The Qualities You Need to be a Good System Administrator

Philip Robinson | 2 min read| Updated On - October 14, 2022

As you may or may not know, today is SysAdmin Day!

In order to celebrate Sys Admins from all over the world we asked some of you on Spiceworks and LinkedIn what qualities you need if you want to survive in the world of system administration. Here 5 things you thought were important:

1. Patience

Being a System Administrator often means completing tasks that require time and concentration. Sometimes you will have to respond to the same issues time and time again because end users do not always follow instructions.

2. People Skills

In a similar vein as patience, having good people skills is an often underestimated part of being an effective SysAdmin. On a day-to-day basis, you may be dealing with end users that know very little about IT. Being able to talk to such users in a concise, clear way without being patronising is very important.

3. Willingness to Learn

No SysAdmin is going to know the answer to everything – at least not right away. That’s why a number of you suggested that a willingness to learn was one of the most important qualities to have. Those who feel they know everything already close themselves off to new ideas and so do not adapt as quickly as others.

4. Problem Solving

A passion for troubleshooting will get you far in the world of system administration. You may often be faced with issues you have not encountered before so it is important that you are able to ask the right questions and get to the answer quickly. Keen intuition, combined with quick and precise decision making, will take you a long way.

5. Team Player

Whilst this quality seems generic – its important cannot be underestimated. Very rarely will you find yourself in a situation where you have to work on your own without the assistance or interference of others. It is important that you know how to play as part of a team and work with others to get the job done.

There were some other qualities that many of you thought were important – notably ambition, analytical skills and a sense of humour! – but there were simply too many to list here. If you can think of any more that we’ve missed, then please let us know.

Lastly, we hope you will join us in wishing every System Administrator out there a happy SysAdmin day!

Philip Robinson

Phil joined Lepide in 2016 after spending most of his career in B2B marketing roles for global organizations. Over the years, Phil has strived to create a brand that is consistent, fun and in keeping with what it’s like to do business with Lepide. Phil leads a large team of marketing professionals that share a common goal; to make Lepide a dominant force in the industry.