Becoming an Entry Level Desk Support Associate

I started my journey in IT by going to college for International Management with Economics and Honors program minors. It was not quite the proper foundation for starting out in IT, but it was worth the price the government paid. I learned a lot and ran a small chapter of a professional business fraternity (Delta Sigma Pi).

My first job out of college was a sales job for a self-proclaimed "start-up." In reality, the company had been around for decades, and the only aspect of the start-up culture was free food and alcohol. Oh– and a lot of gongs. I was a business development representative, which means I was a smile-and-dial gopher. I discovered the hard way that I was not meant for that. I spent more time helping people with technical issues than honing any gift of gab. I left that job in less than a year.

I got my first IT job without certifications, an IT degree, or paper experience. I have many years of experience fixing issues, both primary and complex. I did not take long to get into the thick of things, learning, breaking, and fixing things. After three years of that first low-level job at a managed service provider, I moved on to a corporate job.

Now, one of the main things required to work in IT is the ability to learn. An electronic device can work excellently one minute, not the next. Not being able to think things through methodically, conduct research, and learn new things will harm your ability to succeed. As with any job, you will not get far if you do not care or have a passion for something. You can spend 20 years in a field and not get far. For some, that may be fine, but I wouldn't say I like sitting around.

I worked hard to learn, get certified (and eventually contract to the same certification company, authoring and assessing practice exam questions), and pushed for more for myself. I learned from my military career that no one cares about you but you. If you want something to get done, you must do it yourself.

To become an entry-level desk support associate, you need to be able to learn on the fly, put in the time to learn outside of work, and document it. No two IT jobs are alike. They will have similar titles or even completely unrelated titles. They will have job descriptions showing you doing x, y, and z, but you will do something entirely different.

Get your basics in, then start to push for more professional development. Many companies will pay to get you certified. Some will not, but those companies are not investing in their development. Yes, it benefits the employee, but it improves their support team with more skilled workers. If a company does not develop you, they do not care about your advancement or their company's future. Short-sighted decisions will always come back to bite them later on.

I recommend LinkedIn for free introductory courses and CompTIA's CertMaster program for industry exams and certifications. I am a bit biased with CompTIA because I have helped to build their content out, as I described earlier.

Know your value. If you have certifications and experience, you can move on to more advanced positions. However, you need to understand that as you advance, the roles are not always accurately described, and you have to pry into a recruiter's sales pitch to get the actual day-to-day activities. If you did something small or big, write it down. Describe what you did and how you did it. Show how it benefited the company (% decrease in ticket submissions, % decrease in maintenance costs, etc.). This will help you when you come back around to revise your LinkedIn profile or resume.

CVs, cover letters, etc., are not all that important early in your career. Steer clear of application submission systems that are kludgey, misformat your resume when uploaded, or ask for every detail of your entire life experience. The odds of getting a job from those systems are slim. I cannot count the instant rejections I have had for entry-level positions.

Without going into incessant detail, the basics of getting an entry-level position are: Get knowledge, network with people to get a foot in the door, then develop yourself through education and professional development. Learn to be better at what you are passionate about. Do not feel bad if you do not know something. You will learn soon enough.

Lastly, get paid what you are worth. Do not let someone tell you you are not worth your skills, knowledge, or experience. It is their job to keep things cheap for the business.