack of all trades type. Did it for 2 years (decent pay, never any funds to purchase/invest, grumpy cliches in the company) and have the same type of role in my current job, which is how I got it. It had its ups and downs, but it was a great stepping stone as the only work I knew before that was in the military.

Had this job for 2.5 years now and love it.

snokerpoker

I started working as a hardware tech because I couldn't even find a helpdesk job. Now I have moved up from tech support to systems admin to engineer titles but still do quite a bit of helpdesk work. It seems to me that you often start off your career in a helpdesk support role but at the same time never really get out of it completely. However, at one company I worked at, which was a software/web company and some of the guys were strictly Cisco or Linux guys so it is possible if you specialize in one area to avoid doing some helpdesk work.

Anonymouse

You could say I started in computer repair but what I consider my first real IT experience was in desktop support. Funny thing is I do helpdesk now. Kind of messed up job progression I've had though so your experiences will vary.

VAHokie56

I did help desk for a year at a ISP. It was the worst job ever and I am pretty sure the place was run by the dark lord Sauron,Oprah and Hitler. I then took a contract desktop support role and got my CCNA and moved into a network engineer position full time. I am very happy I rolled the dice on the contract , If i hadn't I may still be sitting in that hell hole of a call center

rwmidl

teksource1984 wrote: »

(A) How long it took you to move up the ladder

8 years then switched companies.

teksource1984 wrote: »

(B) what was your new position and were you satisfied.

I ended up taking a job with another company as a "systems specialist" aka help desk, but I knew there were more opportunities there. Fast forward not even a year and the Sys Admin left and I got his position.

teksource1984 wrote: »

(C) Also, what did you do, new cert, degree or nothing at all . Please let me know. I ace help desk interviews but always end up leaving the job because of frustration.

See above. I took a new job with a new company because the company I was with (8 years) I knew I wasn't going anywhere and they were sending all IT support overseas. With the first company I already had my MCSE so I didn't add any new certs.

za3bour

Well yes I worked in the help desk department for almost 2 years then got promoted to a System Administrator.I was satisfied for sure and I got the job because at that time I knew my way into Win NT and Win 95 by just reading from books.I got my first cert 3 years after that.