4 months and no freaking job?

[fizzak]

Thank you for applying for the HELP DESK ANALYST position with (grocery store chain). In an effort to select the top candidates for interviews, careful consideration was given to formal education, related work experience and overall qualifications as related to the position. Although your qualifications are impressive, I regret to advise you that we have identified other candidates who have qualifications which more closely match those of the position.
Your information will be kept in our files for one year in the event that other opportunities that match your qualifications develop.
Thank you for your interest in this position and in (grocery store chain). . We wish you the best in your career endeavors.

I cannot believe I got turned down for this. I was a system admin AND a tier 3 tech with 12 years experience at a giant 100 year old company. By myself I managed 50 EU's and with a tiny team of 2 others, took care of another 250 remote EU's, half with Mac's on a 2003 infra!! I'm sure I can handle a few local IBM POS machines running XP!!! My BSCS degree is totally worthless now and I'm still paying it off after 15 years.
I've never experienced a market like this in my whole life. So what do I do? Fall back to my other related profession which is freelance web design and development...I've done it before!....nope! The market for devs is also saturated as well PLUS the offshore f'ers bidding jobs at $3hr...And American clients are still paying for their crappy work.

So what else can I do?

I'm very good at mechanics, mill work, and operating heavy machinery. But I have no professional experience with any of it. Perhaps I should go back to retail making $8hr?

Thanks, needed to vent here (again)....Peace

 

[Welshbird]

I agree with the overqualified opinions. I'm finding the same thing right now and its driving me mad.

I appreciate their point of view that you may leave, but if you pay someone 30K and get a 40K employee then surely they are just profitable for the company.

Fee

"The cure for anything is salt water – sweat, tears, or the sea." Isak Dinesen

 

[sha76]

Do you think it's worth going for jobs you don't feel qualified for then? Making yourself the bargain option.

"Your rock is eroding wrong." -Dogbert

 

[FredWagner]

One route that hasn't been mentioned is to find an organization that will let you work as a volunteer for a while - two advantages -
1 - your resume shows that you're working
2 - they may be able to open a position later, and while they may be required to advertise it publicly, if you've been doing the position for free, and thus are a known quantity, you may get it. That's happened twice where I work - the advertisement for the position got 73 responses, many from experienced people who'd been laid off, but the person hired was the one who started working before the job was funded, as an unpaid intern.
So ask around for an organization - nonprofit or local government - with a problem that you're qualified to solve, but they don't have a budget for. Get to work on it, be helpful and cooperative, show the function and organization on your resume while keeping your options open, but realize that you may be inventing the job you'll be hired for.

Fred Wagner

 

[kmcferrin]

For all of the reasons that you shouldn't volunteer to work for free, read this thread:

http://www.tek-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=1553065&page=1

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Windows 7
MCTS:Hyper-V
MCTS:System Center Virtual Machine Manager
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator

 

[FredWagner]

I read the the other thread, and I have contrary experience to cite. I work for a city government (10+ years now), and we have two people who each started working for free, and were hired full time, one when a position either opened up by transfer or promotion (some years back), and the other by creation of a new position (quite recently). Local governments generally have an established way to allow for volunteer help. They don't advertise it, but if you ask, it can be arranged. and as I said, if you show your worth, it's an excellent way to be the number one candidate for a paying job later. the same is likely to be true for major, established non-profits.

Fred Wagner

 

[hjgoldstein]

Sorry to come into this thread late.

For what it's worth, I quit my 3 year job at the end of September 2007 and re-located from Jersey (UK) to Scotland.

I spent the first 6 months doing work on the house we moved to and then started looking for work. I was lucky, we had a small (now long gone) financial cushion.

I started looking for jobs similar to the one I had left and like so many others, in most cases, didn't even get a reply let alone a "no thanks."

After a while I applied for jobs through agencies - simple admin, scanning, filing - anything to get me started.

Eventually, I applied for a really low paid temporary job through an agency in Glasgow. They called me in for an assessment/interview.

I had an interview with the client company two days later and started the day after that. It was just a short term project to clear a backlog of risk assessment exercises, but 16 months later, I'm still here, had a 20% increase after 6 months (still lousy but less lousy) and now they want to make me permanent.

Hang in there, and maybe adjust your resume downwards so that you don't frighten them off. Get your foot in the door for an interview and you're half way there.

I don't know how the agency/temp market works in the States, but if it's anything like the UK you just keep applying and eventually, you'll get something.

