Praveen

Interview Questions & Answers for IT Service Delivery / NOC Lead

Role

Section 1: General & Experience-based

Q1. Can you walk me through your IT Service Delivery experience and
highlight your key achievements?
A1.
“I have over 14 years of experience in IT Service Delivery, Operations, and
Project Execution. My key achievements include implementing ITIL-based
processes that improved SLA compliance by 20%, leading 24/7 NOC teams
across global clients, and successfully managing vendor partnerships. At
Externetworks, I introduced Power BI dashboards that reduced reporting time
by 50% and gave leadership real-time SLA visibility.”

Q2. What ITSM tools have you used, and how did you leverage them for
improving service delivery?
A2.
“I’ve worked with ServiceNow, Symphony AI, and Cherwell. For example, at
Externetworks, I automated escalation rules in ServiceNow for high-priority
tickets. This reduced MTTR by 30%. I also created custom dashboards to
track incident trends, which helped us implement preventive measures.”

Q3. You’ve led both Service Desk and NOC teams. How do you balance
operations between proactive monitoring and reactive support?
A3.
“I keep proactive monitoring as the first line of defense. For instance, NOC
engineers monitor real-time alerts, and any deviation triggers incident
creation. In parallel, the Service Desk handles end-user calls and requests. I
set up a clear escalation matrix where proactive alerts get escalated to L2
before they become user-impacting issues.”

Section 2: ITIL / Process Management

Q4. Can you explain Incident, Problem, and Change Management with an
example from your work?
A4.
  Incident: A server crash impacting 200 users – restored service
quickly using failover.

 Problem: RCA showed the crash was due to faulty firmware.

 Change: Scheduled firmware upgrade across servers in a planned

maintenance window.
This structured approach avoided future downtime and improved client
confidence.

Q5. How do you ensure SLA compliance with clients across different time
zones?
A5.
“I align shifts across geographies and set up follow-the-sun support. I use
dashboards showing SLA breach risks, and we conduct daily huddles with the
team to review near-breach tickets. At Genpact, this improved SLA
compliance from 85% to 95% within six months.”

Q6. How do you perform RCA (Root Cause Analysis) and present it to
stakeholders?
A6.
“I use a structured 5-Why method. For example, a recurring VPN outage:

 Why? Network device failed.

 Why? Firmware bug.

 Why? No proactive patching schedule.

Solution → Introduced patching calendar & redundancy.
I present RCA with diagrams, impact analysis, downtime cost, and
preventive actions.”

Section 3: Real-Life Scenarios

Q7. Scenario: A critical application goes down at 2 AM, and your L1 team
cannot fix it. What’s your next step?
A7.
“I ensure the incident is logged as Priority 1, notify stakeholders
immediately, and engage L2/L3 on-call engineers. I monitor updates in the
war room, assign clear roles, and escalate to vendors if needed. Meanwhile, I
provide hourly updates to leadership. Once resolved, I initiate RCA and
create preventive measures.”
Q8. Scenario: A client complains about repeated password reset issues
despite your team resolving them. How would you handle this?
A8.
“First, I’d analyze ticket history to check if the issue is systemic (e.g., policy
misconfiguration, AD sync delay). At American Airlines, I faced this. We
identified the root cause as a delay in AD replication between regions. I
escalated to infra engineers, and we introduced faster sync intervals.
Communication to users improved satisfaction by 40%.”

Q9. Scenario: A vendor delay causes downtime. How would you handle
escalation?
A9.
“I escalate as per the vendor SLA contract. For example, when a WAN
provider delayed router replacement, I escalated to their Service Delivery
Manager and included business impact (number of users, lost revenue/hour).
This drove faster replacement. Meanwhile, we implemented a backup 4G
failover to minimize downtime.”

Q10. Scenario: Your audit shows recurring SLA breaches by your Service
Desk. What actions do you take?
A10.
“I’d first identify the gap – is it training, staffing, or process? In one case,
breaches were due to incomplete ticket documentation. I introduced
knowledge base articles and retrained staff. I also set up ticket quality audits.
Within 3 months, SLA breaches reduced by 25%.”

Section 4: Team & Leadership

Q11. How do you motivate a Service Desk/NOC team working in rotational

shifts?
A11.
“I use a mix of recognition and growth opportunities. For example, I started a
‘Performer of the Month’ program and allowed top performers to shadow L2
engineers. This not only motivated them but also created a pipeline for
internal promotions.”

