Application Support Engineer

Roles and Responsibilities

We are looking for a motivated L1 Application Support Engineer to provide frontline support for our suite of business-critical applications. The ideal candidate will have foundational knowledge in software applications and systems, excellent problem-solving skills, and experience with key monitoring and support tools like SolarWinds, Dynatrace, ServiceNow, and Nexthink.

Key Responsibilities

1. Monitoring & Incident Detection:
   Monitor application health, performance, and logs using tools like SolarWinds, Dynatrace, and Nexthink. Identify and report application errors and performance issues. Respond to alerts, ensuring prompt detection and escalation of critical issues.
2. Application Support & Troubleshooting:
   Provide first-level support for application-related queries and issues. Use monitoring tools to analyze incidents, validate user inputs, and reproduce issues for troubleshooting. Perform preliminary troubleshooting, including reviewing error logs and supporting end-user queries.
3. Incident Management & Resolution:
   Record incidents using ServiceNow, categorize, and prioritize based on severity and impact. Communicate updates with users and stakeholders until issues are resolved. Escalate unresolved or complex issues to L2 Application Support or Development teams.
4. User Training & Assistance:
   Provide guidance on application functionalities and best practices. Assist with onboarding new users by creating training material or conducting sessions.
5. Collaboration & Communication:
   Work closely with L2/L3 teams to support issue resolution. Communicate with development teams for deeper application issues. Participate in regular team meetings for continuous improvement.
6. Documentation & Knowledge Base:
   Maintain documentation on standard operating procedures (SOPs), known issues, and resolutions. Update the knowledge base with FAQs and common troubleshooting steps.

Required Qualifications

1. Experience: 1-3 years in application support or IT support roles.
2. Technical Skills: Understanding of software applications and troubleshooting techniques.
3. Tools: Experience with monitoring tools like SolarWinds, Dynatrace, Nexthink, and incident management systems like ServiceNow.
4. Troubleshooting & Problem-Solving Skills: Ability to quickly analyze and resolve application issues.
5. Communication: Excellent communication skills for explaining technical concepts.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Familiarity with ITIL processes and cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure).

Desired Candidate Profile

1. Technical Expertise

1. Software Troubleshooting: Ability to diagnose and resolve issues related to applications, including bugs, crashes, and performance problems.
2. Programming Skills: Knowledge of programming languages such as Java, Python, C#, or SQL for analyzing application behavior and developing fixes.
3. Database Management: Familiarity with database systems like MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, or SQL Server for diagnosing issues related to application data.
4. Operating Systems: Proficiency in working with various operating systems (e.g., Windows, Linux, macOS) to support applications in different environments.

2. Application Support & Maintenance

1. Incident Management: Responding to and managing incidents raised by users, ensuring that all issues are resolved in a timely manner.
2. Root Cause Analysis: Analyzing and identifying the root causes of application failures or performance issues to prevent future occurrences.
3. Bug Fixing: Applying patches or modifications to the application based on troubleshooting results and user feedback.
4. System Monitoring: Continuously monitoring the performance and health of applications to ensure optimal functionality.

3. Customer/End-User Interaction

1. User Support: Providing first-line support for users experiencing issues, troubleshooting problems, and offering solutions or workarounds.
2. Clear Communication: Explaining technical issues to non-technical users in an understandable manner, and communicating effectively with internal teams or customers.
3. Documentation: Maintaining user manuals, FAQs, and internal knowledge bases to assist in resolving recurring issues and improve user experience.

4. Incident and Problem Management

1. Ticketing Systems: Proficiency in using IT service management tools (e.g., ServiceNow, JIRA, Zendesk) for tracking and managing incidents, service requests, and change management.
2. Escalation Process: Knowing when and how to escalate complex issues to senior engineers or developers for further investigation.
3. Timely Resolution: Managing service-level agreements (SLAs) and ensuring that issues are resolved within specified time frames.

5. Testing and Quality Assurance

1. Software Testing: Conducting functional and regression testing to ensure that applications work as expected after updates, patches, or fixes.
2. Automation Tools: Experience with automation tools (e.g., Selenium, Jenkins) for testing and continuous integration of applications.
3. Version Control: Familiarity with version control systems like Git or SVN to track changes and ensure that software updates are properly implemented.