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The differences between help desk managers and senior support technicians 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 senior support technician. Additionally, a help desk manager has an average salary of $96,278, which is higher than the $74,459 average annual salary of a senior support technician.
The top three skills for a help desk manager include customer service, technical support and help desk. The most important skills for a senior support technician are customer service, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Help Desk Manager | Senior Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $96,278 | $74,459 |
| Hourly rate | $46.29 | $35.80 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 75,971 | 113,499 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| 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 senior support technician is an individual specializing in diagnosing and resolving information technology (IT)-related problems in an organization, including virus issues, forgotten passwords, and software updates. The job requires knowledge about the installation, configuration, and testing of computer hardware and software. Possessing excellent customer service, listening, and problem-solving skills is also vital to qualify for the position. The job's education requirements include an associate or bachelor's degree in computer science, business, information technology, or a related field.
Help desk managers and senior support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Help Desk Manager | Senior Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $96,278 | $74,459 |
| Salary range | Between $74,000 And $125,000 | Between $48,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | Berkeley, CA | Durham, NC |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Pennsylvania |
| Best paying company | Meta | Pacira BioSciences |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a help desk manager and a senior support technician in terms of educational background:
| Help Desk Manager | Senior Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between help desk managers' and senior support technicians' demographics:
| Help Desk Manager | Senior Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 70.3% Female, 29.7% | Male, 78.4% Female, 21.6% |
| 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, 10.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 11.1% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |