Computer Operations Supervisor Job Description

Salary Range

Varies by employer

Experience

Several years as an operator

Work Environment

Data center or computer lab, shift work

What Does a Computer Operations Supervisor Do?

At 2 in the morning, when an overnight processing job fails, the operator on shift follows the run book, the step-by-step guide that the computer operations supervisor keeps current. The supervisor maintains round-the-clock operator coverage in a data center or large computer lab, assigning shifts, watching over backups and passing outages to on-call engineers. The console is never left empty.

Also known as: Data Operations Supervisor, Computing Site Operator Supervisor

Other Job Titles for This Work

Workers in this occupation report titles such as Accounting Manager, Accounts Payable Supervisor, Accounts Receivable Manager, Administrative Supervisor, Customer Service Manager, Customer Service Supervisor, Office Coordinator, Office Manager.

Computer Operations Supervisor Duties and Responsibilities

The primary responsibilities of a computer operations supervisor include:

• Assign operators to day, night and weekend shifts so the console is never left unstaffed.
• Oversee nightly batch jobs and backups, and restart failed jobs using the run book.
• Monitor server, storage and network alerts, and escalate outages to on-call engineers.
• Rotate backup tapes to off-site storage and log each shipment and return.
• Train new operators on consoles, job schedulers and emergency shutdown steps.
• Update run books and checklists whenever systems, schedules or contacts change.
• Supervise campus computer labs, including student attendants, printers and software images.
• Report shift incidents, downtime and job failures to IT managers each morning.
• Control physical access to the data center and keep the visitor log current.
• Coordinate planned maintenance windows with system administrators and warn users about downtime.

Required Skills and Qualifications

To succeed as a computer operations supervisor, you will need the following skills and qualifications:

• Job scheduling tools such as Control-M or cron
• Backup software and tape library handling
• Mainframe or server console operations
• Incident logging in a ticket system such as ServiceNow
• Shift scheduling and staff supervision
• Steady judgement during outages and alarms
• Precise, readable shift notes
• Willingness to work nights, weekends and holidays

Education and Training

Experience at the console could lead to supervision. Entry to the job with only a high school diploma might be possible, but applicants with an associate degree in IT will have the inside track over other candidates. You could also move into areas such as systems administration or IT service management.

Salary and Job Outlook

BLS projects employment of first-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers, the broad group that includes this job, to change little from 2025 to 2035, with growth of about 0.1 percent. In fact, BLS expects roughly 127,400 openings a year across the whole group, most of them in general office work. Jobs in computer operations often are tied to how much of the monitoring is automated, but operations staff will be needed as more services run through the night and as backups still need a person to check them.

Outlook source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers.

Computer Operations Supervisor Pay Range

Highest-Paying States for Computer Operations Supervisors

The states with the highest median pay for this occupation are Washington ($79,480), District of Columbia ($79,200), New York ($79,170), Connecticut ($78,200), California ($77,590). Pay is lowest in Arkansas ($58,100), Louisiana ($57,180), West Virginia ($53,660).

What the Work Is Like

O*NET surveys people who work as first-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers about their daily conditions. Of those surveyed:

• 98% are on the phone every day
• 93% say teamwork is very or extremely important in their job
• 89% use email every day
• 85% spend more than half the workday sitting
• 81% say being exact and accurate is very or extremely important
• 70% work indoors in a climate-controlled space every day
• 39% have a lot of freedom to make decisions

Education Workers Say the Job Needs

Tools and Software Computer Operations Supervisors Use

Tools and equipment

• 10-key calculators
• Computer data input scanners
• Computer laser printers
• Desktop computers
• Laptop computers
• Laser facsimile machines
• Liquid crystal display LCD projectors
• Multi-line telephone systems
• Personal computers
• Photocopiers

Software

• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Office software
• Microsoft Outlook
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Word
• Adobe Acrobat
• Apple macOS
• Facebook
• Google Docs
• Henry Schein Dentrix
• IBM SPSS Statistics
• Intuit QuickBooks

Is This Job a Good Fit for You?

People who do well in this job tend to enjoy leading, persuading and making business decisions as well as organized work with data, records and clear procedures.

Skills O*NET rates most important: Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Monitoring, Social Perceptiveness, Coordination.

Knowledge areas used most: Administration and Management, Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Administrative, Computers and Electronics.

Preparation: O*NET places this occupation in Job Zone 3 of 5, which means medium preparation.

Related Careers

These jobs use similar skills, according to O*NET's related-occupation data:

• Payroll Supervisor job description
• Teller Supervisor job description
• Mail Services Supervisor job description
• Office Supervisor job description
• Property Control Supervisor job description
• Admissions Supervisor job description
• Testing Center Supervisor job description
• Library Supervisor job description

Applying for a Computer Operations Supervisor Job

• Job application letter sample
• How to write the skills section of a resume
• How to describe your work experience
• Job interview tips
• Interview thank-you note

The Job Explorer never charges candidates any money. If someone asks you to pay to apply for a computer operations supervisor job or to get hired, treat it as a warning sign.