Technical Support Manager Responsibilities

• Technical support managers are responsible for a company's IT systems. Digital Vision./Photodisc/Getty Images

  Technical support managers are employed in virtually any industry that uses information technology. With such a wide variety of companies requiring their skills, it is no surprise that job prospects for technical support managers look good with an estimated 17 percent growth in demand from 2008 to 2018 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The job can be quite pressurized and varied as the smooth running of a company's computer systems is your responsibility.

Knowledge

• Technical support managers need to have an understanding of a wide range of software and hardware technologies. For example, if the company has a bespoke system the support manager should have an expert understanding of its functionality. While an organization may send their managers on relevant training courses, it is the responsibility of an individual to ensure that his knowledge is up to date and he is aware of current trends and issues relating to information technology.

Support

• While the technical support manager may not be involved in the day to day support of users, he is responsible for the efficiency of the support department and the technicians working within it. Identifying trends that could indicate problems with systems and implementing strategies to address such issues are the responsibility of the technical support manager.

Technical Projects

• As businesses grow or their business strategy shifts, so too must their IT systems change and adapt to cope with these challenges. Ensuring that technical infrastructure projects and new software roll outs are completed on time and in the most efficient manner are all responsibilities that a technical support manager could face.

Data Protection

• Ensuring that adequate security is in place to protect systems from viruses or hackers and implementing appropriate user security policies is the technical support manager's responsibility. Making sure that the back up strategy is effective is a highly important responsibility, as is developing and testing disaster recovery procedures.

Staff

• Recruiting staff, ensuring that current staff are used effectively and identifying staff training needs are important functions of the support manager. Organizing staff working patterns, holidays, appraisals and following company policy when it comes to discipline are also among the responsibilities of the technical support manager.