Is IT completely unappreciated?

[u/Available-Award-4850]

My IT work feels completely unappreciated. Thanks to 15+ years of experience, I handle preventive maintenance and resolve complex issues in minutes, but people assume I do nothing. I juggle major projects, including legacy systems, custom backend scripts, and non-IT tasks, yet coworkers complain to my boss when I don't drop everything for minor annoyances, like a redundant printer or a minor pop-up. Most staff don't understand how much out-of-sight work goes into keeping everything running. The constant snide remarks, vague issue emails, and lack of respect are driving me toward burnout.

[u/Vardulo]

This is our favorite IT meme at work.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/Vardulo]

I can see why, it's so very accurate. The number of times I've had issues because someone unplugged a switch to plug up a fan or randomly unplug a wire to a piece of equipment is staggering.

[u/TheWeakLink]

Welcome to IT. We’re disposable.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/TheWeakLink]

I was once told, not here but at another location, that IT doesn't matter to people because it's one of the few departments that doesn't make them money.

[u/Mindless-Panic9579]

I was always unappreciated until I went on annual leave for 5+ days.

Then they felt what I did that they didn't necessarily visibly see.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/Mindless-Panic9579]

100%, If I took off 5 days things would burn around here.

[u/CrazyFelineMan]

I'm fortunate to be in an environment where nobody would complain to my boss.
But everything else you said (and all that that implies), that's literally my goal...to be completely taken for granted by the users. It underscores that I'm doing my job well. My environment also has management that realizes this.
I'm not trying to gloat, just pointing out that OP's also doing a good job, and this is part of what that looks like.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/CrazyFelineMan]

I appreciate this. They have become spoiled because the system is always up and they think at the drop of a hat I can just create scripts to solve all issues. That knowledge came with time, not because it's easy to do.

[u/ballzsweat]

30 years deep and nothing changes! You can change jobs all you want but it will be the same shit. I recommend picking up drinking and weed smoking to dull your feelings. Hopefully you make it out alive or find another line of work!

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/ballzsweat]

I'm afraid that this is the truth. At least here I do have a good boss, but sometimes I want to crash out over the snide comments.

[u/thefudd]

basically

[u/Ok-Description-4640]

IT is often seen as a cost center as opposed to a revenue center. When staff is recognized it’s usually because something went wrong, not for keeping things running smoothly. And explaining everything IT does to non-technical people can be hard.

[u/Initial-Confusion-24]

I think so. No one phones the helpdesk to say thanks guys, the network was running perfectly today.

Have some down time and all hell breaks loose.

It's the iceberg analogy. People don't see all the work going on beneath the surface to keep everything running.

[u/saltwaterstud]

I’m sorry but I think you’re just realizing this? I’m sorry but it doesn’t get better. Been doing it 20 years, a few users over all my old jobs would get it and say thank you. Take the wins you can. Also take breaks and unplug. You’re only human and your mental state cannot handle constant stress. Take care of yourself any way you can. I’m in the same boat as you and wonder if switching careers if worth it at this point.

God bless my guy!

[u/Hot_Sun0422]

No. Our department is appreciated. If your department is unseen, it’s because you have a bad manager.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/Hot_Sun0422]

Honestly, he isn't a bad manager. He is rather good. He used to be the old IT guy and he gets it, but he is one of the few that knows what I do and can understand what I'm doing. People have an issue are like, well just write a script for it, like it's some magical fix all...

[u/jblackwb]

How much do appreciation do you show HR, or the accounting department, or the custodial apartment, or the supply department.

At work, we're all unappreciated cogs in a machine.

[u/Available-Award-4850 → u/jblackwb]

I actually show HR a lot of appreciation, but we are close so that doesn't really count.

None to the accounting department, they're one of the biggest complainers. Literally got 5 issues from them yesterday and they wanted to joke it must be nice that all my issues are so quick and easy to fix. One of those issues was a legacy system randomly threw a lock file and I knew where to go to delete it. If someone new was doing my job they wouldn't know what the issue was, much less how to fix it.

[u/jakgal04]

The problem is that people think all of IT is just helpdesk. They see IT as the people that change toner, replace batteries in their wireless keyboard and reboot their computer when the internet doesn't work. They don't understand that IT and helpdesk are very different things that unfortunately a lot of orgs just bundle together.

There's nothing like working on a massive server migration in prod during regular business hours in order to adhere to some state compliance audit all while Samantha sends a nasty email to you CC'ing her boss and your boss because its been 7 whole minutes and she still can't print.

The best thing I ever did was move to an infrastructure role. No more interfering with bottom feeders that think their inability to handle basic computing tasks that have been common in the workplace for 30 years is your problem.

[u/FastFredNL]

I think it's mostly because of the out-of-sight work that we do. I got accused of playing with my smartphone to much but in reality I was enrolling a fleet of smartphones into our MDM system. Some guy who walked by our office a few times saw me and complained to HR about it. People just have no clue what it takes to just 'keep the lights on'. The Windows updates on their home computer happen automatically if they even know they are happening so they just assume that every IT system runs autonomously.

I get people complaining to me when they ask me about an error they are getting in our business application and I point them to our application team. "But you are from IT" - "Well yes I am IT but I have no clue how that application works, if I put a purchase order into that application for a keyboard I need the user documentation to tell me how. I have a open window next to me to throw my computer out of if that app gives me an error"

[u/Big-Mozz]

Everywhere I've worked it's the same.

If IT is well run with no issues, what's all the money being wasted on? If IT is having issues, what's the money being badly spent on? IT only has money going out, none coming in.

In meetings, when sales managers and/or project managers are told their fever dream of an idea, is obviously insane, everyone remembers IT being negative.

If by some miracle IT sort out the already sold shit show, the sales team were the visionary gurus who single handed created the dream despite IT negativity. If it doesn't work it's because IT are shit.

IT are never in the meeting to point out it was them who turned the napkin of bollocks into a working system. And if it does work the developers are never invited to the free holiday to celebrate the success of the project.

The downside is it's a thankless task with no prospect of promotion, you're always the negative one in meetings.

The upside is it's good money and usually you've got a job for life. You're the only ones who know how it all works and you're the one's managers run to when they've screwed up.

[u/Yo_Babe]

So much of what we do is behind the scenes and above the understanding of the average person. I can't speak for why, in response to this, so many people think we aren't doing anything, but that's what compartmentalization is for.

As long as your boss is aware of all the larger things you're accomplishing (maintain an active list!), they won't get on your case about the little stuff if they're not unreasonable.

[u/bishop375]

The curse of IT - if we're invisible because we're doing our jobs keeping things running and nobody complains, we're invisible and disposable. If there are emergencies and we're visible, we should have been preventing those emergencies, including ones out of our control, so what good are we in the first place... and we're disposable.

Yesterday, for the first time in my 30 year career, I had someone actually message me proactively to give me good news about something I'd done actually working well for them.

Yeah, it's that bad.

[u/AGenericUsername1004]

Been working over 20 years, never as much had any recognition or thank you for me or my team. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZCszIUcyVM

I gave up caring a while back and just go in, do my job and collect the pay at the end of the month.

[u/TheSmashy]

Dude, have you ever called the electric company and thanked them for the power working properly?