Good luck.

 

[matrixindicator]

how how, we are not alone. I am also a few months unemployed, I decide to spend my time in learning and development for my own (cooking, php, head first books), of course this is not the absolute best thing for your personal finance (income) and self-esteem.

 

[Gmoneybags]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to Tek-Tips. I am an IT professional that has done alot of entry level IT work. I want to expand my realm of skills to land a better more stable job in IT. Looking for mentorship on what to do to learn more things in the IT field. I have worked with so many people who have taught themselves things or learned online with no certs or education pass high school that have landed high paying programmer and admin jobs. Looking to do the same.

 

[FredWagner]

GMoneybags - to start with, lose the 'money' in your handle. What you need to grasp is the old axiom - "do what you love, the money will come".
Explore, find a niche in the IT world where your natural talents mesh well - or at least learn where you don't fit at all. Use that knowledge to focus on areas and skills that are a good fit for you. Do informational interviews with people in different IT organizations, learn what they do, how they feel about it, and what they recommend for you after getting a feel for what you're about. And don't be afraid to take some classes - AA or BS level, to get current in the world of IT. Many schools will place students as interns, and that can be a shoo-in for a paying job offer later. Consider getting with a Temp agency for IT-related work, even if it's clerical or menial (massive PC swapouts, inventories) to get exposed to employers and workers where you might be a good fit. Keep us posted on your progress.

Fred Wagner

 

[Thadeus]

I was just out from January 15, 09 till November 1, 2009.

I spent my first 3-4 months exploring options and meeting with entrepreneurs hoping to find the right partnership... no luck.

I did some pick up work for various old colleagues. Designing reports for their sole-proprietorships, etc. No contracts and no cash, but networking and good will. Roughly five to six 'gigs'.

I ran into a major recruiter in August who said that her clients had given her instructions that they did not want to see any resumes from people whose last employment was 6 mos. ago or longer.

I determined to include my networking and goodwill efforts as 'independant consulting' on some versions of my resume.

In October I swung 2 interviews, one off of the orig. resume and one off the mod'd one. I got my job with the original one (no mention of the independant consulting).

I also got the over-qualified form letter. I don't understand that concept. In my opinion, over-qualified employees should be exploited until they are not over-qualified. Every company can improve. Every department should have a wish-list that they seem to never get to... Over-qualified employees should be set to the task of chopping down that list.

I think the biggest issue around the over-qualified meme is that the manager will be challenged having someone that may be smarter than they can handle. As a former manager I can say that I had at least two employees that were 'over-qualified' to be in my 'reporting' department. So I went to my manager and between his needs and my understanding of my employee's skills, we designed an entirely new application for Order Management. IT had told my manager that they could do it themselves, but that it would take 2-3 years given priorities, etc. My Sr. Analyst designed, coded and trained the users on the new system in about 8 mos. Last I spoke to him the Application's scope had expanded to cover the entire nation.

Recognizing my employee's abilities and putting them to use for improving the department and company, followed me as a positive whenever my manager spoke to his superiors.

~thadeus

 

[CajunCenturion]

==> I don't understand that concept.
I can appreciate that and the view from the other side is that over-qualified employees don't stay in the job very long. Usually, they are under-paid because they are paid based on the qualifications for the job, not on the qualifications of the employee. That leads to unhappiness and unfulfillment. Those three factors almost always lead that person to be on the lookout for a job more consistent with their abilities, with corresponding pay, and as soon as they find one, they jump ship. And who can blame them? But that leaves the company that initially hired them short-handed. Companies would rather hire someone more line with the job for the long-term than someone over-qualified for the short-term.


--------------
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[ousoonerjoe]

To add to CajunCenturion's comment, it costs a company a considerable amount of money to hire a replacement. There is also the costs of training, and the time lost. All of this goes into the calculations when hiring someone for a position. In most situations, HR wants to minimize employee turn-over as much as possible. This keeps their work load down and corporate costs down.

That being said, when you are in need of a paycheck, be "over qualified" is one of the last things you want to hear. Nothing like being told, "We know you can do the job and do it better than most of our current staff, but we're going to go with someone with lesser skills/experience."

--------------------------------------------------
Bluto: What? Over? Did you say "over"? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? No!
Otter: Germans?
Boon: Forget it, he's rolling.
--------------------------------------------------

 

[stackdump]

Human networking is very powerful, tell friends, relatives, ex-colleagues etc. that you're searching. This creates a 'bigger set of ears' to help listen out for an opportunity.