Q12. How do you handle conflicts within your team?

A12.
“I use one-on-one discussions to understand both perspectives. At 4Sight,
two agents clashed over shift allocations. I clarified roles, adjusted the roster
fairly, and established a rotation policy. After that, conflict reduced, and team
collaboration improved.”

Q13. How do you train new hires to get productive quickly?

A13.
“I follow a 3-step model:

1. Orientation: Tool & process training.

2. Shadowing: Pair them with seniors.

3. Assessment: Evaluate readiness via mock tickets.

This reduced onboarding time by 40% at Externetworks.”

Section 5: Technical Knowledge

Q14. How do you monitor VMware infrastructure and ensure high

availability?
A14.
“I use vSphere Client for monitoring clusters, HA, and DRS. At Infinite, I
configured VMware HA with failover capacity reserved. When one ESXi host
failed, VMs auto-migrated with minimal downtime.”

Q15. What’s your approach to Windows Server patching in a live

environment?
A15.
“I use a staggered approach. For example, patch non-production servers
first, monitor stability, then roll out in production during maintenance
windows. I always ensure rollback plans and backups are ready.”

Q16. How do you integrate monitoring tools with ServiceNow or Symphony

AI?
A16.
“At Externetworks, we integrated NOC alerts with ServiceNow so tickets were
auto-created. I worked with API connectors that mapped alert severity to
ticket priority. This reduced manual ticket creation errors and improved
MTTR.”

Q17. What metrics do you track in Service Desk/NOC dashboards?

A17.
  SLA Compliance %

 MTTR (Mean Time to Resolve)

 First Call Resolution %

 Ticket Backlog

 User Satisfaction (CSAT)

 Agent Productivity (tickets/hour)

I also analyze trend data for recurring issues.

Section 6: Strategic & Managerial

Q18. How do you align IT service delivery with business objectives?

A18.
“I map IT KPIs to business KPIs. For example, at Genpact, IT downtime
affected ad delivery for Facebook campaigns. I ensured 99.9% uptime by
proactive monitoring and vendor SLAs. This directly aligned IT delivery to
client revenue goals.”

Q19. How do you ensure compliance with IT audits (ISO 20000, ITIL)?
A19.
“I prepare documentation, SOPs, and evidence in advance. For example, for
ISO 20000, I collected ticket logs, RCA reports, and change records. I also
conducted internal pre-audits. This ensured smooth certification without
major NCs (non-conformities).”

Q20. Have you handled client escalations? How did you restore confidence?
A20.
“Yes. At Externetworks, a client escalated due to recurring outages. I
conducted a joint review call, presented RCA, shared corrective actions (like
hardware upgrade & DR strategy), and gave weekly progress reports.
Transparency restored trust, and the client renewed the contract.”

Section 7: Behavioral & Situational

Q21. How do you handle high-pressure situations with multiple P1 incidents?

A21.
“I prioritize based on business impact. Assign incident managers per P1,
keep stakeholders updated, and ensure team distribution. At one point, two
data centers had outages—one affecting 1,000 users, the other only 100. I
prioritized the larger impact while ensuring minimum downtime on the
smaller one.”

Q22. What’s your leadership style?

A22.
“Participative and data-driven. I set clear KPIs but also involve my team in
problem-solving. For example, when SLA compliance dipped, I invited the
team to brainstorm solutions. Their suggestions (like better knowledge base
indexing) worked, and they felt ownership.”

Q23. Tell me about a failed project and how you handled it.
A23.
“At Telligent, a software rollout failed due to insufficient UAT. I acknowledged
the gap, redefined the UAT scope, and added business users in testing. The
re-rollout succeeded. I also updated our project checklist to avoid this in
future.”

Q24. How do you manage communication with non-technical stakeholders?

A24.
“I avoid jargon and explain business impact. Instead of saying ‘WAN latency
issue’, I’d say ‘Users in London are experiencing slow access due to a
network link issue. ETA for fix is 2 hours.’ This keeps stakeholders informed in
simple terms.”

Q25. Why should we hire you for this role?

A25.
“With 14+ years in IT Service Delivery, strong ITIL/Prince2 knowledge, and
proven ability to manage cross-functional teams and clients, I bring both
technical expertise and leadership. My track record in improving SLA
compliance, driving continuous improvement, and handling client escalations
makes me confident I can add value to your IT operations.”

👉 Savan, would you like me to also prepare this in a Q&A interview PDF
format with sections (General, Technical, Situational, Behavioral) so
Sakthivel can practice like a real interview script?
Shakthivel
🔹 1) Tough Scenario-Based Managerial Interview Questions

1. A critical production server goes down during peak business

hours. Your team cannot find the root cause for 1 hour. How will you
manage the situation?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Immediately declare it a Major Incident

 Escalate to vendors (if needed)

 Provide regular updates to stakeholders every 15–30 mins

 Assign resources to restore service (rollback, failover, DR site)

 Document the incident and conduct a post-incident RCA later.

2. Your Service Desk is constantly missing SLAs due to high ticket

volume. What corrective actions will you take?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Analyze ticket types (repeat issues vs new)

 Introduce self-service portals & knowledge base

 Automate repetitive tasks (password resets, account unlocks)

 Optimize staff scheduling (shift balancing, peak coverage)

 Conduct training for FCR (First Call Resolution)

3. You have a talented but underperforming engineer on your team.

How will you handle this?

✅ Expected Answer:
  Conduct 1:1 discussion to identify reasons (skill gap, motivation,
workload)

 Provide mentoring & training

 Set clear KPIs with timeline

 Recognize small improvements

 If still no improvement → performance improvement plan

4. One of your clients complains about poor service delivery and

threatens to escalate to senior management. What do you do?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Acknowledge the complaint immediately

 Schedule a call with the client → listen actively

 Share factual SLA/performance data

 Provide a corrective action plan with timelines

 Follow up regularly until trust is restored

5. A team member repeatedly ignores process (e.g., closing tickets

without RCA). How do you fix this?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Discuss the issue privately → understand why

 Re-train on process importance

 Audit his/her work regularly for 30–60 days

 If repeated → formal HR involvement

6. Budget cuts require you to reduce IT operating costs by 20%

without impacting service quality. What steps will you take?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Identify redundant licenses/tools

 Negotiate with vendors for better contracts

 Automate repetitive tasks to reduce manpower dependency

  Shift non-critical services to cloud/on-demand models

 Cross-train staff to increase flexibility

7. During an audit, several gaps are identified in Service Desk

compliance. How will you address this?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Review audit findings carefully

 Conduct internal RCA

 Update missing documentation/policies

 Re-train staff on compliance requirements

 Set up periodic self-audits to avoid recurrence

8. A key IT project (e.g., migration) is running behind schedule. How

will you get it back on track?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Reassess project plan → identify blockers

 Re-prioritize critical tasks

 Allocate additional resources if needed

 Escalate vendor dependencies

 Communicate realistic timelines to stakeholders

9. Your NOC team missed a critical alert at night, leading to 3 hours

downtime. What corrective measures will you implement?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Check if alerting tool thresholds were configured properly

 Introduce multi-channel escalation (SMS/email/call)

 Train night-shift staff better

 Implement backup on-call engineer escalation

 Conduct weekly alert review sessions

10. Your Service Desk is facing high attrition. How do you retain
talent?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Recognize and reward good performance

 Provide career growth paths (L1 → L2 → L3)

 Ensure balanced workloads & flexible shifts

 Conduct regular team engagement activities

 Offer skill development certifications

11. Two vendors are blaming each other for a prolonged outage.
How do you resolve it?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Facilitate a joint troubleshooting bridge

 Collect logs and evidence to isolate the issue

 Keep stakeholders updated

 Document outcome and hold vendors accountable

 Update vendor SLA contracts if necessary

12. You’re asked to improve customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores by

15% in 6 months. What’s your plan?

✅ Expected Answer:

 Implement proactive communication (ticket updates)

 Reduce resolution time by automation & training

 Conduct CSAT surveys and analyze feedback

 Recognize agents who deliver excellent service

 Address top 3 recurring complaints

🔹 2) Technical Interview Questions (Manager-Level with Technical

Depth)

1. Explain the difference between Incident, Problem, and Change

Management.
  Incident = unplanned interruption (fix ASAP)

 Problem = root cause of one/multiple incidents

 Change = planned modification to infra/app

2. How do you perform Root Cause Analysis (RCA)?

 Gather logs/data → Identify pattern → Use 5 Whys / Fishbone → Validate

with stakeholders → Document corrective/preventive action

3. What ITSM tools have you worked on? Which one do you prefer
and why?

 ServiceNow, Symphony AI, Cherwell

 Prefer ServiceNow → scalable, good automation, better reporting

4. How do you monitor and manage VMware ESXi clusters?

 Use vSphere client for cluster health, HA, DRS

 Configure alarms for CPU, memory, storage

 Conduct patch updates & snapshots

 Test HA failover regularly

5. What is the role of Power BI in IT Service Delivery?

 Real-time dashboards → SLA trends, backlog, MTTR, CSAT

 Helps in data-driven decision-making

 Transparency for leadership & clients

6. How do you secure endpoints in an enterprise IT environment?

 Patch management

 Endpoint AV (Symantec, Defender)

 Device encryption (BitLocker)

 Restricted admin rights

 Regular vulnerability scans

7. Explain VMware HA vs VMware DRS.

 HA = automatically restarts VMs on another host if failure occurs

 DRS = balances workload across hosts dynamically

8. How would you set up IT Asset Management in a new company?

 Maintain CMDB (Configuration Management Database)

 Track lifecycle: Procurement → Assignment → Usage → Decommission

 Ensure license compliance

 Perform quarterly audits

9. What steps will you take if an ITSM tool shows backlog of 500+
open tickets?

 Categorize tickets (critical vs minor)

 Assign dedicated team to clear old tickets

 Automate repetitive/duplicate issues

 Publish a communication to end-users with realistic timelines

10. How do you manage patching in a 24/7 production environment?

 Schedule during maintenance windows

 Perform testing on non-prod first

 Rollout in batches

 Have rollback plan ready

 Communicate downtime to business

11. How do you prepare your IT team for ISO 20000 or ITIL audits?

 Ensure documentation of all processes

 Train staff on compliance

 Keep incident/change/problem logs updated

  Run mock audits internally

12. In a hybrid environment (cloud + on-prem), what’s the role of

NOC?

 Monitor both on-prem infra + cloud services

 Use unified monitoring dashboards (Splunk, SolarWinds, Zabbix)

 Configure API integrations for cloud alerts

 Ensure consistent SLA reporting

 Tell me about your overall IT Service Delivery experience.

 Answer:
I have 14+ years of experience in IT operations, service delivery management, and
technical support. My expertise lies in managing ITIL-aligned processes such as Incident,
Problem, Change, and Asset management. I have successfully led Service Desk and NOC
teams, worked with global clients, handled ITSM platforms like ServiceNow and
Symphony, and driven projects such as system migrations, onboarding, and SLA
performance improvements.


 2. How do you ensure SLA compliance in Service Desk operations?

 Answer:
I define SLAs and KPIs upfront, monitor tickets through dashboards (like Power
BI/ServiceNow reports), and hold daily/weekly reviews. I also ensure agents use
knowledge bases and follow escalation paths. For missed SLAs, I conduct RCA,
document learnings, and implement corrective actions.


 3. How do you handle high ticket volume without compromising quality?

 Answer:
I prioritize based on severity and business impact, implement categorization, and
optimize resource allocation through shift planning. I’ve also reduced repeat incidents by
creating knowledge bases and automated workflows, which lowered backlog and
improved resolution times.


 4. Real-life problem:
 Your Service Desk is getting 200+ password reset tickets daily from one client. What will
you do?
Answer:
I would first analyze root cause—whether it’s system misconfiguration, policy issue, or
user awareness gap. In my role with American Airlines, we reduced such tickets by
improving password reset automation, providing user self-service tools, and conducting
refresher training. This cut down ticket volume by 40%.

 5. How do you ensure smooth Incident Management?
 Answer:
By maintaining a clear process: log → categorize → prioritize → assign → resolve →
close. I ensure agents follow escalation paths and use ITSM tools for transparency. I also
review major incidents with RCA and publish lessons learned to prevent recurrence.


 6. Can you explain your approach to Problem Management?

 Answer:
I use trend analysis to identify recurring issues, document problems in ITSM, and
perform RCA. For example, I managed recurring VPN outages by working with vendors
to upgrade firmware and implementing monitoring alerts, which reduced downtime.


 7. Describe your Change Management experience.

 Answer:
I follow CAB (Change Advisory Board) approvals, risk assessments, and rollback plans.
At Genpact, I oversaw application upgrades and ensured all changes were scheduled,
documented, and communicated to stakeholders to minimize disruption.


 8. Real-life problem:
 A change caused a major outage during production hours. How would you handle it?
Answer:
Immediately roll back if possible, inform stakeholders, and activate incident
management. Then perform post-mortem RCA, document gaps, and update change
policy to avoid similar risks. Transparency and quick communication are key.


 9. How do you measure Service Desk team performance?

 Answer:
I track KPIs like FCR (First Call Resolution), MTTR (Mean Time to Resolve), SLA
compliance %, CSAT (Customer Satisfaction), backlog trends, and ticket aging. I use
Power BI dashboards for visibility and conduct regular reviews with the team.


 10. Tell me about a time you had to manage vendor escalation.

 Answer:
In Externetworks, a vendor delay caused prolonged downtime. I escalated to senior
vendor contacts, aligned with our stakeholders, and arranged joint calls. I also
documented vendor performance metrics, which helped renegotiate SLAs and improve
collaboration.


 11. How do you onboard and train new Service Desk/NOC staff?
 Answer:
I provide structured onboarding covering tools, processes, SLAs, and customer etiquette.
At Externetworks, I built a knowledge base system to help new hires adapt faster, which
reduced onboarding time by 30%.


 12. How do you manage remote or cross-functional teams?

 Answer:
I use clear communication, set measurable goals, and conduct regular virtual stand-ups. I
encourage collaboration using ITSM dashboards and knowledge-sharing sessions. I’ve
managed global teams across different time zones effectively using this approach.


 13. Real-life problem:

 Your NOC team is missing critical alerts at night, causing downtime. What steps would
you take?
Answer:
I would review monitoring tools and alert thresholds, ensure redundancy in notification
(SMS/email/escalation), conduct refresher training, and introduce performance
incentives. At Telligent, I implemented proactive monitoring which reduced missed alerts
by 60%.


 14. Explain your experience with ITIL processes.

 Answer:
I am ITIL V3 certified and have implemented Incident, Problem, Change, and Asset
Management in multiple organizations. For example, at Artech, I aligned ITSM with
ITIL standards, which improved SLA compliance above 90%.


 15. How do you manage IT Asset lifecycle?

 Answer:
I maintain inventory accuracy, track asset assignments, ensure license compliance, and
oversee decommissioning. At Genpact, I managed ~3,800 assets (laptops, desktops, IP
phones, printers, network devices) and ensured accurate asset records.


 16. How do you handle user dissatisfaction or complaints?

 Answer:
I listen, empathize, and assure immediate resolution. I then investigate the root cause and
share corrective actions with the user. Transparency and follow-up are key. This builds
user trust and improves CSAT.


 17. Real-life problem:

 A VIP user’s laptop crashes just before a board meeting. How would you handle it?
Answer:
I would immediately provide a standby/replacement laptop, ensure access to required
apps, and assign a technician on-site. After the meeting, I’d recover data and investigate
the root cause. Prioritizing business impact is critical here.


 18. Tell me about a successful IT project you managed.

 Answer:
At Artech, I led the rollout of an ITSM tool with escalation matrix. It reduced ticket
resolution time by 25% and improved SLA compliance above 90%. The project was
delivered on time and within budget.


 19. How do you ensure audit readiness?

 Answer:
I maintain proper documentation of processes, logs, and policies. At Externetworks, I
partnered with audit teams, provided system records, and conducted internal compliance
checks to ensure ISO 20000 readiness.


 20. What role does reporting play in your job?

 Answer:
Reporting is critical for visibility and improvement. I prepare weekly/monthly
dashboards covering SLA trends, ticket backlog, CSAT, and performance insights. These
reports guide leadership in decision-making.


 21. How do you deal with underperforming team members?

 Answer:
I conduct one-on-one coaching, identify skill gaps, and provide training. If issues persist,
I set measurable performance goals and timelines. Recognition and constructive feedback
go hand-in-hand.


 22. How do you manage customer expectations in IT support?

 Answer:
I set realistic SLAs, provide timely updates, and ensure transparent communication. Even
if resolution takes time, I focus on proactive updates to maintain trust.


 23. What is your experience with VMware and server administration?

 Answer:
I have hands-on experience with VMware ESXi, vSphere, clusters, DRS, and HA. I’ve
managed server upgrades and performance monitoring, ensuring high availability and
minimal downtime.


 24. Real-life problem:

 A business-critical server is down. Your team escalates it to you. What’s your action
plan?
Answer:
I’d initiate incident response immediately, engage vendor support if needed, provide real-
time updates to stakeholders, and ensure business continuity via failover/DR. After
restoration, I’d conduct RCA and share lessons learned.