Service Desk Manager

Join a healthcare organization as an IT Service Desk Manager in a hybrid role overseeing a seven-person support team (Tier 1 through 3) responsible for providing remote technical assistance to 55 clinics and nursing facilities across seven states. Based in Vancouver, WA, this position requires onsite presence weekly on Wednesdays, with more frequent onsite time expected during the first few weeks. This is primarily a leadership-focused role where approximately 90% of your time will be spent managing people, ensuring healthy ticket flow, preventing backlog, and serving as a point of escalation. The environment is lower-tech than a hospital setting, with support centered on desktops, laptops, tablets, and general user issues rather than medical devices or EMR systems.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced IT manager who wants to focus primarily on leadership and team development rather than hands-on technical work. You'll have the autonomy to stabilize and improve Jira-based service desk operations that have struggled to meet client expectations, giving you the chance to make a real impact on service delivery. The role offers the perfect balance for someone who enjoys coaching, mentoring, and developing team members while managing workflows and building relationships across departments. You'll coordinate project-related tasks, maintain departmental relationships, and help foster professional development within your team. The hybrid schedule provides flexibility with only one required onsite day per week after the initial onboarding period. While the team maintains an on-call rotation, the manager is generally not included except in rare coverage situations, allowing for better work-life balance. This is an ideal position for someone who thrives in a people-focused management role and wants to build a high-performing support team.

Required Skills & Experience

• 10 years of previous IT experience
• Minimum 2 years of IT management experience
• Experience managing a service desk or IT support team
• Proven ability to manage Tier 1 through Tier 3 support staff
• Strong experience with ticketing systems, queue management, and reporting dashboards
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong face-to-face and telephone communication skills
• Ability to manage multiple varied workloads in a high-stress environment
• Detail-oriented with strong organizational skills
• Ability to foster relationships and mentor team members
• Ability to identify trends and weaknesses in support operations
• Experience managing support teams handling remote, phone/Teams-based support across multiple locations
• Comfortable working in a lower-tech environment focused on desktops, laptops, and tablets
• Must be local to Vancouver, WA area
• Comfortable with hybrid schedule (onsite Wednesdays)

Desired Skills & Experience

• Bachelor's degree
• ITIL certification or other IT-related certifications
• Experience with Jira, Ivanti, or comparable ticketing systems
• Experience with 8x8 cloud VOIP systems
• Microsoft 365 administration knowledge
• Experience improving or stabilizing struggling service desk operations
• Healthcare IT environment experience
• Multi-location support experience
• Knowledge of and interest in emerging technologies
• Experience coordinating with other departments on projects
• Previous experience managing service desk dashboards and reporting

What You Will Be Doing

Tech Breakdown

• 90% Leadership and Management (team oversight, coaching, relationship building)
• 10% Technical and Administrative (ticketing system management, reporting, escalations)

Daily Responsibilities

• 50% Team Management (performance oversight, coaching, workload balancing, mentoring)
• 25% Process and Operations (ticket flow management, backlog prevention, trend analysis)
• 15% Cross-Functional Collaboration (departmental relationships, project coordination)
• 10% Administrative and Technical (reporting, escalations, system management)

Key Responsibilities

Team Management:

• Oversee performance of seven-person support team across Tier 1 through Tier 3 levels
• Coach employees and provide ongoing feedback and development
• Perform annual performance reviews
• Balance workloads between team members to ensure efficiency
• Mentor staff to foster professional development
• Coordinate resource availability across the team
• Hire and train new staff members
• Handle escalations from team members
• Foster positive team culture and morale
• Address situations where team members feel stuck or frustrated due to limited advancement opportunities

Ticket and Queue Management:

• Ensure tickets are handled in a timely, efficient, and thorough manner
• Keep tickets moving and prevent backlog or stagnation
• Monitor healthy ticket flow across the support team
• Identify and react to ticket trends
• Manage Jira-based service desk operations
• Stabilize and improve service desk workflows to meet client expectations
• Oversee queue management and reporting dashboards

Reporting and Performance:

• Report on tickets, workloads, and performance metrics
• Manage service desk reporting and dashboards
• Work with phone-system reporting (8x8) as needed
• Track team productivity and service level metrics
• Provide regular updates to IT Director on team performance

Strategic Coordination:

• Work with IT Director to prioritize tasks and meet organizational strategic initiatives
• Coordinate with other managers in IT and other departments
• Maintain relationships with other departments
• Coordinate project-related tasks across teams
• Ensure alignment between service desk operations and organizational goals

Policies and Processes:

• Develop processes and procedures for the service desk
• Ensure position-based access is accurate and up to date
• Identify weaknesses in current operations
• Suggest and implement changes to improve service delivery
• Standardize support workflows and best practices

Administrative Duties:

• Maintain hardware inventory
• Manage software licenses and assignments
• Oversee asset tracking and management
• Handle administrative tasks as assigned

Technical Support:

• Serve as point of escalation for complex technical issues
• Provide occasional coverage for on-call rotation in rare situations (generally not included in regular rotation)
• Support remote technical assistance for 55 clinics and nursing facilities across seven states
• Handle desktop, laptop, tablet, and general user support issues (not medical devices or EMR systems)
• Utilize Microsoft 365, Jira, and 8x8 systems as needed

Working Environment:

• Hybrid position based in Vancouver, WA
• Onsite presence required weekly on Wednesdays
• More frequent onsite presence expected during first few weeks
• Ability to work flexible hours when required
• Able to work under stress and handle multiple assignments
• Work involves sitting, standing, walking, reaching, pulling, pushing, and grasping

The Offer

Hourly compensation: $70,000 to $80,000 annually

You will receive the following benefits:

• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Paid Time Off (modest accrual)
• Paid Holidays (limited)
• Hybrid work schedule (onsite Wednesdays after initial onboarding)
• Generally not included in on-call rotation (except rare coverage situations)
• Opportunity to stabilize and improve service desk operations
• Leadership-focused role with minimal hands-on technical work
• Chance to mentor and develop a seven-person support team
• Work with multi-state clinic and nursing facility environment
• Collaborative environment with cross-departmental relationships