Senior Engineer (Level 1 Lead) - Service Desk Lead

Role level: Level 1 Lead (Frontline Lead / Triage Owner)

Typical experience: 2-4 years

Reporting to: Service Delivery Lead / Customer Success Lead (as assigned)

Work model: Onsite / Remote / Hybrid (based on customer deployment) may require roster for after-office support where contracted

Role purpose

Own and stabilize the Level 1 service desk experience by leading triage, improving first-contact resolution, mentoring junior engineers, and driving SLA hygiene. Ensure escalations to Level 2 are high quality and reduce repeat incidents through knowledge and SOP improvements.

Key responsibilities

. Lead daily Level 1 queue triage: prioritize, assign, and manage workload to hit SLA targets.

. Handle complex Level 1 cases requiring stronger troubleshooting depth (mail profiles, recurring user issues, endpoint tuning).

. Perform Microsoft 365 admin-lite tasks where permitted (user/group/license support) and troubleshoot common identity/access issues at L1 boundary.

. Maintain and improve knowledge base articles and SOPs coach L1 engineers on quality and consistency.

. Reduce repeat incidents by identifying patterns and proposing fixes (standard configs, preventative checks, user guidance).

. Escalate to Level 2 with complete evidence (logs, reproduction steps, impact summary) and act as escalation quality gate.

. Support IT asset tagging and inventory governance ensure records are accurate and auditable.

. Provide service reporting inputs (top categories, recurring issues, SLA risks) to Service Delivery Lead.

Scope coverage (service-aligned)

. All Level 1 scope coverage (end-user devices, OS basics, productivity tools, basic connectivity, initial security triage).

. L1 triage ownership and service quality control (queue discipline, SLA hygiene, escalation quality).

. Microsoft 365 admin-lite (user/group/license support) where delegated.

. Mail profile troubleshooting (POP/IMAP/Outlook), printer driver/queue support, and deeper endpoint tuning within L1 boundary.

. Knowledge base and SOP development mentoring and on-the-job enablement for L1 engineers.

Required technical skillsets

. Advanced L1 troubleshooting

. Stronger Windows/macOS troubleshooting depth common root-cause identification at endpoint level

. Outlook profile / mailbox configuration troubleshooting printer queue/driver management

. Endpoint performance tuning and common stability fixes

. Service desk leadership

. Triage and prioritization, SLA management, and escalation governance

. Coaching/mentoring junior engineers quality assurance on tickets

. Knowledge base curation and SOP writing

. Productivity & identity

. Microsoft 365 admin-lite: users, groups, licenses (within delegated scope)

. Basic identity/access troubleshooting and secure handling of account requests

Tools & platforms exposure

. Ticketing platform reporting views (SLA dashboards, queue analytics)

. Remote support + endpoint management tools (customer dependent)

. Microsoft 365 Admin Center (delegated) and Exchange troubleshooting basics (user context)

. Knowledge base tooling (Confluence/SharePoint/Service portal KB)

Behavioural & service skillsets

. Leadership without ego: calm under pressure, able to coordinate and coach.

. Strong stakeholder communication: explains issues and next steps clearly to users and customer IT.

. Quality mindset: cares about repeat-issue elimination and documentation standards.

. Decision-making: knows what to fix, what to defer, and what to escalate.

Education & experience requirements

. Diploma or equivalent in Information Technology / Computer Science (or relevant experience).

. 2-4 years in service desk / desktop support, with exposure to SLA environments and ticket triage.

. Experience acting as shift lead, team lead, or escalation point is preferred.

Certifications (preferred / nice-to-have)

. ITIL Foundation (preferred)

. Microsoft 365 Fundamentals (MS-900) or equivalent (preferred)

. CompTIA Network+ (nice-to-have)

Success measures (KPIs)

. Team SLA compliance (response and resolution) and backlog health

. First-contact resolution improvement and reduction in unnecessary escalations

. Ticket quality consistency across L1 (audit score)

. Knowledge base adoption and reduction of repeat incidents

. CSAT and partner/customer feedback

Working notes

This role is a key control point for service quality. The L1 Lead should actively drive standards, ensure escalations are actionable, and create operational stability for customers and partners.