Sam Ellis
Job Title
UK ITIL and Service Desk Operations Manager
Company and location
Atos Origin
Industry sector
ICT
What does your job involve?
Atos Origin is a large European based IT Outsourcing company. My job involves being responsible for IT Service Desk Operations - 150 people across two sites in Crewe and Livingston in Scotland – including IT Incident, Problem and Change Managers. It’s a busy environment where we support government, other public sector organisations and some corporate businesses in managing their IT infrastructure and desktop services.
What made you decide to go into that area of work?
I’ve always had an interest in IT – not the technical side of what makes computers work but rather the creative and practical side – desktop publishing, graphics, digital media etc.
I love languages but was always conscious that studying languages wouldn’t really provide me with an instant vocation. I had no interest in becoming an interpreter or translator, and I don’t think I really have the right aptitude to be a great teacher. I wanted a job that incorporated language skills, rather than being based entirely around them.
What qualifications and experience did you need?
I did languages at A level then went on to the University of Leeds to study German and Italian. I also developed sound IT skills at university so when I graduated was able to join IBM as a multilingual analyst.
After two years I became responsible for the IT Service Desk support to the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland for one of world’s largest oil companies. I used all my languages regularly in that job. I then became Service Desk Manager at IBM for the Arcadia Group, then left for a year with the NHS where I gained the Managers Certificate in IT Service Management, also called the ‘Red Badge’. This qualification allowed me to step up into my existing role at Atos Origin.
How have you used your languages at work?
As an IT analyst at IBM I was handling 50-60 support calls a day in French, German, Italian and English, fixing IT problems over the phone, or referring them to an appropriate engineer. It’s ironic that I sometimes found my American colleagues in Dallas more difficult to understand – the first caller was called Dana Lipwack! In my current job I work with counterparts in France, Germany and the Benelux.
What are the advantages of being able to use foreign languages in your job?
Being British and multilingual can be a bit of a novelty in mainland Europe; speaking four languages has boosted my credibility. Also, as Atos Origin is a global (but European based) IT Services Provider, speaking languages has opened up masses of opportunity to move abroad in future should I ever want to.