Over the last four years, Tricerat has been publishing the results of our State of System Administration (SOSA) survey. The 2022 SOSA report dives into what system administrators deal with on a day to day basis and reveals how they've been handling the transition to remote work environments.
System administrators are oftentimes relied on to solve tech issues which may hinder an organization. The biggest challenge that sys admins were faced with in 2022 was supporting remote workers. 35% of respondents to our SOSA survey reported keeping remote work running smoothly was their number one challenge. When you combine this with the second biggest challenge reported, cybersecurity (22%), it makes sense that organizations are planning to spend $4.5 trillion on IT budgets this year. Businesses looking to enable efficient remote work scenarios should ensure their endpoints are secured and that IT departments have the necessary tools and staff to support their remote workforce.
In our previous SOSA reports we discovered that flexibility was a key success factor for many system admins. Being willing to work a flexible schedule is a great mindset for sys admins as they must balance many responsibilities. This was further confirmed in our 2022 SOSA survey results with a staggering 93% of respondents stating that a shortened workweek would lead to the same or more efficiency for system administrators. These dependable tech workers know the best way to balance their many responsibilities and are capable of adjusting to ensure all mission critical deliverables are completed.
The job requirements for system administrators changes from organization to organization but one thing is for certain, they have a lot of work on their plates. 55% of our 2022 SOSA survey respondents said they are busy supporting both internal and external systems and/or users. On top of that, almost half (45%) reported spending over 1 hour in meetings each work day. These system administrators often have immense workloads with one respondent stating, "in many cases, it's a 24/7 job and most people don't realize that."
To many, system administrators are the technical wizards that keep things running which is why it is so important to properly support them. It may not come as a surprise that when asked what would help them become even more successful in their work, the vast majority (20%) reported back with automation. The automation of various tasks and processes could greatly help sys admins balance their workload but other requests included more tools (14%), more time (9%), and an increase to the number of IT staff (8%).
We are obsessed with printing at Tricerat, so we were naturally curious as to how print management has been for system administrators. The majority of respondents (37%) stated that print driver management was their biggest challenge in 2022. The second most reported challenge (36%) was supporting and managing the physical printers themselves. As the world continues to embrace remote work, IT departments should consider how to best manage off-site printers that are often inaccessible to system administrators. Tricerat's simple, secure, and scalable print management software, ScrewDrivers® is capable of centralizing print management for any environment. Discover more about the capabilities of ScrewDrivers here.
For more insights into the world of system administration, you can download our full 2022 SOSA Report today. You will be able to see even more data than what we have shown off here in this blog including further insights into the challenges and successes of sys admins. Download your free copy of the report today to learn more about these unsung IT heroes and the world of system administration.