digital and tech
IT Solutions

IT Solutions

IT Solutions Technicians develop, implement and maintain complete IT solutions, including their hardware infrastructure (such as servers and networks) and software (such as operating systems, middleware and applications). They work as part of a multi-disciplinary team. Many such teams will be modern “DevOps” style teams, which carry out the full set of stages across the whole solution lifecycle: requirements gathering, solution development, testing, implementation and ongoing support. In more traditional organisations the team is likely to be focused more at one or other end of this broad set of activities. Such teams may well be in transition to a modern “DevOps” style team.
Typical job titles include IT Solutions Technician, Technical Analyst, Junior Support Analyst, IT Support Analyst, Systems Analyst, IT Technical Support, IT Systems Support Technician, Junior DevOps Professional, IT Service Desk or Technical Service Support (at 2nd, 3rd or 4th line support)
Understands:
  • the stages within the overall solution lifecycle.
  • the main principals, features, differences and benefits of Waterfall and Agile type methodologies and the function of service management frameworks.
  • the aims and benefits of DevOps approaches; including the benefits of automation, the ideas behind continuous integration and monitoring.
  • the principles of Solution Architecture including the importance of re-use.
  • why testing is necessary, the need for both functional and non-functional testing, the different types of testing available, including unit testing, integration testing, user acceptance testing and performance testing.
  • planning and delivery within their role and how this contributes to the wider team and the organisation.
  • how the end-user context influences the solution.
  • the key features of, and where to find, organisational requirements in relation to policies, standards, legislation, professional ethics, privacy and confidentiality.
  • the main legislation, policies and standards that apply to IT solutions.
  • the concepts of networking including the ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) and TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) network stacks, Ethernet LANs (Local Area Networks), IP addressing, Port numbers, DNS (Domain Name System), DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), and the principals of routing between LANs and WANs (Wide Area Networks).
  • the different types of network devices, routers and network switches, their relationship to the stack model and the use of firewalls.
  • the main components within an IT Solution including how hardware and software components work together
  • the main components of a computer system and their purpose, including servers, end-user computers, and mobile devices (both physical and virtual), user interfaces, CPUs, storage and connectivity.
  • the purpose of an Operating System.
  • the concepts of Cloud, Cloud Services and storage.
  • how their work contributes to business performance, continuity and resilience.
  • the main trends in emerging technologies – including the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, and automation - and the potential implications for digital activities.
  • the necessary numerical skills including Binary and Hexadecimal.
  • why cyber security is essential as part of the delivery of any solution
  • the importance of working securely and the main classifications of types of threats and common mitigation practices.
  • the meaning of risk in the context of security and can explain the relationship between levels of risk, impact, and designed level of protection in IT Solutions.
  • the role of configuration management and version control systems and when they should be used.
  • the concepts of virtualisation.
  • the use of different platforms (including web, mobile, or desktop applications).
  • the concepts of relational databases, non-relational structured and unstructured databases.
  • the concepts of solutions development to a given set of requirements, including the use of standard approaches for web and cloud-based solutions.
  • the benefits of and requirements for vendor support including commercial cloud offerings
  • Applies a professional methodology or framework in their work tasks.
  • Executes appropriate due diligence, including formal testing or validation
  • Applies a range of technical IT skills, including: accessing remote systems; file manipulation; file editing, changing system or application settings; system administration; setting up and upgrading components (infrastructure or software);
  • Operates in line with organisational polices, standards, legislation, security requirements, professional ethics, privacy and confidentiality; and understands escalation policies.
  • Creates and maintains documentation in accordance with best practice, organisational guidance and legislation .
  • Identifies appropriate technical solutions using both logical and creative thinking.
  • Diagnoses and understands client requirements and problems using sound analytical and problem solving skills
  • Communicates effectively in a variety of situations including formal and informally both within their team and externally.
  • Operates securely across all their areas of responsibility, in line with organisational guidance and legislation