Service Desk Manager

Let’s be honest. Running a Service Desk can sometimes feel like air traffic control, except the planes are tickets, the runway is a queue, and someone’s printer is always on fire.

That is exactly why we are looking for another Service Desk Manager who thrives on organising chaos, enjoys leading smart technical people, and knows how to turn a busy support environment into something that runs smoothly, calmly, and with the occasional well timed dad joke.

At First Focus, our Service Desk Managers lead pods of up to 15 support professionals and support technicians, keeping our clients happy, our team supported, and our service standards high. We are especially looking for someone who genuinely understands what the customer on the other end of the ticket actually needs, not just what the ticket technically says.

If you like building strong teams, solving problems before they become problems, and helping talented people grow into even better ones, you might be our person.

About First Focus
First Focus is Australia’s best mid market Managed Service Provider. That is not just us bragging, we have been voted #1 MSP in Australia for 9 years running on CloudTango.

Because of this, we are growing fast and are adding new pods to support new customers (another reason we need another Service Desk Manager) and so now have almost 400 staff across Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines. We support mid sized organisations with enterprise level capability, but without the bureaucracy, politics, or soul crushing ticket escalations to five layers of management.

Most importantly, we work hard to be a place where good people actually enjoy working.

Our culture is built around being informed, aligned, supported, and rewarded for great work. Our team lives by values like Be the Solution, Win Together, and Never Stop Growing, which you can read more about here:
https://www.firstfocus.com.au/about-us/. In practical terms, that means hiring smart people, trusting them to do their jobs, and giving them the support and training to keep improving.

Why this role matters
A great Service Desk Manager does more than just watch dashboards and ask why tickets are still open.

You build a team that clients trust, support technicians enjoy being part of, and the rest of the business can rely on when things get busy.

That means:

• creating an environment where support professionals can do their best work

• helping technicians think about problems from the customer’s perspective, not just the technical one
• coaching people who want to grow
• supporting those who need guidance
• and occasionally making thoughtful, fair decisions about team fit when something simply is not working for the group

We are not looking for someone who swings the axe. We are looking for someone who builds strong teams, backs their people, and has the confidence to make calm, sensible decisions that help everyone succeed. In other words, someone who leads like an adult, treats people like adults, and always keeps the customer experience front of mind.

What you will be doing

• Leading and mentoring a pod of support professionals and support technicians

• Ensuring the Service Desk consistently delivers great customer outcomes, not just fast ticket closures
• Keeping the Service Desk running smoothly across multiple client environments
• Monitoring ticket flow, service performance, and SLA delivery
• Helping technicians develop their troubleshooting, communication, and client skills
• Supporting incident, change, and escalation processes
• Working closely with engineering teams and the Head of Support
• Improving processes, removing friction, and generally making life easier for the team and the clients they support
• Building a team culture where people feel supported, trusted, and occasionally well fed during busy days

What we are looking for

• Experience leading a customer facing IT support team in a Managed Services environment
• A strong instinct for understanding what clients actually need, even when the ticket only tells half the story
• Familiarity with infrastructure technologies such as:

• Windows Server
• Microsoft 365
• Azure
• virtualisation platforms such as VMware or Hyper V
• networking fundamentals
• Strong experience with ITIL style service management and ticketing systems
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Calm decision making under pressure
• The confidence to guide and shape a team of support professionals and support technicians so everyone can perform at their best
• Values that align with ours, especially Be the Solution, Win Together, and Never Stop Growing

First Focus’ values are based around keeping everyone informed, aligned, supported, and rewarding performance. Some examples of this include:

• Competitive salary package including up to $145,000 + other benefits.
• All employees have free access to Uprise, including 1:1 coaching sessions from qualified psychologists or counsellors.
• First Focus understands the importance of flexibility for a satisfying work life balance, which is why we offer flexible working arrangements.
• “Never Stop Growing” is deeply embedded in our DNA. We offer 10 paid training days per year, pay for certifications, and provide pay rises when you achieve them (conditions apply).
• Staff are encouraged to take advantage of weekly internal training sessions and our learning library.
• Opportunities for personal and professional development through our FastTrack mentoring program.
• We have our very own MAD (Making a Difference) Council, focusing on equality, charity, and the environment.
• Tesla company car option as part of your employment package (conditions apply).
• Regular social events and a genuinely great team culture.

First Focus welcomes applications from Neurodiverse candidates. We recommend & appreciate disclosure along with the application so that a copy of our Neurodiversity Statement can be provided outlining the flexible options we can offer to best showcase your skills.

If you enjoy building great teams, understanding what customers actually need (sometimes before they even finish explaining the problem), and leading support professionals who care about doing things properly, this could be a great next step. If you like structure, autonomy, and working with a company that backs its people, even better. And if you secretly enjoy turning a chaotic ticket queue into something calm, efficient, and genuinely helpful for the customer, you will probably fit in here just fine.