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The differences between help desk managers and help desk representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a help desk manager and a help desk representative. Additionally, a help desk manager has an average salary of $96,278, which is higher than the $37,449 average annual salary of a help desk representative.
The top three skills for a help desk manager include customer service, technical support and help desk. The most important skills for a help desk representative are customer service, troubleshoot, and technical support.
| Help Desk Manager | Help Desk Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $96,278 | $37,449 |
| Hourly rate | $46.29 | $18.00 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 75,971 | 51,501 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A help desk manager oversees and coordinates the daily performance of help desk teams, ensuring clients get to receive optimal support and services. They are in charge of setting goals and guidelines, establishing budgets and timelines, performing assessments and inspections, and monitoring the progress of operations, resolving issues or conflicts should any arise. There are also instances when a help desk manager must facilitate the communication between internal and external parties, recruit and train new members of the workforce, and implement policies and procedures to optimize operations.
A help desk representative mainly provides client support services through face-to-face interactions, aiming to resolve issues and concerns to ensure client satisfaction. Their responsibilities include answering inquiries, assisting clients in filling up forms, identifying their needs, providing detailed solutions, and referring them to other services as needed. Aside from face-to-face interactions, there are also instances where a help desk representative may provide services through calls and correspondence, troubleshoot problems, and provide step-by-step instructions according to the clients' needs.
Help desk managers and help desk representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Help Desk Manager | Help Desk Representative | |
| Average salary | $96,278 | $37,449 |
| Salary range | Between $74,000 And $125,000 | Between $29,000 And $48,000 |
| Highest paying City | Berkeley, CA | Stow, OH |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | City of Jacksonville |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a help desk manager and a help desk representative in terms of educational background:
| Help Desk Manager | Help Desk Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between help desk managers' and help desk representatives' demographics:
| Help Desk Manager | Help Desk Representative | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 70.3% Female, 29.7% | Male, 52.0% Female, 48.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |