Support Personnel The most-often recommended support strategy is the designation of full-time support personnel. Implementation varies widely, with schools reporting a ratio of support personnel to other staff as high as 1:500. This compares to reports from business of a 1:50 ratio. 7 The number of support staff will depend on the actual number of workstations, as well as the variety of platforms, operating systems, and software applications. Many schools and districts struggle to fund technology support personnel. Finding and retaining such personnel can also be difficult. Teachers note that many support personnel are paid salaries much greater than instructional personnel. Some schools report difficulty finding support personnel who have the interpersonal skills to work in a school environment. The increasing demand for technology support personnel means there is also high turnover. 8 While you must consider these difficulties, once you find technology support personnel, they will be assets.