Inspiring service desks to be brilliant

Service Desk
Job
Descriptions

Member Report
October 2019
About the Author

The author of this report is SDI’s Industry Analyst Scarlett Bayes. Scarlett is dedicated to providing
insightful and practical research to the service desk industry through investigating trends, analysing data
and engaging with the IT service community. You can find more of Scarlett’s work on the SDI blog and
can follow her on Twitter @SDIScarlett

Contents

Introduction

Average Salaries

What Makes a Job Description?

Examples
- Service Desk Analyst
- Service Desk Team Leader
- Service Desk Manager
- Service Delivery Manager

About SDI

While every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this report, the results, estimates and opinions
stated are based on sources which, while we believe them to be reliable, are not guaranteed. No liability
can be accepted by SDI, its Directors or Employees for any loss to any person acting or failing to act as a
result of anything contained in or omitted from this report, or conclusions stated.

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Introduction

Job descriptions are a fundamental component for any service desk as they form the basis for appraisals, one-to-
ones, and permit an overall assessment of performance. Job descriptions allow management to gauge
performance against established criteria and may also be referenced for pay reviews and grading. It is vital that job
descriptions fit the current role performed by the member of staff that it is written for – whilst job descriptions
might be generic (and this is especially true in larger organisations) it is worth considering adding a degree of
personalisation and make sure that current job roles correspond to the correct pay scales and bands.
In this pack you will find job descriptions for Service Desk Manager, Service Desk Analyst, Service Desk Team Leader
and Service Delivery Manager. These job descriptions are by no means comprehensive, nor will they reflect the
individual nuances of each and every service desk or organisation. What they are designed to do is to provide the
reader with an overview of typical areas to focus on for each job description, and additionally offer an insight into
the areas that could be measured as part of each individual’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

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Average Salaries

In terms of salary and pay scales, the SDI Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk asks that there is a fair and
equitable remuneration package in place that focuses on improving staff productivity, satisfaction, development, and
retention. This can be accomplished through reference to local job adverts or specialist agencies and organisations.
Defining pay scales is typically a HR function, but the Service Desk Manager should be able to exert influence and
justify reasons proposing increases in pay. Job descriptions will be a fundamental part of this process – if the Service
Desk Manager or Team Leader can confidently argue that the job role and description has changed, this may evoke a
change in pay scale for the employee.
According to the SDI Salary Survey report, the average salary for a Service Desk Analyst in the UK is around £24,250,
for a Team Leader it is £30,690, and for a Service Desk Manager is it over £40,000.

2005 2010 2015 2018

SDM £33,875 £37,994 £41,714 £40,958
SDTL £24,863 £28,218 £31,504 £30,690
SDA £19,971 £22,837 £23,587 £24,257

After reported increases in both 2010 and 2015 reports, 2018 has seen a slight decrease in the average salaries
for UK-based Service Desk Managers and Service Desk Team Leaders. However, the average salary of service desk
analysts has increased since 2015, which may be indicative of the role of an analyst requiring more technical skills,
as suggested by recent SDI research. As technology like self-service and chatbots can handle a lot of low-level tasks,
such as ticket logging and service requests, this can allow service desk staff more time to take on more complex
tasks. Of course, there are skills requirements attached to this concept, which could explain why service desk
analysts have seen an increase in average salary.

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What Makes a Job Description?

Job descriptions will obviously differ for each organisation to suit the nuances of your service desk and business
needs, however, there are some key components which a job description should include. Particularly if you are
hiring, but also as a general rule of thumb, job descriptions should include the vision and mission of the organisation,
and how this filters into the service desk. You may also want to detail how the job role support the service desk
vision and mission and how the individual will contribute to the organisation in this sense.
In terms of what is needed for the role, you should have the core competencies, which you may want to be
compliant with SFIA or another professional framework. These competencies may not be technically focused,
for example, they could be based around Emotional Intelligence or Customer Service, but it should include the more
integral competencies required for the role. Technical competencies will depend on your organisation’s
requirements and your existing tools and technology. When hiring, you may want to refer to a skills matrix if
you have one established to allow you to highlight any specific skills gaps which a new hire could fill. If you
do not have an established skills matrix, here is an exclusive SDI member report on this topic.

