LIMS Helpdesk Manager

ALS•Houston, TX

23h

About The Position

At ALS, we encourage you to dream big. When you join us, you’ll be part of a global team harnessing the power of scientific testing and data-driven insights to build a healthier future. Key Responsibilities Team Leadership & Operations: Manage and mentor a team of help desk technicians, providing guidance, training, and performance evaluations. Foster a customer-focused support culture and ensure the team is equipped to support GEL LIMS users and laboratory staff effectively. Technical Support & Issue Resolution: Oversee daily help desk operations, serving as the escalation point for complex technical issues. Ensure prompt troubleshooting and resolution of LIMS (GEL) and related application issues (Benchsheet, LabCoat, etc.), minimizing downtime for end-users. Process & SLA Management: Develop and enforce standardized help desk protocols and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for ticket handling, prioritization, and closure. Implement clear ticket categorization (by severity/priority), escalation pathways, and response/resolution timeframes in line with defined SLAs. Guarantee that the team meets or exceeds agreed SLAs for response and resolution times. Ticketing System & Documentation: Administer the help desk ticketing system, ensuring all incidents and requests are properly logged, categorized, and updated. Maintain accurate documentation of issues, resolutions, and lessons learned. Drive improvements in ticket workflows, knowledge base articles, and self-service resources for frequent issues. Metrics & Continuous Improvement: Monitor help desk performance metrics (ticket volumes, response times, resolution rates, customer satisfaction, etc.) and prepare regular reports (e.g., weekly summaries) for management. Analyze support trends to identify problem areas or training needs and recommend process improvements. Use data-driven insights to improve service quality and accountability. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with LIMS team, including developers, to resolve complex issues and implement system updates or patches. Coordinate with global or regional support teams as needed to handle escalations and share best practices. Champion end-user feedback to influence enhancements in the LIMS and add-on applications. User Training & Communication: Ensure clear communication with end-users regarding issue status, scheduled downtimes, or updates. Develop training materials and sessions for new help desk staff and, when necessary, for end-users (for example, on how to use new features of GEL or its add-ons). Promote a service mindset and educate laboratory staff on proper issue reporting and basic troubleshooting, potentially leveraging site “super users” to extend local support. Strategic Planning: Identify resource needs and process gaps in the support structure. Make recommendations for staffing, tools, or workflow changes to enhance help desk efficiency and effectiveness. Lead or participate in any incident post-mortems and implement preventive measures for future. Ensure the help desk operation complies with organizational policies and any relevant regulatory or quality standards (especially pertinent in a lab environment).

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field (or equivalent experience). Strong fundamental understanding of IT systems and software is expected.
5+ years of progressive experience in IT support or help desk roles, including at least 2 years in a supervisory or management capacity leading a support team. Demonstrated success in managing a help/service desk operation and improving service delivery is highly valued.
Hands-on experience with help desk or IT service management (ITSM) software (e.g., ticketing systems like ServiceNow, JIRA Service Desk, or similar).
Solid understanding of incident and problem management processes, troubleshooting techniques, and escalation workflows.
Familiarity with supporting enterprise software applications; experience with Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) or other database-driven business systems is a plus.
Strong grasp of industry-standard support practices and frameworks, such as ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) for IT service management.
Ability to implement and enforce SLAs, track performance against targets, and utilize best practices to increase efficiency.
Excellent leadership and people management skills – able to mentor technicians, coordinate team activities, and inspire high performance.
top-notch customer service orientation and interpersonal skills, with the ability to communicate technical information to a non-technical audience clearly.
Proven ability to work under pressure, manage multiple priorities, and maintain composure in a fast-paced environment.
Exceptional analytical and problem-solving abilities.
Adept at quickly diagnosing issues across software, possibly interfacing with hardware or network elements, and determining appropriate resolutions or workarounds.
Detail-oriented with a commitment to following issues through to resolution and preventing recurrences.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience supporting laboratory information systems or working in an environmental/analytical laboratory setting.
Familiarity with GEL LIMS or similar LIMS products, and their add-on tools (such as Benchsheet for instrument data/QC management and LabCoat for report generation) is highly advantageous.
Understanding of laboratory processes, quality control, and regulatory compliance (EPA, ISO 17025, etc.) in relation to data management will help you excel in this role.
Experience in establishing or maturing a help desk from the ground up is a plus – e.g., creating SOPs, implementing new ticketing systems, or defining support processes.
Ability to lead initiatives to improve support workflows, such as developing a tiered support model or training programs for end-users.

Responsibilities

Manage and mentor a team of help desk technicians, providing guidance, training, and performance evaluations.
Foster a customer-focused support culture and ensure the team is equipped to support GEL LIMS users and laboratory staff effectively.
Oversee daily help desk operations, serving as the escalation point for complex technical issues.
Ensure prompt troubleshooting and resolution of LIMS (GEL) and related application issues (Benchsheet, LabCoat, etc.), minimizing downtime for end-users.
Develop and enforce standardized help desk protocols and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for ticket handling, prioritization, and closure.
Implement clear ticket categorization (by severity/priority), escalation pathways, and response/resolution timeframes in line with defined SLAs.
Guarantee that the team meets or exceeds agreed SLAs for response and resolution times.
Administer the help desk ticketing system, ensuring all incidents and requests are properly logged, categorized, and updated.
Maintain accurate documentation of issues, resolutions, and lessons learned.
Drive improvements in ticket workflows, knowledge base articles, and self-service resources for frequent issues.
Monitor help desk performance metrics (ticket volumes, response times, resolution rates, customer satisfaction, etc.) and prepare regular reports (e.g., weekly summaries) for management.
Analyze support trends to identify problem areas or training needs and recommend process improvements.
Use data-driven insights to improve service quality and accountability.
Work closely with LIMS team, including developers, to resolve complex issues and implement system updates or patches.
Coordinate with global or regional support teams as needed to handle escalations and share best practices.
Champion end-user feedback to influence enhancements in the LIMS and add-on applications.
Ensure clear communication with end-users regarding issue status, scheduled downtimes, or updates.
Develop training materials and sessions for new help desk staff and, when necessary, for end-users (for example, on how to use new features of GEL or its add-ons).
Promote a service mindset and educate laboratory staff on proper issue reporting and basic troubleshooting, potentially leveraging site “super users” to extend local support.
Identify resource needs and process gaps in the support structure.
Make recommendations for staffing, tools, or workflow changes to enhance help desk efficiency and effectiveness.
Lead or participate in any incident post-mortems and implement preventive measures for future.
Ensure the help desk operation complies with organizational policies and any relevant regulatory or quality standards (especially pertinent in a lab environment).