Can an Executive Assistant be an IT Professional?How hard is the transition?

Question

No major background on IT, aside from IT sales. Just a plain MBA student.

Answer 1

ABSOLUTELY! GO FOR IT! You are not JUST anything - it took very hard work getting your MBA! HOORAH! Anyone can become an IT pro. Takes training, hard work, passion to make the transition. But the caveat is that is a very broad field and you will need assistance determining just what t it is that you want to do. You don't want to begin your course of study, only to find out that it is not what you wanted. Besides that, you are a Power User being an Executive Assistant.

By the way, do you fix, repair, build, troubleshoot your own PC's? As a computer hobbyist, that is how I parlayed that passion into a lifelong career. The many hats that I worn, Help Desk Analyst, Computer Lab Assistant, IT Class Instructor, Network Administrator, Programmer, Project Manager..

Many people break into IT as a Help Desk Associate, which is an entry level IT position. I would strongly suggest that you have at least one IT certification under your belt before you look for this type of position. Many corporations are requiring it of people with no experience troubleshooting, fixing, or supporting computers. These certifications should be in this order, CompTia's A+, Network + in that order. You do not need experience, but you do need to know how to navigate the computer, at the very least. Not for someone who does not know how to resize a window or does not know to use Anti-Virus programs.

You can parlay part of your MBA desgree into becoming a Business Systems Analyst where you are already 1/3 of the way there. Not only does one have to be knowlegable about computers, but also on the business end too. Geeks like me would bomb at this.

If you wanted to get out of the business end altogether and go srtictly IT, you can do that too. I would suggest that you visit your Alma Mater's Career Center for advice as to how to proceed. Do not get this information from a commercial school -go to a Commnity college, or University. Better quality of information.

Answer 2

Transition is not tough, be sure you are on the business side,
start as a Junior Business Analyst and move in about 5 yrs to a project manager, youll learn skills along the way,

stick to a good big company and keep doing certifications as you get proficient , aim for the PMP
PMP gets you a salary of about 120-150K and takes 3-5 yrs of experience

Answer 3

All great answers-Learning the IT market is easy or hard depending on your level of skills, the question is are you looking to get a job working for an Employer or self employed contractor?

If its Employment.
Think of it this way, kids are trained on computers at a very early age. Students go to uni to get qualified. Is an employer going to look more positively at you or them? I re-trained in the 90's and was 34. I did get a job but my age did not help. It was at a time when PC's really took off on company networks.
As an IT manager I was approached by a metals engineer with the same question, he was on £25k. I can get graduates starters on a lot less. Sorry its a fact of life. Sit down look in the mirror and say "Can I compete?". If you believe in yourself then make the leap. Remember their is a lot of talent out their with years training.
Contractor?
Very little hope.

Answer 4

Absolutely. I know a few EAs that actually made the career switch. All you need is the perserverance to learn all the technical details which will serve as your knowledge base. After that, experience (not to mention those d@mn certifications) and knowledge of your business environment and processes will become essential.

IMHO -- Avoid End-User Support/Helpdesk positions if possible. They suck and offer no upward mobility.

That's it! Good luck & welcome to the world of IT.

Answer 5

Anyone can become an IT pro. The difficulty of the transition will depend upon your ability to learn complex technical systems and processes and how hard you want to study.

Answer 6

IT is becoming down-market - so yes.

If you are a MBA it should be done.

But you may not want to be a programmer or a tester - you might fit better into management.

Answer 7

as an exec asst you probably know quite a bit about IT already (usage and trouble shooting) but may be lacking in programming skills. that may be a good place to start. you go girl!

Answer 8

i dont see why not, just need the training.