Interview advice for someone new to the field 4

[wuneyej]

For 8+ years I've worked as a chemist for a very large corporation. In 2000 I went back to school to get a second BS degree in Information Technology. Shortly after finishing school I had a couple interviews for desirable jobs, but the IT market had already started to fall, then 9-11 happened and everyone went on hiring freezes.

So I stayed where I was and eventually persuaded the local IT manager to let me help him out. So for the past year and a half I've been doing things like...minor PC repairs, software intallations/upgrades, adding/maintaining network printers, troubleshooting connectivity problems, handling server backups, keeping equipment inventories, etc. Admitedly, not really in-depth, complex stuff, but I believe I have the potential if I were exposed to more, especially on a full-time basis.

Finally, I have an interview for a new job with an IT services branch of my current employer. The job description makes it sound like I'd be doing similar things as I've been doing, but more advanced. I'd have to move a few hours away, but I'd be willing to do so.

The initial interview will be over the phone. I was hoping some of you could offer some advice as far as what questions I should expect and what questions I should be asking. Any advice would be great. It's been a while since I've interviewed so I'm a bit nervous about it.

Thanks!!

wannabe IT guy

 

[chiph]

Given that most people do a really bad job of interviewing, I would expect two kinds of questions.

The first is a general work ethic type of question. Stuff like: "What was your biggest challenge, and how did you overcome it", "What was your biggest failure, and what did you learn from it", and so forth.

The other kind will be extremely detailed. "When does data transfer occur in DDR memory", "What does pin 3 on a serial port do" (trick question - depends on if its a DTE or DCE device!), "What DMA channel does the SCSIBlaster2000 PCI card normally use".

The first type is the sort you'll encounter on any job interview.

The second is tougher to answer because you've likely never seen the hardware they use. To answer those, you need to say something like: "I don't know, but to find out I'd first check the documentation, do a Google search, and lastly call the vendor".

IMO, what they should do is set you down in front of a broken PC or printer, and watch you troubleshoot the problem, as that's more reflective of what you'd actually be doing for them. But no one does that. :-(

Chip H.


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[misterhux]

<waaaaay off topic>
&quot;IMO, what they should do is set you down in front of a broken PC or printer, and watch you troubleshoot the problem, as that's more reflective of what you'd actually be doing for them. But no one does that.&quot;

That's the best way to interview anybody in repair/help deskish situations. <even farther off topic> My cousin tried to got a job at a bike shop where the whole interview was them giving him a completly disasembled bike and being told to put it together </ end off topic>

personally I would ask what's their software environment like, whats the procedure that users go through to request help...

 

[wuneyej]

good info, thanks a lot guys. Since this first interview is via telephone, my main goal should be getting myself invited to come onsite for an in-person interview and take it from there.

Greatness is best measured by one's willingness to be kind.

 

[Onyxpurr]

&quot;IMO, what they should do is set you down in front of a broken PC or printer, and watch you troubleshoot the problem, as that's more reflective of what you'd actually be doing for them. But no one does that.&quot;

Having been an interviewer in the past I would love to do something like this but some interviewees might take offense and suggest you were getting free labor through interviews. That's why I personally stick to either detailed questions or tests.

I definately agree with chiph in giving the next best answer (&quot;I'd google, research, etc...&quot

Some other questions asked might be how you get along with others and how you view your customers. How you would handle a difficult customer. Some companies value a person's ability to learn and be flexible greater than the knowledge they already have. (e.g. Southwest)

One good peice of advice I received about interviewing to is to elaborate. Don't give just yes and no answers, and when asked about experience give a detailed explanation. Anyone can say, &quot;Yeah I fix pcs&quot;, as where it would be better to just say, &quot;Well first I'd check that the power cord is plugged in or network cable is connected. Then I'd ping)

Good luck!!!

 

[wuneyej]

Thanks Onyxpurr. The phone interview went well so they're having me come onsite to interview in person. I'll keep everyone's advice in mind.

Greatness is best measured by one's willingness to be kind.

 

[lespaul]

Good for you! Good luck at the in-person interview!

Leslie

 

[wuneyej]

Thank you Leslie!

 

[Onyxpurr]

Congratulations!! I wish you well on your next interview!

 

[DoubleV]

so what kind of questions did they ask over the phone?

and good luck on the in-person interview.

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[wuneyej]

Had the onsite interview earlier today. I felt I handled myself pretty well, but I found out there are at least two other candidates for the job who currently work within this particular branch of the company, plus they reside much closer to the office. One of the interviewers was openly concerned about my longer commute, even though I assured him it would only be a short period of time before I moved. Other than that, it felt good. I'll just have to wait and see.

They did say there are at least two other candidates in mind, both of them currently working within this particular branch of the company, and both (I assume) live in the area. But hey, in times like these I should be thrilled there aren't 15 other candidates.

My current boss offered to contact those who interviewed me to give his recommendation to hire me. It's truly a kind gesture on his part. Are there any potential negatives about me giving him the go-ahead?

Thanks!

Greatness is best measured by one's willingness to be kind.

 

[wuneyej]

I apologize for the redundancy of my post above, thought I had successfully edited before posting, but obviously not.

 

[SemperFiDownUnda]

Where it is in the same company having 1 manager talk to a potential manager isn't a bad thing in my opinion. They might not know your manager but it will give your potential manager an indication that you are doing this move for all the right reasons.

3 people is very typical from where I'm at for a position. They like to weed the sea of potentials down and focus on a handful.

Along with chiph's advice about the 2 types of questions don't underestimate the HR questions. If you think about these ahead of time and pick out situations then the interview becomes exponentially easier. This last position I got was a good interview. I had 5 people asking me questions mostly HR situations. Towards the end one of them said to me &quot;You seem extremely strong in the human relations side of IT how are your technical skills&quot; with a little laugh I said &quot;Well I'm still a geek.&quot; pretty much that was it I didn't even get any technical questions.

Some advice I would give would be general things.
Relax during the interview.
If the room is to hot or to cold ask if the temperature can be changed.
Try not to be intimidated.
Brush your teeth and tongue, Zip your fly, wear cloths that make you feel good. Your favorite tie etc.

Oh....ask your current manager to do an interview with you. Do it in a relaxed environment. You can do it in a pub or restraunt at lunch...something like that. Don't ask peers to ask you questions.....I've yet to see a peer that hasn't had alot of interview experience help much.

Good luck

 

[lionelhill]

<off topic> about sitting people in front of printers and getting them to diagnose the problem: there was a case in Germany some years ago of a trainee dental technician who was asked to make a set of false teeth as his interview. He was offered payment for the job at the rate it would have paid were he taken on. He refused, and if I remember rightly, the unemployment people promptly stopped his benefit on the grounds he wasn't being serious about looking for work. Again I can't remember the outcome properly, but I have a feeling he lost an appeal, and it was regarded as fair game to get a prospective employee to do something, provided you pay them fairly for their work. Whether it's ethical to have your customers' teeth made by an untested member of the public is a different matter... </off topic>

Well done at getting the interview. Good luck!

 

[SemperFiDownUnda]

Depends on where you are from. I was shocked to find out that in Australia &quot;Work experience&quot; is unpaid. For those that are wondering &quot;Work experience&quot; is common here. Through agencies or just talking to company you basically become free labour for a week or 2. You get covered by OH&S situations but still I've seen many of my friends work for free. But if it helps them get a job hey. Crap I'm off topic to.

 

[philote]

I can't see any negatives for getting your boss to give them a call, unless he really doesn't want you to get the job. I think it would say a lot to the interviewers that your boss recommends you for the position and may even give you the edge you need over those other two candidates.

BTW, do you know when you'll have a second interview or find out if you get the position?

Good luck!

 

[wuneyej]

Thanks so much for all the replies everyone. I should probably know by the end of this week.

Why would I leave chemistry for information technology? To tell you the truth, I think I'd leave chemistry to dig ditches at this point. The work has become so boring for me, it's torturous. I'm not a research chemist, so the bulk of what I do is &quot;cookbook chemistry&quot;.

 

[wuneyej]

Well I didn't get the job. Not to sour grape, but I'm not sure I was really up for the move. The job itself was exactly what I was looking for, but living in the area would have been a really tough adjustment; much more rural than what I'm used to. Guess it wasn't meant to be.

Greatness is best measured by one's willingness to be kind.

 

[SQLSister]

Too bad. There will be other opportunities.

In the mean time keep getting yourself prepared for other jobs. One thing I would suggest that the others did not , is to avoid exagerrating your actual knowledge. If you do that and get the job and then can't perform you will be gone really quickly. If they know you don't have all the knowledge you need but ar willing to learn it, you will be given more time to get up to speed on the job. Of course a really experienced interviewer can often tell when someone is lying about their experience anyway. True knowledge almost always is apparent when you compare candidates.

 

[ChrisHunt]

Good point SQLSister. I don't interview people any more since going freelance, but my priority in hiring would be (all other things being equal):

1) Somebody with lots of relevant experience
2) Somebody without relevant experience, but willing and able to learn

Straight to the reject pile would go

3) Somebody without relevant experience, but (who thinks they are) good at bullshitting.

Type 3's are so much easier to spot than they think they are


-- Chris Hunt

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http://www.napitalia.org.uk

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