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The differences between decision support analysts and desktop support consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a decision support analyst and a desktop support consultant. Additionally, a decision support analyst has an average salary of $81,227, which is higher than the $46,733 average annual salary of a desktop support consultant.
The top three skills for a decision support analyst include data analysis, SAS and tableau. The most important skills for a desktop support consultant are desktop support, customer service, and troubleshoot.
| Decision Support Analyst | Desktop Support Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $81,227 | $46,733 |
| Hourly rate | $39.05 | $22.47 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 96,068 | 100,650 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A decision support analyst is a support staff who perform a variety of specialized analyses such as financial analyses and cost-benefit analyses. Your duties typically include documenting analytical findings, designing and developing data reporting systems tailored for business operations, and providing team members with processed data as needed. Additionally, you will be responsible for managing data integrity and accuracy, diagnosing and troubleshooting system errors, and providing recommendations for improvements of the decision support systems. You are also expected to train other team members on how to use the system.
The duties of a desk support consultant vary on their line of work or industry of employment. Most of their responsibilities are likely to revolve around reaching out to clients through calls and correspondence, answering inquiries, troubleshooting, and providing corrective measures, all to attain customer satisfaction. Moreover, a desk support consultant may devise strategies to better communicate with clients, produce progress reports, and maintain accurate records of all transactions. Furthermore, it is essential to adhere to all policies and regulations at all times.
Decision support analysts and desktop support consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Decision Support Analyst | Desktop Support Consultant | |
| Average salary | $81,227 | $46,733 |
| Salary range | Between $58,000 And $112,000 | Between $33,000 And $64,000 |
| Highest paying City | Mountain View, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Meta | NTT Data International L.L.C. |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Finance |
There are a few differences between a decision support analyst and a desktop support consultant in terms of educational background:
| Decision Support Analyst | Desktop Support Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between decision support analysts' and desktop support consultants' demographics:
| Decision Support Analyst | Desktop Support Consultant | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.1% Female, 50.9% | Male, 85.0% Female, 15.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 12.9% White, 55.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 13.5% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |