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The differences between help desk supervisors and desktop engineers 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 supervisor and a desktop engineer. Additionally, a desktop engineer has an average salary of $102,893, which is higher than the $64,297 average annual salary of a help desk supervisor.
The top three skills for a help desk supervisor include customer service, technical support and operational procedures. The most important skills for a desktop engineer are customer service, SCCM, and troubleshoot.
| Help Desk Supervisor | Desktop Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $64,297 | $102,893 |
| Hourly rate | $30.91 | $49.47 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 72,240 | 87,458 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 52% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A Help Desk Supervisor oversees and evaluates the daily operations of help desk teams to ensure that customers receive optimal services. They have the authority to set short and long-term goals, establish guidelines and employee schedules, liaise with external business partners, delegate tasks among staff, and monitor operations' progress, resolving complicated issues and concerns. They also review documents and reports that employees regularly submit to ensure that all operations run smoothly and efficiently. Moreover, a Help Desk Supervisor leads and encourages teams to reach goals while implementing its policies and regulations.
A desktop engineer is responsible for monitoring the efficiency and performance of computer systems across the organization to deliver high-performance on business operations and client specifications. Desktop engineers resolve computer desktop issues, including navigation and security complications that create delays in the operational process. They conduct regular maintenance with the computer systems, upgrade network infrastructure, and perform configuration to ensure smooth functionality and resolutions. A desktop engineer should have excellent knowledge of the technology industry, recommending system solutions to avoid the reoccurrence of network issues and glitches.
Help desk supervisors and desktop engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Help Desk Supervisor | Desktop Engineer | |
| Average salary | $64,297 | $102,893 |
| Salary range | Between $43,000 And $94,000 | Between $77,000 And $136,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | Ropes & Gray |
| Best paying industry | - | Finance |
There are a few differences between a help desk supervisor and a desktop engineer in terms of educational background:
| Help Desk Supervisor | Desktop Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 52% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between help desk supervisors' and desktop engineers' demographics:
| Help Desk Supervisor | Desktop Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.4% Female, 33.6% | Male, 88.7% Female, 11.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 13.6% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |