Inside IMS: Nitin Dass

“Always something new”. That’s how Nitin sums up his role here at IMS and it’s easy to see why, here we jump in to find out about what goes on behind the screens of an Application Support Analyst…

Nitin has continuously had a passion for technology, from studying computing and digital media at university to always wanting to get his hands the latest tool and tech gear, his drive for the industry is clear to see! However, his professional career began in other areas, before gradually finding his way into support roles. Over the years he picked up the skills needed and steadily worked his way up until he landed a full-blown Application Support Role!

 Nitin has been at IMS since 2017 and puts this down to the diversity of the role, as he says there’s always something to learn and grow in. Originally, he started working as a helpdesk administrator at the company, but the role quickly developed into an Application Support Analyst, and this is what he’s been doing ever since!

“My role involves providing application support for some of our largest clients. The job covers a vast spectrum of tasks, but in a nutshell, I work in the support team along with my colleague, and we provide application support for our monitoring platform that is used by contractors & engineers. I provide support via telephone as well as through our Jira ticketing system where all support queries are triaged and dealt with in a timely manner.”

 Diving in to explain what a typical day at IMS looks like, Nitin says that it normally starts with a morning team meeting with the support team to go over any issues that have occurred during the night shift (on-call). After this, the day will consist of going through support tickets that have either come through on that day or from the night before…

“Support tickets are dealt with daily; we must also provide support for engineers onsite who call in to request checks and configuration changes to panels/cases etc. The call volumes vary day in day out, but majority of the time the requests are from engineers visiting client stores to install new servers and so on.”

 The role also involves some out of hours support, which is a crucial part of the job, as the team is on hand to respond to emergency P1 issues (like system outages) that impact all customers. Nitin mentions, you need to be ready for the occasional middle of the night wake-up call!

“As part of the support role there is a requirement to cover out of hours support, this typically starts as soon as the day shift team finishes (5pm) and the on-call period continues till 7am. I cover 2 weeks a month and rotate with my colleague.”

 There are also other challenges in the role of an Application Support Analyst that might not be immediately obvious to those outside the field. Nitin explains, there are the difficulties of dealing with technical issues, which can sometimes lead to delays with issues being passed back and forth, making it tough to bring a support ticket to resolution.

 Luckily, Nitin can manage these types of situations when they appear. His personality can reflect what’s needed to problem solve quickly and efficiently! He describes himself as calm by nature, but when his workload is stacking up then it’s all about keeping focused, managing the priority, and trying to get back to the customer with all the information.

 Speaking of personality, Nitin shares his thoughts on the key qualities he thinks are essential to be successful in this role. Drawing from his own experience, he gives some helpful advice on the traits that can really make a difference in both the day-to-day tasks and when handling the unexpected challenges that come with the job... “I would say that the qualities to have include, quick thinking, attention to detail, being versatile, and patient. If you have all of these, then life in a support role will be more fluid and easier.”

 Relationship building is also key within this role and Nitin appreciates how this has benefitted him when assisting customers… “All the skills I have learnt through my time here have helped me build good relationships with customers and help to make the support process as smooth as possible. By having strong working relationships, the customer benefits by closing jobs much quicker and more efficiently.”

 Nitin continues as he shares his favourite parts about working for IMS, including the people that he’s been able to work with…not to mention the shorter commute time too! “The best part is working with great colleagues and having the flexibility to work remotely, as this has saved a lot of time on travel to and from office! I enjoy being around friendly and vibrant people, who are highly knowledgeable and always willing to share information and guide you. I’ve had a great experience working in the team and have developed a multitude of skills, which have helped me both within the role and in outside life.”

 When Nitin isn’t jumping on calls or running to problem solve us, you can find him keeping both mentally and physically active with one of his various hobbies…“I have been training in martial arts, yoga, and extreme martial arts (martial arts mixed with gymnastics tumbling) all my life, this is something that I spend a lot of time doing. All things health related, life span extension, and natural medicine are areas I also enjoy studying.”

 If his schedule isn’t already jam packed enough, Nitin also invests his time in helping others to develop themselves… “I am also a content creator and have keen interest in cryptocurrency investing and trading. I create digital guides providing crypto education for all, as well as building my personal brand and helping others to learn the skills I have acquired.”