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What does an infrastructure support specialist do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
Babak Beheshti Ph.D.

An infrastructure support specialist generally plays a support role in the IT world, with "support" here not referring to an auxiliary role. They also help with the management and usability of organizational data and information. Their primary responsibility is to make sure the business goals of the company or enterprise are met by ensuring all data centers are functional, including elements such as network systems, software, hardware, and data storage facilities. They may also have to carry out complex technical evaluations and suggest proposed physical architectures along with elaborate designs.

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Infrastructure support specialist responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real infrastructure support specialist resumes:

  • Manage SharePoint with current information of projects, plans and updates.
  • Create service requests in CRM application to reflect report issues and manage customer expectations throughout escalation and/or resolution.
  • Act as leader for Linux working group in support of Linux CadNav servers.
  • Supervise and maintain all office PC systems including hardware, software, configuration, updates, and patches.
  • Work include, hooking up remote engineering offices to the network via DSL, PC software and hardware installs.
  • Recommend enhancements to improve level and quality of service including a separate SQL reporting server that drastically improve server performance.
  • Configure new IIS website for Peoplesoft application.
  • Develop Datacenter operations to engineer virtualization and consolidation solutions.

Infrastructure support specialist skills and personality traits

We calculated that 9% of Infrastructure Support Specialists are proficient in Infrastructure Support, Troubleshoot, and Cloud. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Listening skills, and Speaking skills.

We break down the percentage of Infrastructure Support Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Infrastructure Support, 9%

    Train, share technical direction, and provide senior technical support to the MIS Infrastructure Support team.

  • Troubleshoot, 8%

    Liaised with Lead Service Desk Technician to troubleshoot and identify trends, establishing the corresponding technical solution.

  • Cloud, 7%

    Perform routine Backup scheduling, restoration, and maintenance for company assests using Cloud service provider (Venyu Cloud Backup).

  • Technical Support, 5%

    Provided procurement and technical support to remote locations such as D.C., Florida, and Chicago etc.

  • Linux, 5%

    Installed and configured a 30xx VPN server and a Cisco 5xx PIX firewall device to replace three Linux firewalls.

  • Windows Server, 4%

    Configure Windows servers, WS XP/7, 2003, 2008 and perform continuous administration of specialized and virtual servers.

"infrastructure support," "troubleshoot," and "cloud" are among the most common skills that infrastructure support specialists use at work. You can find even more infrastructure support specialist responsibilities below, including:

Customer-service skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an infrastructure support specialist to have is customer-service skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "computer support specialists must be patient and sympathetic." Infrastructure support specialists often use customer-service skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "played a major part in making sure these data centers met the customer's requirements for disaster recovery. "

Listening skills. Another essential skill to perform infrastructure support specialist duties is listening skills. Infrastructure support specialists responsibilities require that "support workers must be able to understand the problems that their customers are describing and know when to ask questions to clarify the situation." Infrastructure support specialists also use listening skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "communicated and partnered with other it staff on a regular basis regarding technical issues, upgrades, and brainstorming. "

Speaking skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of infrastructure support specialists is speaking skills. This skill is critical to many everyday infrastructure support specialist duties, as "support workers must describe the solutions to computer problems in a way that a nontechnical person can understand." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "developed and presented classroom training on pre-released systems to field service engineers and technical support teams. "

Writing skills. A big part of what infrastructure support specialists do relies on "writing skills." You can see how essential it is to infrastructure support specialist responsibilities because "strong writing skills are useful for preparing instructions and email responses for employees and customers, as well as for real-time web chat interactions." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical infrastructure support specialist tasks: "conducted uat by writing sql queries / scripts and also using quality centre on resolving reported bugs/technical issues. "

Problem-solving skills. Another common skill required for infrastructure support specialist responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." This skill comes up in the duties of infrastructure support specialists all the time, as "support workers must identify both simple and complex computer problems, analyze them, and solve them." An excerpt from a real infrastructure support specialist resume shows how this skill is central to what an infrastructure support specialist does: "developed a desktop/server imaging solution that allowed for quick provisioning and deployment of new dell desktops/servers. "

See the full list of infrastructure support specialist skills

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Infrastructure Support Specialist Resume

Compare different infrastructure support specialists

Infrastructure support specialist vs. Administrative technical support

Administrative technical support maintains every technical set-up used in a company. Their primary responsibility is to inspect a company's systems, evaluate for issues, and repair any problems immediately. Administrative technical support is typically on call at the start of the day and, when they are not responding to calls, they conduct regular check-ups on all company systems. They are also responsible for creating technical reports and offering recommendations for improvements.

We looked at the average infrastructure support specialist salary and compared it with the wages of an administrative technical support. Generally speaking, administrative technical supports are paid $48,244 lower than infrastructure support specialists per year.Even though infrastructure support specialists and administrative technical supports are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require troubleshoot, technical support, and linux in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between infrastructure support specialists and administrative technical support. For instance, infrastructure support specialist responsibilities require skills such as "infrastructure support," "cloud," "desktop support," and "pc." Whereas a administrative technical support is skilled in "customer service," "phone calls," "data entry," and "desk support." This is part of what separates the two careers.

