Artificial Intelligence: The Skillsets IT Service Desk Agents and Managers Need in the Age of AI

By Stephen Mann

When thinking about the skillsets that IT service desk agents and managers need in the context of introducing artificial intelligence (AI)-based capabilities, there’s likely a focus on the new skills these roles require. However, it’s important to appreciate that the necessary skills for the IT service desk agent and IT service desk manager roles are extended by the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities rather than the new skills replacing old ones.

This blog looks at the spectrum of required skills, starting with what has traditionally been needed before considering how the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities affects them.

Traditional IT service desk agent skills

The skills required of people working in IT service desk agent roles have always been varied. This reflects the balance the role has between the soft skills of “customer” engagement and the hard skills related to the involved technology. While the hard skills might vary across organizations and resolution groups, the soft skills are usually more consistent.

In terms of the required technical skills, there’s likely a need for a basic knowledge of network configurations, servers, and IT infrastructure components. Plus, troubleshooting capabilities, i.e. the ability to diagnose and resolve technology-related issues.

However, the required soft skills are increasingly important as IT service desks focus more on end-user experiences. These soft skills include:

Verbal and written communication skills
Empathy, i.e. understanding and relating to the end-user’s perspective
Active listening skills
Patience
A commitment to providing excellent customer service
Analytical thinking, with the ability to analyze problems and create effective solutions
Effective time management
Security awareness
The ability to work well within a team
The ability to manage multiple support tickets concurrently.

It’s important to remember that these skills are still required with the addition of AI-enabled capabilities.

Traditional IT service desk manager skills

As the job title implies, IT service desk managers are managers (and ideally leaders). So, the required skills for the role reflect this.

A certain degree of technical competence is needed, likely related to previous technical support expertise and an understanding of common technical issues, troubleshooting methodologies, and IT infrastructure components. Familiarity with ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) service management best practices might also be a prerequisite for the IT service desk manager role.

Much of what’s needed for the IT service desk manager role is managerial, though, including:

The ability to lead, manage, and motivate a team
Resource management, including staff and budgets
Performance monitoring (of people and services)
Verbal and written communication skills
A strong focus on customer satisfaction
Delegation
Rapport building
Conflict resolution
Analytical and problem-solving abilities
The ability to make sound decisions
Time management.

Again, these skills are still required with the addition of AI-enabled capabilities.

How the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities affects IT service desk agent skills

For the IT service desk agent role, the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities requires new or extended skills, including:

Proficiency in using AI-powered tools and platforms
AI troubleshooting skills to resolve issues with AI-enabled capabilities
Understanding how to interpret AI-generated data to identify issues and opportunities
Validating and managing AI and its actions (including suggestions) to ensure accuracy and appropriateness
The ability to manage and oversee automated processes
Higher-level problem-solving skills, because the AI-enabled capabilities are handling the more routine tasks
Enhanced communication skills, again because the AI-enabled capabilities are handling the simpler queries and aiding in communications
Understanding the ethical implications of AI use
Effectively managing the issues that AI cannot resolve.

The last is a great example of how IT service desk agents must work differently. While many people will talk about the uplift of IT service desk agents to higher-value-add work because of AI handling repetitive tasks (which might require new problem-solving skills and deeper technological knowledge), there’s also the need to seamlessly “catch” AI IT support engagements that aren’t working for the end-user. Realizing that the end-user experience will be poor if they need to “retread” what they’ve already covered with the virtual agent.

How the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities affects IT service desk manager skills

For the IT service desk manager role, the introduction of AI-enabled capabilities also requires new or extended skills (some of which are similar), including:

An understanding of AI technologies and their application to IT support
Proficiency in managing organizational change, as AI tools are integrated into the IT service desk status quo
Data analysis skills, including data-driven improvement
Cybersecurity awareness, to protect against new threats posed by AI-enabled capabilities
Critical thinking and decision-making related to AI-originating recommendations
Ensuring that introducing AI does not compromise service quality (and enhances the overall end-user experience)
Ensuring AI is used ethically and responsibly
Applying AI-enabled capabilities to people management.

In terms of the latter, introducing AI-enabled capabilities will affect individual and team performance targets because the simpler and routine tickets are removed from the plates of IT service desk agents. As a result, IT service desk agents will handle more complicated tickets in their “ticket mix,” which will take longer. Hence, their ticket volumes will drop, and their average handling time will increase. The first-contact resolution (FCR) level will also drop thanks to the AI-enabled capabilities removing the more straightforward tickets from the IT service desk.

However, this issue isn’t the application of AI to people management. There are many opportunities for AI to help with people management, but IT service desk managers must be wary of the risks involved (especially with performance management):

Resume screening and candidate matching
Creating and executing tailored onboarding plans
Performance data analysis and improvement recommendations
Personalized career development, including delivery
Skills gap analysis
Attrition prediction
Workforce planning.

IT service desk managers need to understand these opportunities and apply them appropriately and with sufficient oversight to ensure the AI-enabled capabilities are improving rather than degrading their people management capabilities.

Here are some more resources we think you might be interested in:

Blog Post: A New Era of Service Desk Operations

Blog Post: AI Driven ITSM: Pioneering Workload Management for the Future

Blog Post: Microsoft Copilot: The AI and Automation Opportunity for ITSM

Blog Post: AI’s Potential Role in IT Service Management

Whitepaper: Cloud Lighthouse Crafting Your Future-Ready Enterprise AI Strategy

Stephen Mann is Principal Analyst and Content Director at the ITSM-focused industry analyst firm ITSM.tools. Also an independent IT and IT service management marketing content creator, and a frequent blogger, writer, and presenter on the challenges and opportunities for IT service management professionals.