Torchora
Back to Home

Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Information Technology Analyst

💰 $ - $

Information TechnologyITSystemsAnalystTechnology

🎯 Role Definition

The Information Technology Analyst is a technical practitioner and business partner who delivers operational IT support, system administration, network troubleshooting, and technical project work to ensure secure, resilient, and efficient technology services. This role combines hands-on incident and problem management with process-driven change control, asset lifecycle management, and continuous service improvement, typically interfacing with end users, IT teams, vendors, and stakeholders. Ideal candidates demonstrate experience with ITIL practices, cloud platforms (Azure/AWS), identity management (Active Directory / Azure AD), scripting (PowerShell/Python), and enterprise tools (ServiceNow, SCCM/Intune, VMware).

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Help Desk Technician / Desktop Support Specialist
  • Junior Systems Administrator / Network Support Technician
  • IT Service Desk Analyst

Advancement To:

  • Senior Information Technology Analyst / Systems Analyst
  • Systems Administrator / Network Administrator
  • IT Project Manager or IT Service Manager
  • Cloud Engineer / Solutions Architect

Lateral Moves:

  • Business Systems Analyst
  • Cybersecurity Analyst / Compliance Analyst
  • DevOps Engineer / Automation Engineer

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Lead first- and second-line incident response and resolution: triage incoming incidents, prioritize by business impact and severity, restore service within SLA targets, and document root causes and remediation steps in the ITSM tool (ServiceNow, Jira Service Management).
  • Administer Active Directory and Azure AD: provision and de-provision user accounts, manage group policy objects (GPOs), handle password resets, implement role-based access controls, and perform periodic access reviews to meet security and compliance requirements.
  • Operate and maintain Windows and Linux servers: install, configure, patch, update, and monitor system health across physical and virtual environments (VMware, Hyper-V); apply hardening standards and maintain configuration baselines.
  • Manage cloud resources on Azure and/or AWS: deploy and manage cloud services, monitor costs and performance, implement secure networking (VPC/VNet), and automate routine tasks using IaC or cloud-native tooling.
  • Perform network troubleshooting and optimization: diagnose connectivity issues (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP), analyze network performance, configure and support VPNs, firewalls, and switches, and coordinate with network engineering teams for escalations.
  • Develop and maintain automation and scripting solutions: create PowerShell, Python, or Bash scripts to automate repetitive administration tasks, streamline deployments, and support configuration management and reporting.
  • Support endpoint management and device lifecycle: deploy, patch, and secure desktops, laptops, mobile devices via SCCM, Intune, Jamf or equivalent MDM tools; ensure compliance with corporate security policies.
  • Monitor and respond to security events: analyze logs from SIEM or monitoring platforms, escalate potential incidents to security teams, apply timely patches and mitigations, and participate in vulnerability remediation and risk assessments.
  • Maintain backup, recovery, and disaster recovery processes: configure backups, perform restores, test recovery plans, validate RTO/RPO objectives, and coordinate scheduled DR exercises with stakeholders.
  • Implement and enforce change management: author change requests, risk-assess technical changes, coordinate maintenance windows, and validate post-change outcomes to minimize business disruption and ensure auditability.
  • Manage IT asset inventory and lifecycle: track hardware and software assets, coordinate procurement and refresh cycles, reconcile licensing and warranty records, and ensure accurate CMDB entries.
  • Configure and support enterprise applications and databases: assist with installation, upgrades, basic SQL administration and query troubleshooting, performance tuning, and vendor coordination for application issues.
  • Provide technical documentation and runbooks: create and maintain runbooks, knowledge base articles, standard operating procedures, and network/system topology diagrams to support continuity and onboarding.
  • Collaborate on cross-functional IT projects: contribute technical expertise to implementations and migrations (cloud adoption, email migrations, platform upgrades), provide impact assessments, testing, and go-live support.
  • Conduct performance monitoring and capacity planning: analyze system and application metrics, predict resource constraints, recommend optimizations, and prepare capacity reports for stakeholders.
  • Maintain compliance and audit readiness: implement controls and documentation to support internal and external audits (SOX, GDPR, HIPAA as applicable), participate in remediation plans, and maintain evidence of compliance activities.
  • Manage vendor relationships and escalations: coordinate hardware, software, and managed-service vendors for repairs, patches, escalated incidents, contract terms, and service-level performance.
  • Deliver end-user training and support: provide guidance, training sessions, and user-facing documentation for business applications, new technologies, and security best practices to improve adoption and reduce incidents.
  • Analyze operational metrics and lead continuous improvement: track KPIs (MTTR, SLA compliance, ticket backlog), run retrospectives, and implement process improvements to increase efficiency and customer satisfaction.
  • Perform root cause analysis and problem management: investigate recurring incidents, identify systemic issues, drive remediation projects, and document problem records and long-term fixes.
  • Support identity and access management projects: implement multi-factor authentication, single sign-on (SSO), privileged access management (PAM), and federation solutions to strengthen identity security posture.
  • Participate in on-call rotations and after-hours support: provide timely response and resolution for critical incidents, coordinate cross-team war rooms, and execute emergency changes when required.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
  • Assist with procurement, vendor evaluation, and proof-of-concept testing for new IT tools and platforms.
  • Coach junior technicians and interns on troubleshooting methodologies, ticket handling, and documentation standards.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Active Directory / Azure AD administration (user provisioning, GPOs, SSO)
  • Windows Server and Linux server administration (installation, patching, services)
  • Cloud platforms (Microsoft Azure, AWS) — deployment, monitoring, cost optimization
  • PowerShell, Python, or Bash scripting for automation and orchestration
  • ITSM platforms and processes (ServiceNow, Jira Service Management, incident/change/problem)
  • Networking fundamentals (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VPN, firewalls, routing)
  • Endpoint management tools (SCCM, Microsoft Intune, Jamf) and patch management
  • Virtualization technologies (VMware vSphere, Hyper-V) and container basics
  • SQL querying and basic database administration (MS SQL, MySQL, PostgreSQL)
  • Security fundamentals and tooling (SIEM, endpoint protection, vulnerability scanning)
  • Backup and disaster recovery technologies (Veeam, native cloud snapshots, tape/replication)
  • Monitoring and observability tools (Nagios, Zabbix, Datadog, Prometheus)
  • Identity & Access Management (MFA, SSO, PAM) and compliance controls
  • Configuration management / IaC familiarity (Ansible, Terraform, ARM templates)
  • Familiarity with web/proxy services, load balancers, and CDN concepts

