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I wouldn't ask about promotions and stuff in the first interview, but if/when they bring you back in to talk specifics of employment then it's fair game. In the initial interview I usually ask about the technical environment.
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Oct 28, 2014 17:55
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I wouldn't ever ask questions centered around "what can you do for me?" until you get the offer. Tell me about my typical work day. Tell me about the makeup of the team, structure, personalities, skills, etc. Tell me what you love about this job, what makes you get up and go here every day, etc. Are there any concerns you have about my ability to perform this job effectively? Just a few to start with... vvv I like that vvv To go along with my "Tell me about" theme, "Tell me about your best employees, what makes them successful?" or something along those lines. Dark Helmut fucked around with this message at 18:38 on Oct 28, 2014 |
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Oct 28, 2014 18:13
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I wouldn't ask directly about promotions either, but I would ask about what they look for in an employee that makes them promotable. Basically, what they define as being successful or "earning a gold star". Then, you know what you aim for. But basically just listen to Dark Helmut. edit: I say this because at this job and my last, the answers to "What do you look for in order to be successful" were polarizing. Help Desk Job: Follow the rules Do well in your metrics (follow your schedule, first call resolution, etc) Current Job: Be able to work without any supervision Be able to produce quality work Fiendish Dr. Wu fucked around with this message at 18:33 on Oct 28, 2014 |
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Oct 28, 2014 18:30
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They're not going to tell you whether its a dead end job or not
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Oct 28, 2014 18:39
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If it's entry-level helpdesk, it's likely a dead-end job. Not guaranteed, but probable. Which is fine, because you do your year there or whatever and then move on.
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Oct 28, 2014 18:41
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go3 posted:They're not going to tell you whether its a dead end job or not Not in so many words, but I've had plenty of interviews where the interviewers gave off that vibe whether they meant to or not. bitterandtwisted posted:Got an interview tomorrow for a helpdesk support role and I'm trying to decide on questions to ask them at the end. In the past I've mostly asked about trivial things like dress code. The careers sites recommend asking about training opportunities and whether there is scope for promotion. Of course I am interested in those things, but it sounds a bit ballsy; IT training being as expensive as it is and wanting a better job before I have this one. Is it a good idea? Has anyone got any questions they think have helped them in an interview? You've already gotten a good list of questions/ideas (and yeah, leave out dress code - you can ask about that after you get an offer when you're discussing your start date) - just adding that if the interview goes well, I'd ask at the end what the process will be going forward, e.g., when you might expect to hear from them, how/if it'd be appropriate for you to contact them if you need to, etc. Japanese Dating Sim fucked around with this message at 18:47 on Oct 28, 2014 |
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Oct 28, 2014 18:43
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Thanks for that everyone. I'll definitely use some of those. 
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Oct 28, 2014 19:01
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Fiendish Dr. Wu posted:I really don't know either but I didn't wait to figure it out before CTRL+W I work for an image hosting company with a TOS banning certain content (mostly hardcore porn). The team that moderates content flagged as inappropriate... THEY are broken people. If you hear one of them laugh hysterically, or randomly exclaim "what the gently caress???", for the love of god, DO NOT look at their monitor. 
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Oct 28, 2014 19:34
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Sickening posted:First time I have witnessed someone yelling at my work place today. Turns out an exec is upset and is canceling a "company dinner" that he scheduled. Too few people signed up. He is basically going around telling people how ungrateful they are and blah blah blah. go3 posted:They're not going to tell you whether its a dead end job or not Vulture Culture fucked around with this message at 20:13 on Oct 28, 2014 |
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Oct 28, 2014 20:10
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mayodreams posted:For you guys that have done the SCC Vmware class, do you get the free copy of workstation still? I kinda forgot about that part. It took them months to send me a key so the answer is probably yes... but you have to wait.
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Oct 28, 2014 20:15
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Docjowles posted:I work for an image hosting company with a TOS banning certain content (mostly hardcore porn). The team that moderates content flagged as inappropriate... THEY are broken people. If you hear one of them laugh hysterically, or randomly exclaim "what the gently caress???", for the love of god, DO NOT look at their monitor. One of the products my company makes is a web and image filtering gateway so of course how do you collect URLs to filter and new images to add? You either look at the reports from customers and have to verify that it is indeed indecent and added or give them instructions on how to add it to their list (for example The Onion was on the default list for profanity for about 6 months until someone complained and it taken off) or go looking yourself on all the top humour sites on the internet! It is usually a job that is rotated around the labs staff and only those who are willing to do it. They are jaded shells of men.
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Oct 28, 2014 20:26
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The number one thing that raises a red-flag for me is a low-retention rate when looking for any position but there's always an exception. A lot of entry-level gigs will have a ton of turnover simply because people get smart and look greener pastures whether that be with-in the company or a newer employer.
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Oct 28, 2014 20:41
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For those who have or have had helpdesk positions did you get to see your stats? First Call Resolution, Average Case Time, etc?
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Oct 28, 2014 20:50
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Tab8715 posted:For those who have or have had helpdesk positions did you get to see your stats? First Call Resolution, Average Case Time, etc? When I was helpdesk we got our standings in weekly reports that showed our metrics and the weights for each metric. We knew exactly where we stood, what we needed to do to improve, and how to game the system. Our coaches encouraged us to game the system because A: the system was based on their SLA (so if we game it better, they get more money) and B: our schedule was reset every quarter and got chosen in order from the top ranked guy on down, so if you suck then you get stuck with a schedule you didn't like. Weights and Metrics were basically: 20% Schedule adherence 50% First call resolution 30% After-call time spent (the aux code we were able to go into after a ticket so we can finish it up).
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Oct 28, 2014 21:56
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Dr. Arbitrary posted:It took them months to send me a key so the answer is probably yes... but you have to wait. That's cool. I did the class that ended in July, so I'd imagine it would be soon. Kinda hoping for Workstation 11 at this point.
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Oct 29, 2014 03:24
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How close to the "1 year at helpdesk" thing should I stick? The middle of November is one year for me. They've sent me on a couple of new store openings (we're in retail), in fact I'm actually at one now. There's talk of a new traveling position "next year". There is an opening (or possible opening?) for a sys admin that I took a test for--I don't think the test matters that much, I think they find the person they want and then give them the job. If the current help desk supervisor leaves, they've also said I'm basically their first choice there (...since their actual first choice now has a different job). Promises don't pay the bills though. I like this job except the money is really bad ($25k a year). The people are nice, I've learned a lot. I don't want to answer the phone anymore (at least not, you know, primarily)
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Oct 29, 2014 03:46
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myron cope posted:How close to the "1 year at helpdesk" thing should I stick? The middle of November is one year for me. They've sent me on a couple of new store openings (we're in retail), in fact I'm actually at one now. There's talk of a new traveling position "next year". There is an opening (or possible opening?) for a sys admin that I took a test for--I don't think the test matters that much, I think they find the person they want and then give them the job. If the current help desk supervisor leaves, they've also said I'm basically their first choice there (...since their actual first choice now has a different job). Promises don't pay the bills though. Promises are free and finding decent people to work for 25k a year is harder you might think.
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Oct 29, 2014 03:51
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myron cope posted:I like this job except the money is really bad ($25k a year). Dude.
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Oct 29, 2014 04:27
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myron cope posted:How close to the "1 year at helpdesk" thing should I stick? The middle of November is one year for me. They've sent me on a couple of new store openings (we're in retail), in fact I'm actually at one now. There's talk of a new traveling position "next year". There is an opening (or possible opening?) for a sys admin that I took a test for--I don't think the test matters that much, I think they find the person they want and then give them the job. If the current help desk supervisor leaves, they've also said I'm basically their first choice there (...since their actual first choice now has a different job). Promises don't pay the bills though. You shouldn't stick with any help desk longer than you have to. Get in and start applying for better positions asap. You've already been there too long and are being paid nothing. Don't listen to their I say this as someone who spent 2 months in helpdesk and doubled my income in less than a year because I put myself out there and didn't settle. If I can do it, you can too!
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Oct 29, 2014 04:31
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My first hell desk job was for a dial up isp making $9.50 an hour. I got bumped up to sysadmin and made 28k a year. Granted I was 18 and taken complete advantage of.
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Oct 29, 2014 04:32
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"There's a new position probably opening up next year" is great when you're mid-senior career and already have a good job that pays well and is improving your skills. It's not a reason to stick with a helpdesk job that pays you slightly above the poverty level.
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Oct 29, 2014 12:14
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Alright I guess it's time to update my resume and start applying then. This is my first IT job, and when I was applying last year I had two phone interviews with no callback and then this place, and basically no one else showing interest, which is why I took it. I do know I'm getting screwed money-wise, I guess I don't have confidence enough yet is why I've just accepted it so far.