As well as skills or competencies, you should consider the attributes a member of your team should have. Whether
they are an analyst or a manager, or somewhere in between, it is important they have the personal attributes
and traits that not only suits the role but the organisation and its culture. Taking the time to understand what type
of person would fit well within a team can lead to better staff satisfaction, a smoother onboarding process, and
potentially better retention.
Other things to include would be things like who the role reports to, benefits of the role, and development paths or
options.

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Examples
The following examples are guidelines of what a job description could look like for various roles with the service
desk.

Service Desk Analyst

Job Role
To provide a single point of contact for all stakeholders in relation to IT issues and incidents. To provide exceptional
standards of support to all customers and support a variety of products, services, and platforms. This will be
achieved by acting in both a proactive and reactive manner and ensuring that all performance targets are adhered
to. Resolutions should be provided in an effective and timely manner.

Objectives
• Provide an exceptional customer experience
•Fix 70% of incidents at first contact (where
possible)
• Ensure adherence to performance targets
•Ensure that incidents are dealt with according to
customer and priority needs
• Ensure all incidents are accurately logged
• Take ownership of logged incidents, tracking the
progress of all calls and follow-up with the customer to
ensure that they are satisfied with the resolution
• Follow processes to ensure that a high quality of service
is provided to internal and external customers
• Desire to build relationships within the service desk
team, the IT group and the wider organisation
• To understand the business and its objectives

Responsibilities
• Log all incoming calls to the service desk • Act as a single point of contact
•Ensure that information is accurately recorded in the • Maintain the Asset Register
service management tool • Contribute to Problem Management team as and when

•Ensure that incidents are assigned to the correct required

resolver team • Take part in testing of new releases or contribute to

• Co-ordinate with teams within IT to ensure that service
outages are correctly communicated to the business or
affected users
• Work with the problem management team or other
virtual teams as required
• Undertake desk side support visits as and when required
virtual teams in project work
• When required represent the service desk at team and
department meetings
• Plan and prioritise work to ensure that deadlines and
targets are met
• Develop and maintain knowledge and skills and keep

• Provide basic in-house training to customers up-to-date with new processes, procedures and
developments
• Contribute to the knowledge base
• Identify potential areas for improvement

Reports to
• Team Leader

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Service Desk Team Leader
Job Role
Lead and develop the service desk team to enable them to fulfil their objective of delivering exceptional customer
service and timely resolution to customers’ incidents. The Team Leader should maintain a stimulating working
environment with a strong focus on learning and development.
Objectives
•Develop the service desk team to become the very
best that they can be
•Lead by example by providing exceptional customer
service
•Build relationships within the business and build
business needs into performance targets
•Manage the day-to-day activities and performance
of the team
Responsibilities
• Ensure that staffing levels are maintained throughout
operational hours by adjusting shift patterns, holidays,
long term sickness etc
• Ensure that staffing levels are maintained throughout
operational hours by adjusting shift patterns, holidays,
long term sickness etc
•Ensure that the service desk is adequately resourced
to reflect peaks and troughs in the workload
•Plan, control and monitor the activities of the team to
ensure that their performance is optimised and targets
and standards are adhered to
• Monitor performance targets to ensure adherence
and review and measure targets
• Undertake HR activities as needed
• Produce statistics and management reports
• Represent the service desk at meetings
•Take responsibility for staff training and business
awareness
Reports to
• Service Desk Manager
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•Ensure that targets are met and performance targets
adhered to
•Complete regular one-to-ones, appraisals, career
planning and performance reviews
•Ensure that all service desk staff have the right level
and standard of training in order to perform their role
effectively
•Work to improve the overall level of customer service
and customer experience
• Communicate with and form relationships with senior
management
• Play an active role in the change management process
• Be aware of organisational changes that might impact
on the service desk
• Make the service desk aware of these changes and the
potential effects
• Assist Analysts & the first line team when call volumes
peak or when additional expertise is required
• Monitor staffing levels and play a proactive role in
building business cases if additional resource is required
• Monitor, moderate, and create process documents and
regularly check for adherence to these processes through
call and ticket monitoring
• Monitor and moderate the knowledge base
• Play a proactive role in defining targets and service
levels to ensure that they meet the needs of the
customer and the business
• Identify potential areas for improvement
Service Desk Manager

Job Role
To manage and control the service desk and enable and empower the team to achieve their operational and business
objectives whilst adhering to operational budgets. You are expected to highlight areas for potential cost savings and
for increasing profitability whilst building the profile and standing of the service desk operation.