The education levels that administrative technical supports earn slightly differ from infrastructure support specialists. In particular, administrative technical supports are 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an infrastructure support specialist. Additionally, they're 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Infrastructure support specialist vs. Support lead

A support lead is typically in charge of overseeing the performance of a technical support team, ensuring efficiency and customer satisfaction. Their responsibilities revolve around assessing the performance of the workforce, resolving complex issues, identifying customer needs and sales opportunities, and training new team members. They may also perform calls and correspondence, respond to inquiries, and resolve issues promptly. Furthermore, as a support lead, it is essential to perform clerical tasks such as preparing progress reports, managing schedules, and maintaining records of transactions.

A career as a support lead brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of an infrastructure support specialist. In fact, support leads salary is $8,181 lower than the salary of infrastructure support specialists per year.While the salary may differ for these jobs, they share a few skills needed to perform their duties. Based on resume data, both infrastructure support specialists and support leads have skills such as "troubleshoot," "technical support," and "linux. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that infrastructure support specialist responsibilities requires skills like "infrastructure support," "cloud," "windows server," and "desktop support." But a support lead might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "customer service," "cash management," "pos," and "sales floor."

In general, support leads achieve similar levels of education than infrastructure support specialists. They're 3.6% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for infrastructure support specialists in the next 3-5 years?

Babak Beheshti Ph.D.Babak Beheshti Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Dean, Professor, New York Institute of Technology

-The enormous growth of IoT and wearables. The number of connected devices is expected to be more than 26 billion in 2020. That includes things like household appliances, controllable lighting, and much more. This trend is likely to continue as it is expected to see the industry grow to 661 billion dollars by 2021.

-We will be witnessing a more widespread commercial deployment of 5G in 2020. With the implementation of the Standalone 5G devices based on the 3gpp release 16, we should be seeing the more robust mobile broadband deployment of 5G, wider availability of 5G smartphones, and a push towards an all 5G Network in select urban areas around the world.

-Significant growth in AI-based technologies, from face recognition and voice recognition to business intelligence and market predictions. As machines and deep learning algorithms get integrated into many applications, many industries will undergo substantial changes. AI systems will continue to interact with our phones; cars will interpret and analyze their surroundings and intelligently drive themselves. Online vendors will monitor our browsing habits, and Google decides what kind of search results to give us, based on who it thinks we are.

Infrastructure support specialist vs. Help desk specialist

The primary role of help desk specialists is to maintain relationships between the company and its customers. Their duties and responsibilities include responding to guests' queries, providing technical computer support, and maintaining computer systems' performance. Help desk specialists are also responsible for following up with customers to resolve issues and train computer users. There are several requirements to be qualified for this position, which include having relevant customer service experience, problem-solving and analytical skills, and the ability to prioritize vital tasks.

On average, help desk specialists earn lower salaries than infrastructure support specialists, with a $43,932 difference per year.Using the responsibilities included on infrastructure support specialists and help desk specialists resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "troubleshoot," "technical support," and "linux.rdquo;

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, infrastructure support specialists are more likely to have skills like "infrastructure support," "cloud," "desktop support," and "pc." But a help desk specialist is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "desk support," "phone calls," and "client facing."

Help desk specialists earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $60,916. Comparatively, infrastructure support specialists have the highest earning potential in the finance industry, with an average salary of $108,352.help desk specialists typically earn similar educational levels compared to infrastructure support specialists. Specifically, they're 1.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Infrastructure support specialist vs. Systems support

A systems support agent is responsible for resolving system applications and network issues, performing technical configuration, and upgrading systems infrastructure. A systems support representative conducts regular maintenance and diagnostic tests on the computer applications to ensure its optimal performance and efficiency to support business operations and avoid delays in deliverables. They also assist the technology team in designing backup systems and improve existing networks according to business requirements and specifications. They write resolution reports for reference to prevent the reoccurrence of system malfunction and inconsistencies.

Systems supports average a lower salary than the annual salary of infrastructure support specialists. The difference is about $30,966 per year.While their salaries may vary, infrastructure support specialists and systems supports both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "troubleshoot," "technical support," and "linux. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "infrastructure support," "cloud," "asset management," and "lan" are skills that commonly show up on infrastructure support specialist resumes. On the other hand, systems supports use skills like customer service, provides technical support, end user support, and technical troubleshooting on their resumes.The professional industry tends to pay the highest salaries for systems supports, with average annual pay of $72,760. Comparatively, the highest infrastructure support specialist annual salary comes from the finance industry.In general, systems supports hold similar degree levels compared to infrastructure support specialists. Systems supports are 1.1% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of infrastructure support specialist

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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