Who do you call for IT assistance
-
I'm not looking for a direct answer to the topic title.
I just had my first review with my new boss.
She asked me a question that seemed odd, but after more information was less odd due to her position.
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
Her example was SUNA - Society of Urologic Nurses and Associates. They certify nurses and have personal you can contact to get help with your questions.
-
Of course there are certifications for IT.
But there isn't one industry wide certification house like there is for nursing.
Nursing is a very specific thing - sure there are specialty nursing, but I'm guessing in general the primary things are all the same.
That's not the case with IT. At least not in my current thinking.
Thoughts?
-
MangoCert?
-
When talking about this question in my review - she said that she knew I reached out to you lot - my IT peers to get help with problems I didn't have the answers to, but she was more interested to know if there was an entity who was the authority on things IT that could answer these questions - and if so, it might be worth paying their membership fees to gain access to it. That's what nurses apparently do with SUNA
-
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
she was more interested to know if there was an entity who was the authority on things IT
The answer is that there is not any such entity. End of discussion.
-
@dashrender Ive answered similar question from a previous manager (wo had no I-T background) by stating the vendor of the software/hardware we are having an issue with is the ultimate "authority", and proceeded to explain hardware and software support contracts and the importance of said contracts. In addition I listed other paid resources available (Experts Exchange subscription at the time).
-
@jaredbusch said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
she was more interested to know if there was an entity who was the authority on things IT
The answer is that there is not any such entity. End of discussion.
Yeah - that's what I told her. But I figured I'd come here for a discussion about it just the same.
-
@jt1001001 said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender Ive answered similar question from a previous manager (wo had no I-T background) by stating the vendor of the software/hardware we are having an issue with is the ultimate "authority", and proceeded to explain hardware and software support contracts and the importance of said contracts. In addition I listed other paid resources available (Experts Exchange subscription at the time).
Great point - I'll mention that in the future.
-
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
HITRUST in your field.
-
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
HITRUST in your field.
Nice - while not really an IT cert... it is something specifically on her radar. Thanks!
-
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
HITRUST in your field.
Nice - while not really an IT cert... it is something specifically on her radar. Thanks!
They certify your organization.
https://blog.rsisecurity.com/what-are-the-3-hitrust-implementation-levels/
-
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
HITRUST in your field.
Nice - while not really an IT cert... it is something specifically on her radar. Thanks!
They certify your organization.
https://blog.rsisecurity.com/what-are-the-3-hitrust-implementation-levels/
That has nothing to do with the question. That is a certification similar to ISO.
-
-
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
When talking about this question in my review - she said that she knew I reached out to you lot - my IT peers to get help with problems I didn't have the answers to, but she was more interested to know if there was an entity who was the authority on things IT that could answer these questions - and if so, it might be worth paying their membership fees to gain access to it. That's what nurses apparently do with SUNA
Also, ask this in reverse. IT is a business function. As how managers or the CEO handle this same thing, because you are like them, not like a nurse. You are a creative business infrastructure advisor, not an operational cog.
Their question is good, but the answer is complex. Ask them how they would answer this for themselves. If they don't know, ask them why they are asking a question they don't understand and what kind of answer they are expecting when they don't know a good answer themselves.
-
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@jt1001001 said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender Ive answered similar question from a previous manager (wo had no I-T background) by stating the vendor of the software/hardware we are having an issue with is the ultimate "authority", and proceeded to explain hardware and software support contracts and the importance of said contracts. In addition I listed other paid resources available (Experts Exchange subscription at the time).
Great point - I'll mention that in the future.
As a point of common misunderstanding because nothing is farther from being correct. It's the exact opposite. The role of internal IT (or hired IT) is to ensure you have support even fi the vendor fails.
Just went through this exact conversation for a bank. "Vendor support" as the highest level is a bizarre thing that I'd never even encountered until working in the Spiceworks community. In every company I've ever been in from tiny to Fortune 10, including at many of the big vendors that people are relying on, it is their IT departments themselves that are the ultimate support, not even their own vendor teams.
-
@jt1001001 said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender Ive answered similar question from a previous manager (wo had no I-T background) by stating the vendor of the software/hardware we are having an issue with is the ultimate "authority", and proceeded to explain hardware and software support contracts and the importance of said contracts. In addition I listed other paid resources available (Experts Exchange subscription at the time).
THey are just sales people. They aren't even in the IT field. The vendor has no knowledge, skills, or obligation to do what IT does. It's like asking your chauffeur who is ultimately responsible for getting you to dinner on time and them answering "Chevy". If you call Chevy and tell them that they need to get you to dinner, they will laugh at you.
-
@jaredbusch said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
she was more interested to know if there was an entity who was the authority on things IT
The answer is that there is not any such entity. End of discussion.
Exactly, because IT is a business entity, not a government certified quasi-union script implementer. This only works for things like nurses because the skills, knowledge and rules are universal and to be followed. Nothing in IT works that way, as does nothing in business in general.
-
@jaredbusch said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
HITRUST in your field.
Nice - while not really an IT cert... it is something specifically on her radar. Thanks!
They certify your organization.
https://blog.rsisecurity.com/what-are-the-3-hitrust-implementation-levels/
That has nothing to do with the question. That is a certification similar to ISO.
It is, but it's specific to medical industry and it satisfies this question.
@dashrender said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
Question: is there a certifying authority you can get certified in that you can also reach out to to get help with problems you can't solve?
-
@irj said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
It is, but it's specific to medical industry and it satisfies this question.
It can't, IT isn't a certifiable process. Anything that is certified can't be competitive in IT and as IT is a performance field, that makes it an antithesis of IT.
-
@scottalanmiller said in Who do you call for IT assistance:
It can't, IT isn't a certifiable process.
ITIL certification?
