Computers have become the biggest necessity in the modern business environment. IT and computers are both incomplete without each other or to say it in simple words one is an inseparable part of the other. IT or Information Technology boomed in the 21st century as something that became a total necessity for efficiently running any business. It is a discipline that is very broad and keeps growing every day. New skills and new job roles are created because of this continuous growth and expansion in the area of, the Internet, and Information & technology. These new job roles quickly become a “must” to be availed by business organizations for them to handle their business’ technology infrastructure effectively. A dedicated IT Infrastructure Manager is one such role that is becoming more in demand lately. Further in this article, we will touch on the role of the IT manager, how important he is for his client company, and what his responsibilities are for your business firm.
What is an IT Manager
An IT Manager looks after his client business’s IT Infrastructure needs. First of all, before we elaborate further on the role, let us shed some light on exactly what an “IT Infrastructure” is in brief words. Well, it is combinedly made up of several Computer System components namely the Operating system, Network, Memory Storage, and Software & Hardware. Also, everything else that’s associated with these primary IT components, such as online platforms and applications, etc. Now to define what an IT manager is, in simple words, we can say he is the person assigned to look after all those tasks of an organization that are linked to IT and Computers. He solves problems that are encountered by his client’s IT department. An IT Manager can alternatively also be referred to as IT Director for the organization he is working for.
Role of the IT Manager
Many Managed Service Providers assign a dedicated IT Infrastructure Manager to their clients. The IT Manager can play a crucial role in your company’s development. His tasks include making IT strategies for your business to support your infrastructure needs. The IT manager is well-versed with the latest developments in technology and applies this knowledge to the benefit of your company. Besides building the IT roadmap, he also gives direction in strategic planning for how your IT resources can contribute in the best manner to achieve business goals, other than overseeing the departmental goals. A dedicated IT manager would train your IT staff as well, which will greatly strengthen your organization’s IT acumen and boost your profile. Other tasks of an IT manager include Project planning to keep your business projects on the right track, and budget advice for you to decide on what would be the right IT investment. He would generally report to the CIO or Vice President of the company. Theadvantages of having a dedicated IT manager for your tech infrastructure are enormous to help boost your business to the next level.
In terms of determining the range of his responsibilities, a lot also depends on how big is the size of the client company, since a dedicated IT Manager may not at all be required for some companies and the Managed Service Provider or MSP would cover those operations by itself. Whereas in much larger companies his role can switch from being the chief strategist for core IT functions, to being in a supporting role for the IT team of the organization. So really it depends on the level and scope of operations of your company.
Some of the Responsibilities of an IT Manager are as follows (but not limited to these)
- Making Long term strategies for your business.
- To make sure that your Hardware and Software needs are adequate as needed.
- Testing the performance of the Servers.
- Checking if the IT security solutions are up to date.
- Reviewing the network and operating system performance.
- Training and Leading the IT staff/ team of the company.
- Taking care of the implementation of IT compliance policies in the best manner possible.
The above is a set of responsibilities common for an IT manager but these can vary for reasons already mentioned before in the article.
Some particular skills that an ideal IT Manager would possess are
- Excellent communication skills (verbal and written) since he has to lead the IT department.
- Critical thinking skills to deal with and come up with a solution for complicated problems.
- Sound mental comprehension skills to understand the issues on all levels.
- Quick decision-making ability.
- Aptitude for Multitasking to look after multiple projects concurrently.
- Teamwork ethics among others.
Concluding Remarks
An assigned IT manager is usually well experienced and an expert in the field of technology and equipped with the skills like coding, programming, software development, and other related areas of computer science. He can be a valuable asset to your company but there are still certain factors that you would need to consider before opting for the services of a dedicated IT manager, such as your budget, scope & scale of your business, and most importantly the tasks that are linked to your IT operations because many business sectors have limited processes related to IT and they can do without a dedicated expert, and an MSP’s regular team can handle their operations rather efficiently.
Get in touch with Synergy IT to determine what’s best for your business’s IT infrastructure
Contact Synergy IT Solutions today to discuss whether or not your company requires an assigned dedicated IT Manager. Besides, depending on your requirement we also provide services of a dedicated vCIO officer for your business, in our MSP services portfolio. Call us now to find out the best solutions for your requirements. We are available at your service 24×7, and we look forward to helping you with the three decades of experience that he have in the IT and Software industry.