What does the future hold for the IT support sector?

ID Support

The IT Support Division is responsible for a company's server, network, storage, laptop, desktop, and related tasks.

There are two divisions in this field, Internal Support & Client Support.

Internal-Support is the maintenance of a company's server, network, storage, laptop, desktop. Image Credit

Client Support is those who provide the above service to the clients on behalf of their company. These are mostly Server & Storage dependent.

IT sector development

Experience in this field since Windows 3.1, 286 Motherboard, 4 MB (1998). Field Engineer who initially goes to every home, company and fixes computer problems.

Then switched to the Internal Support section for a single company and continues to this day.

Although initially working on the Windows operating system, it is currently in the UNIX / Linux management section.

The following information is based on the experience of working in the field of IT support over the past 23 years (2021 *) and directly observing every change that has taken place so far.

Stability

No previous Hardware / Software Stability. I.e., giving cumulative problems.

The ' Windows Protection Error ' problem often comes up when you have Windows 95. Sometimes it can be fixed, sometimes it's OS Reinstallation.

If Windows NT suddenly crashes and comes down, there is no other option but to reinstall the OS, because the OS will be corrupt.

Subsequent Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows 7 gradually became more stable.

Currently (* 2021) Windows 10 is performing at its best.

When assembling a computer in the beginning, you will have to face various problems and challenges.

Motherboard, CPU, RAM, etc. are non-standard.

But now the almost assembled computer is disappearing. Branded Computer dominates.

Despite the current problems, many steps have been improved in comparison.

Just One Click

Similarly, the stability of the server and storage is increasing. That is, the quality of the hardware is rising.

Auto Support etc. immediately alert you in case of mistakes. Therefore, problems can be avoided.

If you shutdown/reboot the UNIX server that has been in use for several days, it is doubtful whether it will boot, but not now.

The SCCM (System Center Configuration Manager) easily completes what the OS and Applications have been doing for 50 separate computers.

No need to do anything like Reboot, Next, Yes, Options, log in.

Previously it was the day to configure the server but now if you give IP, Vlan, Host Name, etc in Excel file it will configure and say Duplicate though.

Now that the Readymade script, Automation process has arrived (already, some have arrived), manualization will be reduced.

The hairy beggar, forgetting something, without waking up to know why it happened like this, Jus one click is just that.

The above is easy to understand for those who work in the cloud.

Audit

Corporate audit increases everyone's responsibility and corrects mistakes.

That is, it is impossible to be careless. If so, you may have to face an Escalation called Findings when the audit takes place.

Processes that used to be something else are now becoming standard.

In short, with proper maintenance and reservations, almost 95% of future problems can be avoided.

It is natural to go beyond this and this can never be corrected.

Google Server, one of the best-managed companies in the world, lost about 5% of this.

Cloud & Automation

• Various changes have taken place since the advent of Cloud & Automation, especially in the Server and Storage sections.
• Reduces technical problems due to stability and quality of products.
• Not only are the problems less, but the task is also easier, the task of 5 people can be done by two.
• Microsoft Office 365 came, and those who were watching the Exchange Mail Server had to switch to another field.
• Many jobs are Outsource and the chances are high.
• If stored on Microsoft OneDrive, no data loss will occur. So, what to do if Hard Disk crashes? No worries about it.
• Microsoft brings 1 TB to the Office 365 OneDrive account.

Virtualization & Centralized Management

The staff is able to cope with the increase in new technologies.

There is no substitute for increasing the extra workload for laptop & desktop viewers.

The server is able to handle storage. In addition, such people have no direct contact with employees.

Previously there were 20 separate server hardware, now Virtualization can put 20 servers on the same server hardware

The need for maintenance, electricity, and space has been drastically reduced.

The biggest difference in hardware level is for 20 separate server maintenance and 1 server maintenance.

The number of additional servers can be tackled at the level of Centralized Management, even if it comes on a virtual scale.

Thankless Job

Any company will only look at the IT support sector as a cost sector. This means that the company has no cash flow from this sector.

Although the company receives revenue on a billable basis as Client Support for a particular company, the staff position is the same.

Without ID support, the company would not exist but they would not matter.

No matter how hard they work they will remain relatively neglected. There will be less praise and more criticism.

Example

Without the police one cannot run a state but what is the respect available to the police?

RTO, Public Works Department, Tax Department, etc. can be compared to other software departments and Police as IT Support Department.

If the IT support department is not there for 30 minutes at the time of trouble, the company itself will burn about but, they will not matter.

The IT support department does not have the attention, respect, and encouragement available to other departments like the police.

This is the reality. This is what people here understand and work for. Understanding can avoid disappointment.

The IT Support Department is a Thankless Job.

OS, Application & Hardware Stability

Currently, due to the aforementioned OS, Application & Hardware stability is able to cope with a small number of people.

So, being able to deal with keeping 4 people in a place where 10 people worked. The main reason for this is Centralized & Virtual Management.

This is a comparison between 10 years ago and the current situation, especially Server & Storage.

So, when it comes to Internal Support, the only thing to think about is how much staff to cut or how to deal with keeping existing ones.

Although applicable to all sectors, there is reason to mention this sector.

If a software company employs 3000 people, there will be a maximum of 15 - 25 people in the IT support sector.

There is a difference between the opportunity available in the category of 500 people and the opportunity available in the category of 15 - 25 people.

So, in which crisis, competition is high.

IT Security

IT Security, which has split from the industry, is currently receiving a huge welcome.

In the future, companies will have to invest more in insecurity. This is because the requirements for security in the future are high.

Problems may come in other ways as well, but not for now.

Skilled Resource

Only those who are Highly Skilled Resource in the field of IT support can cope when considering future Stability, Artificial Intelligence, Automation, Cloud.

This is because, as mentioned earlier, there is a big difference between the competition of 500 people and competition of 15 - 25 people.

All work will be done through Automation, Cloud, Centralized Management. Therefore, these will naturally reduce the need for staff.

Therefore, competition can only be overcome if you are Highly Skilled.

Recommendation

Already, those in the industry need to learn new technologies.

Only then can we deal with competition in the future.

If you have the opportunity to go to another department, I recommend going. If you are old, don't go for less than your full potential.

Those who are new to the field can try another field.

The industry has a future but can only survive if it is a Highly Skilled Resource.

This is the Passion, which can only come if there is hope that it can come in huge quantities.

Otherwise, you can focus on other fields (AI, Automation, Cloud, IT Security) related to this field.

Note

This article has been written in consultation with many friends in the field who have worked together.