Author
Kemi Olunloyo
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The Invisible Weight of Level 1 Work
Here’s the uncomfortable truth most leaders don’t talk about: burnout doesn’t usually come from “hard” work. It comes from fragmented work, constant interruptions, unpredictable call volume, and emotional labor that never finds closure.
For many Tier 1 technicians, every call is a roll of the dice. It could be a simple password reset or a complex firewall escalation that derails the rest of their shift. There’s rarely time to recover or focus deeply before the next call hits.
It’s not a lack of capability. It’s the system.
We’ve built IT support structures that treat people like routers, always online, always responsive, but never given enough bandwidth to recharge.
The Math of Burnout
At ProBound, we’ve spent months studying operational data from MSPs of all sizes. What we found wasn’t surprising, but it was sobering.
On average:
62% of inbound calls in an MSP are repetitive and can be predicted by type and timing.
Technicians switch context more than 300 times a day.
Most Level 1 tickets take under six minutes to resolve, yet each one triggers at least two internal touchpoints.
It’s not the difficulty that breaks people. It’s the repetition without relief.
That’s the real cost of inefficiency, not just margins, but to mental health.
Why Voice Still Matters
Even in a world full of automation, most MSP work still happens on the phone.
Clients don’t call when things are fine; they call when they’re locked out, panicked, or under pressure. That moment demands empathy, speed, and competence.
Traditional automation tools aren’t built for that. Scripts don’t handle emotion. Ticket bots don’t calm people down. And for many MSPs, even sophisticated RMM tools stop where human conversation begins.
That’s why a new kind of automation is emerging: voice-first, task-ready systems that don’t just talk but act. Imagine a support line where the first responder can verify identity, reset a password in Microsoft 365, and log the action instantly.
That’s not about replacing people. It’s about protecting them.
