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What is a help desk supervisor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted expert
Kate Marek Ph.D.

Everyone needs a little help sometimes, and it's a great feeling when you can get someone focused on helping your problems. As a help desk supervisor, you'll play a role in helping people get this help by managing the help desk staff. In this role, you'll not only hire and train new employees but will also help answer questions and provide customer service.

Some of the other duties in this role will include evaluating help desk team performance, ensuring customer service is timely and accurate, and following up with customers to identify areas of improvement. This is typically an indoor position with standard daytime office hours. However, evening and weekend hours may be required at some companies.

Since help desk supervisors will encounter a diverse set of customers and problems, you will need to have great people skills and be able to think on your feet. You can get a job as a help desk supervisor with just a high school diploma or GED. However, you likely need a call center or previous management experience.

What general advice would you give to a help desk supervisor?

Kate Marek Ph.D.Kate Marek Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Director and Professor, Dominican University

Choose an organization in tune with one's values. Look for a job in growth areas, such as data asset management, data analysis, etc.
ScoreHelp Desk SupervisorUS Average
Salary
5.0

Avg. Salary $64,297

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
6.7

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.5
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.41%

Asian 10.52%

Black or African American 12.00%

Hispanic or Latino 16.07%

Unknown 5.37%

White 55.64%

Gender

female 33.60%

male 66.40%

Age - 41
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41
Stress level
6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
6.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
7.4

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Help desk supervisor career paths

Key steps to become a help desk supervisor

  1. Explore help desk supervisor education requirements

    Most common help desk supervisor degrees

    Bachelor's

    51.8 %

    Associate

    28.0 %

    High School Diploma

    9.0 %
  2. Start to develop specific help desk supervisor skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Customer Service9.98%
    Technical Support8.54%
    Operational Procedures8.40%
    Help Desk6.02%
    Desk Support4.89%
  3. Complete relevant help desk supervisor training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New help desk supervisors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a help desk supervisor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real help desk supervisor resumes.
  4. Research help desk supervisor duties and responsibilities

    • Manage LAN software/hardware installation and upgrade efforts.
    • Provide remote implementation support for IBM POS solution.
    • Provide phone support for network and remote VPN users with connectivity issues.
    • Assist remote users with VPN, RAS, and RNA connection problems.
  5. Prepare your help desk supervisor resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your help desk supervisor resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a help desk supervisor resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable help desk supervisor resume templates

    Build a professional help desk supervisor resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your help desk supervisor resume.
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
    Help Desk Supervisor Resume
  6. Apply for help desk supervisor jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a help desk supervisor job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first help desk supervisor job

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Average help desk supervisor salary

The average help desk supervisor salary in the United States is $64,297 per year or $31 per hour. Help desk supervisor salaries range between $43,000 and $94,000 per year.

Average help desk supervisor salary
$64,297 Yearly
$30.91 hourly

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How do help desk supervisors rate their job?

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Help desk supervisor reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2023
Pros

You get to help a lot of people in many different ways as well as learning new things about technology

Cons

I have aids now due to the painfulness of sitting down all day


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2022
Pros

Working with The people


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020
Pros

I decided to go to technical support because I've been fascinated by technology all my life and I love working with the people as well. I want to use my technical know-how to solve directly the problems that customers have. I want to be the person who makes life easier and more enjoyable for people who have had a problem. This is what I like most as a technical Support.

Cons

I don't like sitting around being inactive. So I'll keep my self always busy


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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