No matter how much business owners would like to cut down on cost, spending on the best people and systems is extremely important. Sure, you can run the business on your own, but it’s going to take a lot of effort and skill to pull it off. That’s why every entrepreneur must learn to delegate tasks and hire the best people in order to accomplish tasks successfully.

One of the core departments of any business is IT support. This industry has become a key ingredient in allowing companies to improve their services and streamline their processes. Because of the sheer number of benefits, more companies are now embracing IT Support and Outsourcing to keep things running.

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If you’re planning to hire IT support staff for your company, here are five important questions that you need to ask first:

1. What is the length of your experience in this field?

You probably don’t want to risk hiring an inexperienced newbie in IT support. It may appear as though you’re discriminating against fresh IT graduates, but some businesses prefer to hire someone who has a wide experience. After all, these people have encountered several problems and formulated strategies on how to solve them.

Ask them about their experience in data backup, data storage and recovery, which are all critical areas to secure your business. It’s also good to hire someone who knows how to prevent hacking, or at least how to restore the system after a hacking event.

2. What industry certifications have you earned?

Certifications in the industry can reveal the depth of knowledge that an IT support specialist has. Remember that not everyone who has finished a four-year college course carries the same technological savviness as others, and having industry certifications is proof that they’re serious about their craft.

3. Are you available to work after office hours and during weekends or holidays?

Some businesses need an IT support staff round the clock, particularly those that handle external clients who are required to log into their respective accounts. It’s likely that users might encounter technical issues, and having someone on standby for IT support prevents clients from being upset or disappointed.

4. How can you prevent our system from being attacked by cybercriminals?

You’ve probably heard a lot of stories about individuals and companies compromised by hackers who forcibly extract sensitive information. In this case, the IT support team can design a plan to secure digital information systems, especially those that handle critical data. This involves fortifying firewalls, as well as installing spam filters and antivirus solutions.

Employers need to hire not only the most skillful people, but also the most trustworthy ones. After all, they need to expose and entrust their businesses to these people. On the flip side, IT support experts are the perfect professionals to prevent potential risks such as hacking.

5. How well can you work with co-workers and how do you handle stress at work?

Many business owners know how difficult it is to talk to a dissatisfied client and explain what the cause of the problem is. Handling client complaints is a highly stressful job, and this is where IT support can work best for your company.

The easiest way to determine how an IT support staff applicant works is to simulate a call and throw in questions that you think will challenge them. Try to assess how applicants handle angry clients, check if they stay calm and confident, and evaluate if they were able to resolve the issue.

Using IT support services for your business requires more than knowledge of technical jargon. The IT support specialist should have a good grasp of handling different personalities, as well as the ability to work and perform under pressure.