Service Desk Manager Certification Course (SDM)
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Lead with confidence. Transform your service desk.
Take the next step in your career with SDI’s Service Desk Manager Certification Course. This globally recognised qualification is a four-day, interactive IT service desk training programme designed to equip current and aspiring managers the tools to run a high-performing support operation.
Why Choose the Service Desk Manager Certification?
Every day, service desk leaders juggle demands, solve problems, and hold their teams together. We know the pressure never lets up. That’s why we created the Service Desk Manager Certification Course — to help you lead with more confidence and less stress.
What you learn will sharpen your leadership skills, improve team performance, and remind you: you don’t have to carry it all alone.
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Service Desk Manager
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Service Desk Manager
Virtual
Service Desk Manager
What SDI’s trainers say about the SDM course
Become the CEO of your service desk. Join the thousands of IT professionals who are advancing their careers and driving continual service improvement with SDI. The Service Desk Manager Certification Course is more than training — it’s your path to becoming a confident, effective, and supported leader.
Trusted by Thousands Worldwide
Experienced, Expert ITSM Trainers
Over 35 Years as Service Desk Specialists
Accredited by PeopleCert
Why the Service Desk Manager Qualification Matters
This four-day IT service desk training course equips you with the skills to run an effective, high-performing support operation. The Service Desk Manager Certification delivers practical strategies that benefit both you and your organisation.
What You’ll Gain
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Proven practices to manage and improve service desk performance
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Leadership skills to build motivated, resilient teams
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Frameworks and metrics to measure success
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Techniques to boost customer satisfaction and staff engagement
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Internationally recognised Service Desk Manager qualification (exam by PeopleCert)
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Stronger leadership confidence and career prospects
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Reduced stress with clear, practical tools
What Your Organisation Gains
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Higher service desk efficiency and customer satisfaction
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Better employee engagement and retention
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Clearer performance reporting and continuous improvement
Course Content
This course contains everything that is essential to core roles and responsibilities of a successful Service Desk Manager:
Defining strategic requirements
Review the purpose, activities, and requirements of a successful Service Desk from a global perspective, discover the benefits of complying with industry standards and examine ethics in the service and support environment
Developing a strategic role
Examine the requirements for creating an effective Service Desk strategy that underpins business goals, learn about the purpose and objectives of vision and missions statements, examine the benefits and challenges associated with various sourcing models, and review the objectives and activities of financial management
The role of the Service Desk Manager
Review the characteristics, skills and competencies required to be an effective Service Desk Manager, review the roles and responsibilities of a Service Desk Manager, discuss the reasons why we should promote the Service Desk, and review the key activities of a successful promotion campaign
Organisational change and project management
Identify the elements of successful project management and the importance of building persuasive business cases, example the purpose and benefits of effective organisational change, identify opportunities for participation in strategic decision making, and review the knowledge requirements to build good strategic awareness
Teamwork and communication
Review the characteristics of effective teams, examine the importance of excellent communication skills from a management perspective, learn the requirements of effective presentation skills, and enhance listening, information gathering and negotiating techniques
Staff recruitment, retention & development
Examine the requirements for effective recruitment strategies, review the features and benefits of a structured and on-going approach to induction, training and development, and explore the behaviours required to retain staff, maintain effective working relationships and address individual performance issues
Management and leadership
Review the activities of an effective manager and an effective leader, identify the elements of successful planning and co-ordinating activities, and examine the benefits of and how to achieve motivated teams
Resilience
Examine the importance of emotional resilience, recognising signs of positive and negative stress in yourself and your staff, and effective stress management
Effective management of resources
Examine the challenges and benefits of commonly used support delivery methods and technologies, explore the benefits of workforce management and resource planning models, and discover the challenges and benefits of adopting self-service
AI and automation
Identify the benefits and challenges of increasing automation and AI opportunities within the workplace and explore common examples of rules-based AI and neural networks
IT Service Management
Explore IT Service Management and its objectives, recognise the difference between a practice, a process and a procedure, identify the need to effective practices, processes and procedures and the importance of following them, and discover ITIL 4 practices and their purpose and place within the service desk environment
Quality assurance activities
Review the purpose and objectives of a comprehensive quality assurance program, identify common quality assurance practices, examine the purpose, benefits, and methods of interaction monitoring, and explore the role of benchmarking in the Service Desk environment
Managing the customer experience
Discover the importance of managing the customer experience and the need for a coherent approach, identify opportunities for capturing feedback, and learn how to use feedback effectively in decision making
Management information & performance results
Examine the relationship between critical success factors (CSFs), key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics, and identify a range of service desk metrics and their success criteria
About the course
Duration: 4 day course, 9am – 4.30pm BST / GMT
Delivery format: Live virtual classroom, instructor-led, interactive
Price: £2102 plus VAT (includes the PeopleCert exam fee)
Save £315.30 with SDI membership, member price £1786.70 plus VAT. See how much you can save with SDI’s Training Savings Calculator.
Certification: Proctored 60-minute Service Desk Manager exam by PeopleCert. Candidates can sit the exam remotely up to 12 months after the date of the course.
Join the SDI community to connect with other service desk professionals.
Download the Service Desk Manager Professional Standard
Download the Service Desk Manager Professional Standard — the best practice framework created specifically for the Service Desk Manager role. It’s the foundation of our Service Desk Manager Certification Course, ensuring that your training is aligned with proven industry standards and equips you with the skills to run a high-performing IT service desk.
Download
Requirements
To take part in this interactive virtual course you will need:
▪️ A computer with a webcam (we ask that webcams are turned on throughout the duration of the course)
▪️ Microphone/headset
▪️ High-speed internet connection
▪️ Ensure you connect 15 minutes before the session starts and log-in as a guest.
To help with the set-up, please download the Adobe Quick Start Guide.
Adobe Connect only requires that you have an internet connection, and a web browser, to attend the web conference. If you have problems connecting whilst using Microsoft Edge browsers, then please try Google Chrome or Firefox.
Have questions?
Contact our team of advisors today by completing the form opposite.
See how much can you save on SDI trainingHappy Customers
“Many thanks for the boost of confidence this SDI training has given me and for all the helpful tips and information.
It was really refreshing to be guided by someone who has a clear passion in delivering great service and who also has lots of experience in helping others to do so.”
DAN UPTON Plymouth University
“The best training course I have ever been on!
Extremely insightful and informative. If you’re looking to get into management, this course is for you!”
GARY WHEATE Service Desk Manager, Lanware
“I definitely recommend this course if you want to further your career in the IT Service Desk industry.”
TEAM LEADER Anglia Ruskin University
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Useful Resources
“I Was Just Surviving - Now I’m Leading Again” A Manager’s Story
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Best Practice for Managing Service Desk Teams [+ Case Study Examples]
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