I cant say this will work everywhere, but look for job openings at educational places like schools, colleges, universities. It won't be well paid or a job level that's perhaps what you're used to, but there always seems to be "something". At universities, jobs tend to get posted on noticeboards and rarely advertised, presumably because they tend to draw on the population of current and ex-students.

I was unemployed for nearly a year and finally got to the point where I took whatever I could find. I worked for an IT training company for a while (doing admin), did that for just over a year, during which I kept the job hunt active. A year later bingo!, so you could say I was off my preferred track for two years in total.

I don't want to sound negative, but be prepared to take what you can rather than what you want. It may feel like you're going backwards, but sometimes you've got to go back a bit to go forwards. There's no shame in taking what you might consider to be a lowly job, to fund your search for a better one.

 

[Thadeus]

I don't think you sound negative... and I would agree that a lower skilled position is not to be snubbed...

BUT

A) My unemployment income was over 2K per month. This covered the mortgage and COBRA health which were the immediate concerns. With those covered, I was able to look for work that suited me and pass up lesser opportunities as they came short of the 'guarantee'. I never took it easy and relaxed though because there are more bills than those two that need to be covered (like food for teenagers).

B) That's a part of the point I was trying to make in my last post. I would either have to dumb down my resume and interview or face the dreaded, "you're overqualified (and we only want to hire someone capable, not someone that could raise the profile of our business)".
(yes still grumbling )

[steps down]

OK, all better.

~thadeus

 

[smedvid]

I agree with stackdump that social networking is the key to finding a job. Don't be afraid to contact long lost friends and family also... a contact is a contact...

I would highly recommend college alumni sites and sites like linked-in. Also, college career centers are a great place to hit. I know that my college career office will search for alums to see what jobs are available... many of these job opennings never even make it to job-circle or monster....

Also, I would never dumb down a resume... You earned your knowledge and exeperience via hard-work...

fizzak have you found a position yet?
Hopefully so;
if not do not fret... I know some IT people who were out close to a year before landing a position...

Steve Medvid
IT Consultant & Web Master

http://www.saveourfarm.com

Chester County, PA Residents
Please Show Your Support...

 

[DTSMAN]

The industry is taking advantage of this. Here is a link to a job, offering $7/hr, minimum wage is 7.25.

http://www.thejobspider.com/job/vie...Indeed&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=Indeed

Bo

Remember,
If the women don't find you handsome,
they should at least find you handy.
(Red Green)

http://www.redgreen.com

 

[kmcferrin]

They get around that by making it a 1099 (contract employment) position. Not only will they pay less than minimum wage, but that also means that the person who takes the job will be responsible for paying all payroll taxes, including the portion of the taxes that the employer is supposed to pay (FICA, etc). However, unless they're very careful with how they structure their environment it would be very easy for the IRS to come back on them and say that their staff are employees rather than independent contractors. Sounds like a pretty shady company.

I'd be shocked if they were able to net $4/hour. I especially like how "MS Server or Exchange experience is a plus." As if anyone who knew anything about Windows Server or Exchange could be had for such paltry sum.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Windows 7
MCTS:Hyper-V
MCTS:System Center Virtual Machine Manager
MCTS:Windows Server 2008 R2, Server Virtualization
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator

 

[Thadeus]

Not to defend that rate of pay, but I think it is more likely that they will net around 5.50 - 5.75 / hr... Which is still abysmal.

Off-chain Supermarket near me was hiring for assistant managers between 14 and 15 / hr. No experience necessary

 

[smedvid]

Thadeus,
I agree it is incredible... I've seen McDonald's Jobs also starting at $10/hour and if this is the true rate 5.50 - 5.75/hr for IT work... that is sad... Why not just work at McDonalds...

My guess is that some of this work is most likely completed by off-shore resources where 5.50 - 5.75 / hr for IT work may be acceptable.



Steve Medvid
IT Consultant & Web Master

http://www.saveourfarm.com

Chester County, PA Residents
Please Show Your Support...

 

[kmcferrin]

My guess is that some of this work is most likely completed by off-shore resources where 5.50 - 5.75 / hr for IT work may be acceptable.

It's kinda hard to offshore a field tech job in Texas. If you're not in Texas you're not in the running.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Windows 7
MCTS:Hyper-V
MCTS:System Center Virtual Machine Manager
MCTS:Windows Server 2008 R2, Server Virtualization
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator