Live chat operator to ICT help desk agent
A live chat operator already meets 42% of what the ICT help desk agent role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
60.7/ 100
1 How much of what an ICT help desk agent is expected to do is already part of a live chat operator’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the ICT help desk agent role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An ICT help desk agent role treats 8 of its required skills as things a live chat operator already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- characteristics of products
- characteristics of services
- create solutions to problems
- guarantee customer satisfaction
- keep task records
- prioritise requests
What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An ICT help desk agent role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a live chat operator background worth leading with.
- already held perform escalation procedure communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held prioritise requests management skills
- already held handle helpdesk problems communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held answer incoming calls assisting and caring
- already held knowledge base information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held use customer relationship management software working with computers
All 14 carried skills, including the 8 the ICT help desk agent role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn use ICT hardware required
- still to learn provide ICT support required
- still to learn solve ICT system problems required
- still to learn use ICT ticketing system required
- optional, not held implement a virtual private network optional
- optional, not held implement anti-virus software optional
- optional, not held use e-services optional
- still to learn identify customer's needs required
- still to learn support ICT system users required
- still to learn communicate with customers required
- optional, not held educate on data confidentiality optional
- still to learn ICT system user requirements required
- optional, not held ICT help platforms optional
- still to learn assist customers required
- still to learn product comprehension required
- still to learn keep up to date on product knowledge required
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an ICT help desk agent role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 ICT system user requirements study this
- 02 assist customers practise this
- 03 identify customer's needs practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held characteristics of products knowledge
- already held characteristics of services knowledge
- already held create solutions to problems skill
- already held guarantee customer satisfaction skill
- already held keep task records skill
- already held prioritise requests skill
- already held provide customer follow-up services skill
- already held use customer relationship management software skill
- already held answer incoming calls skill
- already held handle helpdesk problems skill
- already held information confidentiality knowledge
- already held knowledge base knowledge
- already held perform data analysis skill
- already held perform escalation procedure skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn manage schedule of tasks required
- optional, not held ICT infrastructure optional
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ICT help platforms optional
- optional, not held ICT infrastructure optional
- optional, not held implement a virtual private network optional
- optional, not held implement anti-virus software optional
- optional, not held educate on data confidentiality optional
- optional, not held use e-services optional
21 held skills the ICT help desk agent role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt to changing situations skill
- not needed by the target role call-centre technologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role carry out active selling skill
- not needed by the target role communication principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role discern written communication skill
- not needed by the target role e-commerce systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role e-procurement knowledge
- not needed by the target role exercise patience skill
- not needed by the target role handle tasks independently skill
- not needed by the target role have computer literacy skill
- not needed by the target role perform multiple tasks at the same time skill
- not needed by the target role persuade clients with alternatives skill
- not needed by the target role process data skill
- not needed by the target role respond to inquiries in written form skill
- not needed by the target role sales argumentation knowledge
- not needed by the target role type at speed skill
- not needed by the target role use communication devices skill
- not needed by the target role use communication techniques skill
- not needed by the target role use internet chat skill
- not needed by the target role utilise cross-selling skill
- not needed by the target role work with e-services available to citizens skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn ICT system user requirements required
- still to learn product comprehension required
- optional, not held ICT help platforms optional
- optional, not held ICT infrastructure optional
Common questions about this move
Can a live chat operator become an ICT help desk agent?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A live chat operator already covers 42% of what an ICT help desk agent is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 8 of which the ICT help desk agent role treats as required.
What skills does a live chat operator need to become an ICT help desk agent?
12 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with computers. The single most important is ICT system user requirements.
How hard is the move from live chat operator to ICT help desk agent?
Its learning distance is 60.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.