Computing and Information Services

Grade 4: - 20,092 - 22,254
Open-Ended/Permanent - Full Time
Contracted Hours per Week: 35
Closing Date: 09-Dec-2021, 7:59:00 AM

Job Family: Estates and Information Infrastructure Services

OUR CHARACTERISTICS: We are a globally outstanding centre of teaching and research excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, in a unique and historic setting.

OUR VALUES: We are inspiring, challenging, innovative, responsible and enabling.

Durham University

Durham University is one of the world's top universities with strengths across the Arts and Humanities, Business, Sciences and Social Sciences. We are home to some of the most talented scholars and researchers from around the world who are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives.

The University sits in a beautiful historic city where it shares ownership of a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Durham Cathedral, the greatest Romanesque building in Western Europe. A collegiate University, Durham recruits outstanding students from across the world and offers an unmatched wider student experience.

Durham University seeks to promote and maintain an inclusive and supportive environment for work and study that assists all members of our University community to reach their full potential. Diversity brings strength and we welcome applications from across the international, national and regional communities that we work with and serve.

It is expected that all staff within the University:

• Contribute to our learning culture by engaging in mentoring, training and coaching.
• Positively contribute to fostering a collegial environment; as well as demonstrating commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Have due regard to Health and Safety requirements appropriate to grade and role.

Family key attributes

Roles in this family manage and maintain the integrity of University buildings, estates and information services.

Overall family purpose

• Ensure safe, sustainable and fit for purpose buildings, internal and external environments in and on which to conduct University business.
• Liaise and engage with stakeholders across the University to identify and plan infrastructure projects to update and improve services and facilities.
• Align services to meet organisational strategic and operational objectives.
• Design new, adapt existing and implement services, working with external contractors and suppliers.
• Manage and monitor systems, mechanisms and processes to ensure compliance with internal and external regulations.
• Implement procedures to ensure safe and secure buildings, facilities, estates and information networks.
• Design and construct real and virtual test environments to ensure the most fit for purpose technology and services are available to underpin University business needs.
• Manage technology driven services and third-party platforms to underpin teaching, learning, research and administrative activities across the University.
• Engage with external suppliers, contractors, manufacturers and developers to ensure the highest-standards and quality of buildings, estates and information services.
• Work collaboratively and network across the University with staff in other families to ensure a smooth, timely and high-quality delivery of service.

Link to key strategic plan

• An economically sustainable approach to delivering infrastructure services across the University;
• Develop an academic estate that will allow the University to deliver world-class education, research and student experience;
• Ensure the long-term availability of suitable residential accommodation;
• Ensure the continuing renewal and maintenance of our estate;
• Improve the environmental sustainability and ease of travel around our estate and city locations;
• Support and facilitate a first-rate digital learning environment and experience on a par with the best in the UK;
• Running and ongoing development of a first-rate digital learning environment on a par with the best in the UK;
• A stakeholder-focused orientation, offering satisfying careers to all staff;
• Ensure that an increasingly diverse workforce is treated equally, fairly and with respect, and that all staff are demonstrably valued and actively engaged.

The Department and role purpose

The Computing and Information Services (CIS) has an annual operational budget in the order of £10m, multi-million pound programmes of change within year, and approximately 140 staff who are predominately based at the Durham University campus. The Senior Leadership Team report directly to the Chief Information Officer with the following portfolios: Strategy and Change; Operations; and Information Systems. CIS provide academic, teaching and administrative services across the organisation that underpin the day-to-day activities of the whole organisation.

Recent infrastructure improvements include investment in a new network backbone, including new cable runs throughout the city to all of the Universities core buildings, new scalable user facing storage, and a new hosting environment. Corresponding business led investment also continues to be made with a new Oracle Enterprise Resource Planning suite, investment in research administration, and maximising the breadth of opportunities available to the University through Office365, alongside numerous other important initiatives.

CIS is a friendly, but demanding department, where much is expected and can be achieved by competent, self-motivated individuals who are demonstrable in their team work ability.

As a Service Desk Technician you will act as first line support for University Staff, Student, and Visitor IT users, through all appropriate contact channels (Self Service, Telephone, Email, In person) to fulfill requests, provide support and resolve incident and problems.

The Service Desk Technician will be expected to provide effective, high quality, responsive, customer focused support to all users of University IT in a timely and professional manner. The post holder will have a willingness to develop new technical competencies and an ability to be flexible and work extended hours if required.

Specifically the Service Desk Technician will have a good level of understanding of the following areas.

• Operating Systems (Including but not limited to Windows 10, Linux and Mac OS)
• Desktop Software (Including but not limited to products such as Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Skype
• Specialist AV equipment including video conferencing and lecture capture and streaming.
• Multi-Function Devices and Desktop Printers.
• Remote administration and software distribution tools.
• Network troubleshooting
• Mobile and tablet support
• Hardware, software and device configuration to support accessibility
• IT Applications and technology to support staff and students with disabilities.

