Technical Support Engineer

Summary:
Provides support for enterprise-class SAS business software applications and/or solutions by applying specialized domain knowledge of software usage, features, functions, and interactions among applications and/or solution components. Routinely leverages that knowledge to resolve SAS customer issues and influence software direction.

Primary Responsibilities:
- Provides technical support to customers by taking telephone calls on all product areas, providing information on documented problems, and resolving customer issues in primary support areas via telephone and email.
- Routinely provides technical support to multiple categories of domestic and international customers including software licensees, consulting groups including Alliance partners, system engineers/architects, and enterprise hosting.
- Directly assists customers who are using or troubleshooting enterprise-class, multi-tier software applications and/or solutions. Collaborates with experts across technical support departments and SAS divisions.
- Applies specialized business domain knowledge and an understanding of the business problems that are addressed by SAS applications and/or solutions to assist customers.
- Routinely facilitates the timely and sufficient resolution for complex problems and business critical issues that involve multiple areas of the SAS system.
- Interprets documentation and explains error messages to audiences with varied backgrounds. Suggests the appropriate SAS procedure, language feature, product and/or solution, or the supporting systems software or infrastructure feature for the particular type of functionality that is requested. Provides limited guidance and references to help interpret the output that is produced by tools, products and/or solutions.
- Accurately documents and specifies information in the tracking system during the entire track life cycle.
- Routinely utilizes knowledge of SAS platform architectures and knowledge of complex interactions between multiple SAS system components and third-party products to trouble-shoot, diagnose and resolve software problems. Might replicate customer environments in order to reproduce and debug problems.
- Keeps abreast of other vendors’ products and contacts vendors to report problems and obtain information and/or advises users how to most effectively use the SAS System in conjunction with them.
- Communicates effectively with customers and maintains proactive contact during the problem resolution process.
- Manages internal and external project pressures including coordinating/managing problem escalation activities, communications, and customer expectations (outside business hours as appropriate).
- Routinely sets and manages expectations internally and externally at all levels of technical and business management, often under pressure where decisions have a significant business impact for SAS and/or customers.
- Builds and applies expertise in emerging SAS technologies, portfolio offerings, and third party requirements/software.
- Serves as a liaison between the user community and the rest of SAS. Acts as an advocate for the customer.
- Solicits feedback on technical support services.
- Engaged in the customer lifecycle including pre-sales activities, proof-of-concept, architecture and system design, implementation, hand-off, production support, and maintenance.
- Keeps other groups informed of problems, suggestions and general comments and concerns as appropriate.
- Stakeholder in the product lifecycle through gate reviews, commit to ship and sign-off activities, feature/defect submission, and evaluating proposed changes in hot fixes, maintenance, and new releases.
- Keeps Software Research and Development abreast of reliability and maintenance topics and provides input on software design based on customer feedback, domain and software knowledge.
- Reviews product documentation for technical accuracy, consistency, and user’s point of view. Might review education courses. Keeps technical documentation and training staff informed of customer needs and feedback for changes and enhancements to documentation.
- Authors software usage and problem notes. Authors technical papers.
- Collaborates with System Technical Support Engineers to install and configure solutions for software release cycles and problem troubleshooting. Performs limited usage validation of new software release packages.
- Suggests, manages, and implements special projects to assist Technical Support, users, or other departments/teams/divisions.

Additional Responsibilities
- Sphere of Influence: immediate co-workers.
- Responds to high priority tracks with assistance and guidance from others.
- Might author SAS Notes, technical papers, sample programs, etc.
- Might assist in pre-release validation of software including package validation. Reviews documentation and education courses to give a user’s point of view.

- Employment with a diverse and dynamic company that has been globally recognized as "Employer of Choice"
- Supportive and friendly working environment
- Opportunities for professional growth
- Opportunity to work with high-level business solutions
- Competitive remuneration and benefits package, including lunch vouchers, private health care, life/accident insurance, paid sick days, language courses, extra vacation days, team sports and other social activities.