HDI Certification

HDI Certification

HDI is both a professional organisation and a credential sponsor, having been established in 1989. (The organization’s legal name is HDI, but it was established as the “Help Desk Institute.”) Its ultimate goal is to promote professional growth and organisational progress by providing exceptional customer service, with an emphasis on help and support desk operations.

In addition to credential and training, HDI holds conferences and global events, publishes and conducts research, and offers countless opportunities for interested experts to collaborate and interact. UBM Technology, which also hosts the Black Hat, Fusion, and Interop conferences and publishes InformationWeek, Dark Reading, and Network Computing, is a subsidiary of HDI.

Help or support desk jobs are becoming increasingly popular among IT professionals as a launching pad for their careers. The role of these organisational units, which are normally part of a larger IT organisation, is to provide information and assistance to users. These jobs share many similarities and are in high demand.

From 2014 to 2024, the jobs of tech support specialists are expected to rise by 12%, faster than the average for all occupations. As businesses update their computer hardware and software, more support services will be needed.

HDI Certification Path

From Customer Service Representative to Support Center Director, each HDI Certification represents the level of expertise needed for specific roles. HDI provides service desk and support desk training to help people prepare for certification tests while also expanding their expertise and developing skills under certification requirements. Individuals should study the open standards independently of any preparation, and they will prepare them for the certification test. In addition to these role-based certifications, HDI also provides KCS Principles and ITIL Foundation® certifications.

The majority of HDI certifications are based on support centre job positions. Though HDI offers some certificates outside of this umbrella, their nine core credentials can easily be organised as a quasi-ladder or -cascade of help desk/support centre positions.

HDI Customer Service Representative (HDI-CSR)

This credential verifies that customer service representatives possess the skills and strategies necessary to provide excellent customer service and assistance in both support and call centre settings. It means that they know how to determine consumer needs while still exceeding them.

An HDI credential for frontline customer service staff that will assist them in assessing customer business needs and providing quality of service. Help specialists from customer service centres, contact centres, and support centres are targeted by the HDI-CSR.

HDI Desktop Support Technician (HDI-DST)

An HDI credential for tech support specialists who provide in-person support to internal or remote employees or workers, as well as external customers. The HDI-DST focuses on customer engagement strategies, understanding service level agreements and their effect on workflow and request goals, root cause analysis, and ITIL processes for the event, issue, update, release, asset, and configuration management.

HDI Support Center Analyst (HDI-SCA)

An HDI credential aimed at frontline technical support personnel who want to learn how to handle and prioritise events while also reducing escalations. The HDI-SCA focuses on vital customer service skills for dealing with challenging customers and increasing overall satisfaction. This is the most coveted certification.

HDI Problem Management Professional (HDI-PM)

HDI-PM (HDI-Problem Management Professional): This HDI certification, created in collaboration with Propoint Solutions, is aimed at specialists who are responsible for planning and implementing a formal problem management process, performing reactive and proactive problem management, prioritising and categorising problems, researching and identifying problems, conducting or executing root cause analysis, developing workarounds and solutions, and proposing solutions to problems. The HDI-PM is built on ITIL, ISO/IEC 20000, and COBIT, among other ITSM networks.

HDI Support Center Team Lead (HDI-SCTL)

Team leads act as the first point of inner escalation for customers and serve as a contact channel between support team members and their managers. Candidates for HDI certification must be familiar with team lead leadership and management skills, level of service and organisational level agreements, ITIL processes for the event, problem, update, release, asset and configuration management, conflict management techniques, and people management basics, such as recruiting, scheduling, reviewing, and retaining staff.

HDI Desktop Support Manager (HDI-DSM)

An HDI credential for desktop support, which includes support for tablets, notebooks, printers, and other products for which a company plans to provide face-to-face desktop support. A computer support manager is in charge of carrying out organisational and tactical plans for desktop support as well as meeting customer and company requirements. This credential teaches applicants how to recognise and master the characteristics of successful desktop management, how to match desktop support services with business strategy, and how to hire, train, and lead high-performing teams.

HDI Support Center Manager (HDI-SCM)

This HDI credential recognises people who have the expertise and experience to manage the organisational and tactical elements of a support organisation while still aligning with company requirements. Successful candidates understand how to establish service and organisational arrangements, standard operating procedures for supporting a service catalogue, cost-benefit analysis measures, TCO and ROI estimates, and relationships between IT service management systems, among other things.

HDI Support Center Director (HDI-SCD)

This HDI credential recognises individuals who possess advanced expertise and experience in service management, as well as associated best and standard practises, the ability to coordinate the department with organisational priorities, and the ability to achieve senior management buy-in for service enhancements and support centre value. The HDI-SCD covers subjects such as information management, talent management techniques, coaching, team building, succession planning, business case construction, reporting methods and dashboards, and choosing to lead and lagging indicators.

You’ll find an HDI Certified Instructor, multiple coaching certificates, numerous Knowledge-Centered Support (KCS) credentials (Foundation, Principles, and Coaching), and ITIL Foundation in addition to HDI’s core certification offerings. HDI-SCD (Director), HDI-SCM and HDI-DSM (Support Center and Desktop Support Manager, respectively), and HDI-SCTL (Team Lead) credentials all expire after three years unless they have been renewed. Other products in the centre do not have an expiration date.

HDI Support Centre & Certification Standards

The HDI Support Center Certification represents the pinnacle of your support centre’s dedication to innovation, performance, and service quality. The procedure is straightforward: we conduct an on-site audit of your support department, and if you meet the criteria, you can receive certification. If not, we’ll help you improve by identifying possible weak points.

The HDI International Certification Standards Committee determines and approves the competencies for HDI Certifications. The committee’s goal is to identify the depth of expertise required, report the necessary skills, and guide the support industry in understanding the meaning of credential in customer service and customer tech support organisations.

Benefits

Operational Efficiencies

The certification process is extremely valuable to organisations because it brings their support management and teams together with a common goal. Many that have gained certification say the method has enhanced organisational efficiencies and efficiency, increased employee engagement, improved performance management and reporting, and fostered customer loyalty and retention.

Recognition

Demonstrate to your clients and the rest of the industry that delivering the highest level of service is critical to your business strategy and model. Certification gives you plenty of opportunities to brag about your support centre’s accomplishments to your executive management team, clients, and industry peers.

Employee Morale and Retention

Earning the credential validates that the support centre is a supportive and fulfilling place to work, with a focus on employee training, career advancement, appreciation, and productivity.

Competitive Advantage

Certification validates your commitment to providing excellent service and aids in attracting new customers and retaining existing ones. Show the world that you’ve entered an elite group of world-class support centres by using the HDI Certified Support Center logo on your advertising material, business cards, and signage.