Soft Skills

  • Strong written and verbal communication for technical and non-technical stakeholders
  • Customer service orientation with a focus on responsiveness and professionalism
  • Analytical problem-solving and root-cause analysis mindset
  • Time management, task prioritization, and ability to work under pressure
  • Collaboration and cross-functional teamwork in matrixed environments
  • Attention to detail and commitment to accurate documentation
  • Adaptability to changing technologies, processes, and business priorities
  • Project coordination and stakeholder management skills
  • Initiative and continuous improvement mindset
  • Teaching and mentoring junior staff and end users

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Associate degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related discipline; or equivalent hands-on experience.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Information Technology, Network Engineering, or a related field.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Computer Science
  • Information Technology / Information Systems
  • Network Engineering
  • Cybersecurity
  • Software Engineering

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 2–5 years of progressive IT experience in systems administration, network support, or IT operations roles.

Preferred:

  • 3–7+ years performing infrastructure or systems work in enterprise environments, with demonstrated experience in Active Directory, cloud platforms (Azure/AWS), scripting (PowerShell/Python), ITSM tools (ServiceNow), and endpoint management (SCCM/Intune). Certifications such as CompTIA A+/Network+/Security+, Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator, AWS Certified Solutions Architect (Associate), or ITIL Foundation are a plus.
Explore More Careers