63% of Workers Feel Pressure to Fix Their Own Tech Issues Before Calling IT

“Have you tried restarting it?” is the most expected response from IT, but perceptions are starting to shift.

Purpose:

There was a time, not all that long ago, when most company employees couldn’t tell a computer’s bus from its battery. It meant that the IT team was needed to connect cables, configure servers, and do everything in between. Today, though, everyone is either much more technologically savvy or digitally native, meaning most people can do a lot of that early work we all relied on IT teams to do. 

We wanted to understand how this has changed our perceptions of and relationships with the IT team, so we used the third-party platform Pollfish to survey 585 workers. We asked what they think about IT employees, how those thoughts have changed, and what their working relationship with them is like.

The biggest takeaways of the 2024 Sagiss IT Perceptions Survey: That old stereotypes die hard (although they do seem to be dying) and that many of us feel an expectation that we’ll reach out to IT only after we’ve attempted to solve our technology problems ourselves. 

Key findings:

• 63% said they felt there was an expectation they’ll attempt to fix IT issues on their own before calling in the experts.
• 79% said that fixing an IT issue themselves is their first instinct when they have a technical issue. 
• More than half expect to hear “Have you tried restarting it?” when they do reach out.
• 41% said IT workers were socially awkward
• 37% said IT workers are always fixing things but never explaining how
• 55% said their perceptions of IT professionals have become more positive in recent years
• 86% said IT was either very important or essential to their organization’s success

“The comedic ‘Have you tried restarting it?’ may still be the phrase people associate with IT, but the reality is far more complex,” said Travis Springer, president of Sagiss Managed IT Services. “Managed IT services clients know that IT professionals are integral to their company’s growth and success, blending technical knowledge with strategic insights. People should look beyond the clichés and recognize the human side of IT—the side that’s adaptive, essential, and constantly evolving to meet the demands of the modern workplace.”

Most employees feel solutions are expected to start with them

One of the seeming evolutions in workers’ relationship with IT is that, at least to some extent, most seem to think of themselves as an unofficial part of the IT team. We say that because a very large number of workers—79%—said their first instinct when they have an IT issue is to try and solve the problem themselves. A smaller but definitely not insignificant number—63%— said they feel that there’s an expectation they’ll at least make an attempt at a solution before reaching out to the IT team. 

Sixty-three percent of respondents said that remote work has only increased that expectation that they’ll be the first to try and find a fix for their IT problem.

Stereotypes remain but they are shifting

Stereotypes of the IT worker being a technology-focused, socially awkward outsider seem to remain, at least for some. While almost everyone surveyed acknowledged that IT workers have the knowledge needed to do their jobs, 41% said they were socially awkward, 38% said they were always fixing things but never explaining how, and 35% said they were more interested in technology than people.

When workers do reach out to IT, most workers expect to hear some version of “Have you tried restarting it?”

Those stereotypes, though, may be changing. More than 50% of respondents said they believe IT workers being social awkward is outdated, and 55% said that overall stereotypes of IT workers have become more positive in recent years. 

IT’s organizational importance is understood and appreciated

Today’s workers don’t see IT as simply the organization’s technological fix-it team. Most understand and appreciate the strategic and essential role IT plays in the business’ success, particularly when it comes to keeping the organization safe digitally. 

Nearly 90% said IT was either very important or essential to their organization’s success, and a good majority believed that keeping the company’s data safe and secure is where that impact was felt most. 

Fifty-nine percent of those responding said data security and protection is the most important role that IT plays for their business. 

“IT professionals have long understood that they play an important role in their organizations, especially as business has gone increasingly digital,” Springer said. “Their role has moved from one that was mostly repair or replace so business can do their jobs to one that’s increasingly strategic, focusing on how the business runs. It’s heartening to see that others at all levels of the organization are recognizing that too.”