Technical Support has been around since humans first developed complex machinery. Explaining to others what your product does has always been challenging and, nevertheless, rewarding throughout history. But, since products and industries evolved, so has the job of a Technical Support Engineer. Here are 5 things I’ve enjoyed so far about my job at IntelligentBee:
1. I Meet (a lot of) Interesting People
Providing tech support for a product that can be accessed online by anyone means that you’ll interact with all sorts of developers, marketing people, other support agents, CEOs and, of course, your average ‘what does this button do’ user. This made me broaden my horizons about what people are really like and it gave me the opportunity to interact with cultures that I didn’t even know existed. Even though our conversations are limited to our support scope, I’ve learned a lot about how those people think of their online service, about how non-technical users try to wrap their heads around a simple ‘click here’ task and about how the local area affects the way people comprehend the wonders of the Internet.
2. It Paves the Way for a Technical Career
A ‘Technical’ Support role always implies that, eventually, you’ll have to fully understand the way the product was built, functions and where it’s going. This also means that you’ll be in direct contact with experienced developers, engineers and managers – each of them doing their best in helping your evolution. Another important aspect is that you’ll be given the chance to be involved in a lot of side-projects. For example, while I’m writing this post, I’m also developing a Ruby on Rails mini-app for our team, I’m constantly testing scripts in a lot of programming languages and I’m running SQL queries to grab reports for our customers. This couldn’t have happened without the help I got from the awesome people working here @IntelligentBee.
3. I Drastically Improved My English Skills
When I started this job 18 months ago I was your average English speaking guy, based on stuff I learned from movies, games, blogs, and, of course, school. I managed to get through decent conversations and I never had a customer complaining about my verbal or writing skills. But when working with people that pay a lot of money for a 24/7 professional support, I knew I had to step my game up. So I found out that the best way to improve my English skills is by actually talking (a lot) to native English speakers. And, fortunately, the US companies IntelligentBee works with have no shortage of such people. (Pun intended)
4. I Finally Understood What a Team Is
Working as a Team is not something that our educational system here in Romania insists upon. Nor is it something engraved in our local culture. So when I started working @IntelligentBee, I thought that a Team is nothing more than a group of people that had similar tasks, like factory workers on an assembly line. Oh boy, was I wrong. That’s when I had my first real contact with concepts such as professional trust, responsibility and efficient communication. I also learned that it’s never easy to deal with people that have different traits and personalities and that it’s also very gratifying when we manage to set a common goal and reach it.
5. It’s (almost) Never Boring
Having a job in which you look forward to going to work every morning is not something most people can brag about. But as a Technical Support Engineer @IntelligentBee for SendGrid, each day brings something new to the table. While that might mean that you can never know what problem could pop-up in product’s design, it is also a clear indicator that there is something new to learn everyday: programming languages and frameworks, new techniques to make your customers happier, and even tips and tricks that can make my team’s life easier. This is the kind of stuff that drives me to be better than I was yesterday.