I need some advice

CJWelch89

So this is my first IT job (Temp in 1st Line Support), I originally planned to stay here for 6 months before moving onto pastures new. I'm massively over-achieving in this job, it's a breeze but with the premise of going from temp to perm which would bring more money, permissions, responsibilities, opportunities etc. I've stuck it out. Here I am 10 months later.

From around the 6 month point I was told I'm doing well, keep my head down because there could be a perm job coming up for a 1st/2nd Line position.

Get's to the 8th month, I'm told they want to make me perm.

9th/10th month is here, I'm told I can't be made perm just yet because the perm job I'd be going into needs the current guy to move up into 2nd line support to free 'my' position up. The perm guy that's moving up has been told that it's going to happen 'soon', and as soon as he moves on up I'll be able to move into his shoes, he's been told this'll all happen within 2 weeks, I've been told mine will take 2 weeks on top of that...

Am I getting strung along here? It sure feels like it, I've shown a lot of commitment to this company and had nothing in return.

What would you do, would it be best for my CV to show that I've temped for a year in a first line role then made perm or would you ditch this and start over as a temp maybe perm with another company in a similar 1st/2nd - 2nd line role?

I feel like if I leave I am going to have to build up my rep all over again, what's the opinion here?

Thanks.

RHDS2K

My first IT job as an IT Support Technician only lasted roughly 10-11 months. I got my certifications and moved onto a jr systems administrator role. I've only been here about 7 months and i've had 6 interviews over the course of the last 3 weeks because i'm not paid enough. Moral of the story, do whatever is best for you. The idea of employees looking bad if they aren't with their companies for 3 years is long gone. It's somewhat common to make hops on a regular basis to take on more responsibility. My hops are kind of fast so im hoping to be with my next company for over a year, but I think you get what i mean. If you get another opportunity you can atleast go back to them and say "hey, so-and-so wants to hire me for X amount of money.. Am i getting this job or what?".. At that point if they are serious then they will get the ball rolling.

zaleonardz

Depending on the size of the organization and executive layers, unless your appointment needs to be approved 6 levels up in a foreign country, your being screwed around.

Managers that make that kind of promise, should have the authority to back it up, if they do not, they cannot make such promises.

Other bit of advice, as your first gig, your 20's is where you should be getting the broadest range of diversified skills, assuming your young, single, no kinds, no bond, you are at your most flexible right now, 10 years from now, its a different kettle of fish,

My favorite "Sneaky" was offering to pay for staff members certification, and then tie the guy to a 1 year contract completion. Everybody won, but mostly in this example, the employer....

Priston

If you enjoy the company your working for, 2-4 weeks isn't that long to wait. If your not happy with were you are now, start looking for a new job.

anhtran35

If the job is laid back then set up a plan to get a higher level certification: MCSA 2012 or CCNA. Once you get one of these certifications you jump into an SA or NA position at another company. I use to run a Help Desk shop in Afghanistan. These guys were underpaid comparison to other contracting companies on base. They would complain but I had nothing to do with what they agreed to via contract. I told them to study and get higher level certs on their down time and jump ship once an opportunity arise. We reimbursed them ASAP without any required length of employment. Out of the 10 in my shop, only 3 tested and passed their MCSAs or CCNAs. They quickly found another contracting company and jump ship. The rest just stayed.

robS

I'd say hold tight. 2-4 weeks is not a long time for an internal transfer - often this is more complicated from HR perspective than external recruitment, especially if pay/benefits are being renegotiated. If a budget holder is off on holiday or off sick, this will add a week or so and there are often many other factors (for example they may be discussing with HR whether they're forced to advertise it externally which some HR departments insist on).

I'd wait for the outer bound (4 weeks) to pass, plus a week for contingency, and then politely chase. In the meantime, it doesn't hurt to keep your options open - so polish up CV & linkedin, get CV out on the sites and follow up any possibles.

I'd give them time to make good because a promotion in your first job (or going contract to perm) counts for a lot on your CV imo.

The other thing I'd recommend is to be able to qualify and quantify your statement about being a massive over-achiever. I've no doubt that you are, but unless you have some way of proving this then I wouldn't expect any new hiring manager or HR department to believe it. So build a single slide on your achievements compared to department average, things like:

My average customer satisfaction score is 86% Good or Excellent (against department average of 63% Good or Excellent)
My first call closure rate is averaging 90% (department is 75%)
Total tickets closed per month is avg 1100 (600 for team)
I created 16 new KB articles and updated 12 existing ones in the last quarter (the only person doing this in the team)
I learned more about the xxxxxxx system and used that knowledge to train colleagues in how better to deal with issues on that system, reducing calls to second line by 25%.

The beauty of doing this is that even if you leave, you have some facts and figures to add to your CV (you'll need to sanitise any sensitive information off it first).

Good luck.