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Oct 29, 2014 13:28
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I've got a friend of mine coming in to interview for a help desk job today. He's a goon and has a CS degree and hasn't had a legit job in the 8 years he's been out of college so I'm starting him at $12/hour lol
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Oct 29, 2014 14:06
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myron cope posted:I do know I'm getting screwed money-wise, I guess I don't have confidence enough yet is why I've just accepted it so far. Generally, having a job is better than not having a job. You should never feel bad about getting paid, you should feel bad about not getting paid more when you know you deserve it.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:12
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Also, everything is relative. Here in my mid-size market, $30-35Kish is normal for helpdesk roles. Other places 25K may be the median. I think in this thread we do a disservice when we apply the "you're getting screwed bro" and other generalizations without knowing the full context, or at least some of it.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:18
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If you are getting $25k a year for helldesk work in say Boston you are getting screwed. If you are getting $25k a year in Bumblefuck Kentucky then you are probably ok.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:19
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Zero VGS posted:I've got a friend of mine coming in to interview for a help desk job today. He's a goon and has a CS degree and hasn't had a legit job in the 8 years he's been out of college so I'm starting him at $12/hour lol I don't know how to feel about this post
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Oct 29, 2014 14:28
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Fiendish Dr. Wu posted:I don't know how to feel about this post That's a gamble at best. I think it's totally reasonable, almost regardless of market.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:32
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Zero VGS posted:I've got a friend of mine coming in to interview for a help desk job today. He's a goon and has a CS degree and hasn't had a legit job in the 8 years he's been out of college so I'm starting him at $12/hour lol The real question is, where does he post most of the time? SH/SC = Underpaid GBS = Eh PYF = Fair enough D&D = Sounds OK to me FYAD/YOSPOS = Wait, he went to college? e: Can't forget about YOSPOS.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:39
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I started working in a datacenter racking servers and rebooting things right out of college for $12/hr and eventually got small raises and bumped up to $45k sys admin, and a few years later leaving the company at $65k. I learned a ton of stuff along the way (mostly self taught and some good co-workers). Some people are just at different phases in their career so its not always bad. Just be smart enough to use that experience to move on and not stick around too long. haven't done as awesome as some people that start doing internships in college and graduate on time and go right into junior or mid level work at a decent pay but I've done better than other people I went to college with just by showing interest in my work and contributing things up the food chain.
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Oct 29, 2014 14:45
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myron cope posted:How close to the "1 year at helpdesk" thing should I stick? As long as you want? If an employer interviews you, it goes well, they'll give you an offer. They will not care if you were on helpdesk for a few months, a year or even a decade. It's not like you will be forever stuck if in helldesk forever if you stay over X amount of time. Dark Helmut posted:I think in this thread we do a disservice when we apply the "you're getting screwed bro" and other generalizations without knowing the full context, or at least some of it. Agreed, IT Job Titles are extraordinarily vague and essentially meaningless. While we're on the same subject how much would everyone expect someone managing cronjobs across several systems, minor bash script troubleshooting and on-call 24/7x365 to be earning?
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Oct 29, 2014 15:41
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Cenodoxus posted:The real question is, where does he post most of the time? Games? Also, hilarious happening today. I work for a company with a call center that hawks our product to IT managers. A girl here gets an email that says "Oh, so you like spamming huh? Prepare yourself motherfucker!!!" and starts getting 10k spam emails an hour. I stroll in and look at the threat email, google the username, find a messageboard post from 2004 that references his very unique real name, bring him up in linkedin and find he's an IT manager at [famous company] who she called an hour before this all started. Our general counsel is nastygramming as we speak.
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Oct 29, 2014 15:50
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i dont care where the gently caress you're living if you are getting paid 25k/yr to do anything other than slap stamps on vegetables then you're getting hosed
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Oct 29, 2014 16:29
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go3 posted:i dont care where the gently caress you're living if you are getting paid 25k/yr to do anything other than slap stamps on vegetables then you're getting hosed In '06 I was making ~25k/y doing basic laptop/desktop warranty repair 
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Oct 29, 2014 16:31
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go3 posted:i dont care where the gently caress you're living if you are getting paid 25k/yr to do anything other than slap stamps on vegetables then you're getting hosed Man, you do not want to know what migrant workers get paid that slap stamps on vegetables.
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Oct 29, 2014 16:32
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Tab8715 posted:In '06 I was making ~25k/y doing basic laptop/desktop warranty repair and with inflation that's about 32k/yr today... so basically 25k/yr today have been about 20k/y in 2004
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Oct 29, 2014 17:15
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Tab8715 posted:While we're on the same subject how much would everyone expect someone managing cronjobs across several systems, minor bash script troubleshooting and on-call 24/7x365 to be earning? $10 to $15 a day.
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Oct 29, 2014 17:25
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go3 posted:i dont care where the gently caress you're living if you are getting paid 25k/yr to do anything other than slap stamps on vegetables then you're getting hosed Yes, but that doesn't mean that you have better options.
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Oct 29, 2014 20:01
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Oh, so he shouldn't move on then. Ok. Edit: That was snippy, apologies - regardless of your semantics though, he *is* getting hosed. From his posts it's clear no new opportunities are going to come in anytime soon; they might not even give him a raise. So why not spread his wings?
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Oct 29, 2014 21:06
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What's a good way of putting odd job IT work on a resume? The only actual hands-on IT experience I have is doing odd jobs for locals in town. Cleaning PCs, replacing hardware, getting rid of viruses, throwing together websites, etc. I've considered doing something like "Self-Employed - IT Generalist" but I'm not sure how that would go over on a resume. Also not sure if I should mention Linux experience or not. I have a bit of working knowledge in that I use Xubuntu on my web development computer and Ubuntu Server on my NAS but I don't any real experience in troubleshooting problems on other peoples' computers since everyone out here uses Windows 7 and 8. Should I just put something like "working knowledge of Linux" or just leave it off entirely?
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Oct 29, 2014 21:07
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