Objectives
•Ensure that targets are met and performance targets • Align service desk strategy to that of IT and the wider
are adhered to organisation
• Lead by example • Take direct responsibility for Team Leaders: advise and
mentor them as required
• Build the stature of the service desk
• Manage the service desk operation and take
•Take responsibility for leading marketing and
responsibility for performance, finances, people
promotional activities
satisfaction, and leadership and direction

Responsibilities
• Manage and control the service desk and ensure that
all operational requirements are delivered
•Meet and exceed customer requirements and
expectations
• Take responsibility for all management activity
• Support and advise Team Leaders
•Develop resourcing models, operational plans and
budgets that cover areas such as training, recruitment,
and infrastructure
•Liaise directly with the business to ensure that the
service desk strategy is aligned to overall business
objectives
• Present reports and performance metrics to a wider
audience
• Build and maintain relationships with internal
stakeholders and stakeholder groups
• Involve and seek feedback from stakeholders with
regards to projects, policies and service levels
• Build and maintain relationships between external
departments and suppliers to deliver objectives, manage
contracts, and agree service levels and commitments
• Undertake HR activities and be cognisant of health and
safety legislation
• Identify potential areas for improvement

Reports to
• Head of IT

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Service Delivery Manager
Job Role
The Service Delivery manager is the single point of contact for all escalated operational IT issues and IT service
delivery. The Service Delivery Manager works with all internal and external service providers to ensure that the IT
services are continuously delivered, monitored and improved.

Objectives
• Establish and maintain effective long-term stakeholder • Plan, resource, track and deliver IT services
and business relationships in order to maintain optimum • Ensure that the contracted services are delivered and
customer satisfaction monitored, in particular that the service levels and
• Assist in the planning, organisation and coordination of performance indicators defined in the contracts are met
activities carried out by the operations teams in the or exceeded
provision of all IT services • Provide customer Service Level reports, and review
• To provide a focal point between the business and its these regularly with the customers and providers
managed and support service providers, promoting all of • To provide a service governance framework that is
the business’ needs and service requirements maintained and understood and agreed by all service
• To build relationships with other IT internal and providers and stakeholder
external teams to ensure the IT strategy is adopted
when and where relevant

Responsibilities
•Ensure good practice and compliance with internal • Identify and implement service improvements with
procedures, routines and protocol including security, internal and external providers
safety and regulatory is maintained at all times • Lead initiatives to improve services.
•Liaison with service providers to ensure the on-going • Maintain a central Continuous Improvement Programme
support
• Understand and interpret the business needs of
•Assist with the provision of documentation in the stakeholders
support of IT service contracts
• Undertake other related tasks as requested by the IT
•Work with Implementation teams in the Director
implementation and ongoing support for IT services
contracts • Identify potential areas for improvement
•Ensure that new accounts and services are fully
documented, and are accepted by Operations,
ensuring that any subsequent changes or updates are
duly documented and handed over to operational
teams

Reports to
• IT Director

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About SDI

The SDI company mission is to inspire service desks to be brilliant. To achieve this mission SDI has
developed a set of goals by which it aims to inspire service desks to:

Embrace: To raise the quality of service delivery by valuing best practice

Engage: To create an inspiring and engaging customer experience

Invest: To empower their teams to be inspired, take action and be better

Shine: To demonstrate and deliver exceptional business value

SDI sets the globally recognised best practice service desk standards that provide clear and measurable
benchmarks for service desk operations and professionals. The standards are designed to encourage
service desks to embrace and value best practice in order to raise the quality of service delivery.

For more information about SDI please visit

www.servicedeskinstitute.com

Contact

Service Desk Institute

21 High Street
Green Street Green
Orpington
Kent, BR6 6BG

+44 (0)1689 889100

hello@sdi-e.com
@sdi_institute
servicedeskinstitute.com

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