Hiring remote IT support: coverage, tooling, and screening

Helpdesk work has been delivered remotely for twenty years. The only real questions are coverage hours, tool familiarity, and whether the person can explain a fix to a frustrated non-technical user.

Define coverage before you post

• Business-hours only: one LATAM hire covers it
• Extended hours: pair a LATAM hire with an Eastern European one
• 24/7: three regions, and expect a real management overhead

Screen with a scenario, not a quiz

Trivia is searchable. Give a failing scenario and ask for the first three diagnostic steps — order of operations reveals real experience.

Then screen the explanation

Ask them to explain the fix to a non-technical user. Half of support quality is how the resolution is communicated, and video is the only way to see it before you hire.

“Every applicant arrived already screened on video. My shortlist took twenty minutes instead of two weeks.”