Core responsibilities

• Provide a responsive and proactive support service for stakeholders. 
• Focus on checking stakeholder requirements to ensure the delivery of excellence with the frontline stakeholder experience.
• Respond to service users answering and recording standard queries and bookings for activities and/or events.
• Contribute to the planning of team activities, work and deadlines to ensure the smooth running and timeliness of service.
• Solve day-to-day routine problems and source background information within the role.
• Record data and information accurately and provide reports as required to team members and more experienced staff.
• Operate a booking and enquiry service and process requests finding solutions or escalating queries where necessary.
• Flexible in approach to accommodate the needs of team members and/or service users.
• Assist team members to organise, plan and prepare for events, meetings and activities.
• Liaise with internal and external suppliers, contractors and professional specialists to pass on information.
• Apply professional and regulatory procedures and processes and use of systems, following best practice frameworks such as Service Desk Institute and ITIL
• Liaise and collaborate with staff in other areas of the organisation to ensure a seamless, smooth and efficient service, communicating in non-technical terms appropriate to audience.
• Resolve queries and requests for information and advice and escalate more specialist and complex queries or issues to more experienced team members.

Role responsibilities

• Report to the Senior Manager (Service Desk) or their deputy working part of a collaborative team with other CIS teams and academic colleagues.
• Work with team members to ensure the safe, secure and appropriate buildings, facilities and infrastructure services across the organisation.
• Assist team members to carry out and complete risk assessments and safety records for area of practice.
• Provide instruction and demonstration to others via staff induction process within area of working and oversee the safe use of a wide range of physical and digital equipment and tools
• Liaise with internal and external suppliers, contractors, utility and service providers as part of infrastructure support services.
• Apply a range and combination of manual dexterity, physical effort and sensory skills within the role.
• Apply systematic investigatory and problem-solving skills, tests and experimental procedures to ensure the integrity of digital and physical facilities, buildings and infrastructure services.
• Draft, produce and distribute standard technical data and specifications as required including Knowledge base articles, How to guides and FAQs
• Provide guidance on health, safety and wellbeing within the context of the role.
• Assist team members to plan and organise a schedule of maintenance, repair, recovery checks to meet compliance and regulatory standards.
• Assist team members to carry out risk assessments and respond to potential harmful situations according to procedures.
• Any other reasonable duties.

Specific role requirements

1. Hours of service for the Service Desk are currently 8.00 am to 8.00 pm Monday to Friday but a flexible approach to work will be required to ensure that all duties are covered. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required and includes cover at the Queens Campus.
2. Currently operating in two locations on the Durham Campus, Bill Bryson Library and Rowan House.
3. A two-week annual leave ban is in place at the start of the academic year Sept/Oct to support staff and students over that known busy period.

Recruiting to this post

In order to be considered for interview, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification above

In some cases, the recruiting panel may also consider the desirable criteria, so we recommend you evidence all criteria in your application.

Please note that some criteria will only be considered at interview stage.

Please note: Candidates applying via redeployment are only eligible to apply for a post at the same Grade or one Grade lower.

How to apply

We prefer to receive applications online.

Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement https://www.dur.ac.uk/ig/dp/privacy/pnjobapplicants/ which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.

What you are required to submit

1. A CV; 
2. A covering letter which details your experience, strengths and potential in the requirements set out above;
3. Examples of how you satisfy the person specification criteria. This requires completion of the 'Questionnaire' section. Please ensure you give detailed examples of how you meet these criteria.

Please ensure that you submit all documentation listed above or your application cannot proceed to the next stage.

Contact details

For further information please contact; andrew.scott@durham.ac.uk (Service Desk and Field Team Area Manager).

At Durham University, our aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.  We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.

We will notify you on the status of your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to ensure you receive all emails.

Person specification - skills, knowledge, qualifications and experience required

Essential Criteria

1. Good oral and written communication skills.
2. Proven IT skills, including experience of installing, using and administering one or more computer operating systems such as Microsoft Windows, Mac OS and Linux
3. Five GCSE’s at least Grade C or level four (or equivalent) including English Language and Mathematics (or equivalent experience).
4. Experience of working in a buildings, estates, services or IT service provision, including Service Desk, Helpdesk environment.
5. Experience of working in a team.
6. Experience of contributing to the delivery of buildings, estates, services, or IT provision.
7. Ability to solve problems as part of a team and resolve straightforward issues.  
8. Experience of managing time in order to meet deadlines.  
9. Ability to learn quickly and develop new skills and competencies

Desirable Criteria

• Relevant industry and professional recognition and certification of achievement of skills and knowledge, for example, Service Desk Institute (SDI) Service Desk Analyst qualification, ITIL Foundation Version 3 or later.
• Evidence of continuing professional development.  
• Experience of using an IT Service Management system to manage, allocate and monitor support tasks
• Experience of using and configuring  one or mobile device platforms such as iOS, Android, etc.

DBS Requirement: Not Applicable.