Anyone ever deal with overseas jobs with the company Vectrus?

devilbones

MRUP10 wrote: »

LittleBIT,

I see you are in the Boston area, I am about 30 minutes outside of Boston in New Hampshire.

I am from Amesbury, MA.

LittleBIT

Haha, this is awsome. Small world for sure!

MRUP10

@LittleBIT from the way I understand it after obtaining secret clearance you should be good to go for 10 years. As for signing another contract after the first one some medical and dental items may expire so you may need to redo some of that stuff, certs expire so they will need to be up to date, and may need to go back through CRC if you come home after the initial contract.

LittleBIT

MRUP10 wrote: »

@LittleBIT from the way I understand it after obtaining secret clearance you should be good to go for 10 years. As for signing another contract after the first one some medical and dental items may expire so you may need to redo some of that stuff, certs expire so they will need to be up to date, and may need to go back through CRC if you come home after the initial contract.

Yeah, I just renewed my Sec+ a few days ago for kicks and giggles. I'm working towards my MCSA 2012 now, taking 74-409 in two weeks, and then 410 and 411 after. Pretty comfy with it, we'll see if I can get MCSA 2012 before leaving xD... at that point, I'll probably just get a better job (hopefully)...

I also applied to a few others like GDIT, DynCorp, etc. I just want to go oversea's.... haha.

Hopefully none of my stuff expires, I'd hate to get more immunizations. Pretty sure at that point I'm indestructible. :P

devilbones

LittleBIT wrote: »

Haha, this is awsome. Small world for sure!

I am actually from Beverly though. If you do end up working for Vectrus please dont become a worthless POS. The guys out here at 25th Signal Bn are probably the worst helpdesk/technicians I have ever encountered in my life. It is not just me either, seeing them deal with other customers makes me wonder if they have ever interacted with people before. Its amazing they still hold the contract. I think that is why people GTFO once they get some experience.

LittleBIT

devilbones wrote: »

I am actually from Beverly though. If you do end up working for Vectrus please dont become a worthless POS. The guys out here at 25th Signal Bn are probably the worst helpdesk/technicians I have ever encountered in my life. It is not just me either, seeing them deal with other customers makes me wonder if they have ever interacted with people before. Its amazing they still hold the contract. I think that is why people GTFO once they get some experience.

I hold myself to a much higher degree. I got all my current certs when I was oversea's with the military because I wanted to use that time wisely and productively.

I also work at an MSP (Outsourced IT for small business) and I get mad when I'm being unproductive. I totally get customer success is #1, we're there to help them so they can be productive as well and do their jobs (Lawyers, doctors, police, etc). I remember speaking to a friend who works for DOT, and she told me that DOT IT are idiots, took 3 of them (sr. sys admin included) to fix dual monitors on her PC... Thats when you know you've gotten to comfy and are probably useless anywhere else.

fmitawaps

Yesterday, I picked up a laptop to repair from someone who said he was going overseas soon for a job. And I kind of know someone who does government work, although I have no idea what it is. I'm a veteran, I think I had a secret clearance, but that was 20+ years ago. And I came home from work today in not the best mood.

Once home, and after thinking of the above things, I said screw it, maybe I should apply! If the security clearance process takes 4 months, that means I could have the CCNA R&S and the Security+ if needed, ready to go. I am already well underway in my studies for the CCNA R&S.

I have never been a sys admin, I have done desktop support for 4+ years and have done a bit of data center work. I am working towards more data center jobs, would it be easy to find a data center technician / NOC job on one of these overseas contracts? Or network administrator?

I'm not happy here, and I wouldn't be totally happy there, so the hell with it, I might as well get a 6 figure bank account in the process of being unhappy, then come back here and do good things (for myself) with it! I can then go where I want to be, and the wife doesn't have to like it. That's a long story in and of itself.

Would it be easy to use my free time there to study for more Cisco certs and test for them? I have no interest in traveling or sightseeing in the middle east, might as well put the time to good use! And the no alcohol rule isn't a problem for me.

What's the danger level in these jobs? Do I have an above average chance of encountering an errant bullet or roadside bomb?

thewiz8807

For those of you who are looking to be Network Admins, I hear they're short Net Admins in Kuwait.

devilbones

fmitawaps wrote: »

Yesterday, I picked up a laptop to repair from someone who said he was going overseas soon for a job. And I kind of know someone who does government work, although I have no idea what it is. I'm a veteran, I think I had a secret clearance, but that was 20+ years ago. And I came home from work today in not the best mood.

Once home, and after thinking of the above things, I said screw it, maybe I should apply! If the security clearance process takes 4 months, that means I could have the CCNA R&S and the Security+ if needed, ready to go. I am already well underway in my studies for the CCNA R&S.

I have never been a sys admin, I have done desktop support for 4+ years and have done a bit of data center work. I am working towards more data center jobs, would it be easy to find a data center technician / NOC job on one of these overseas contracts? Or network administrator?

I'm not happy here, and I wouldn't be totally happy there, so the hell with it, I might as well get a 6 figure bank account in the process of being unhappy, then come back here and do good things (for myself) with it! I can then go where I want to be, and the wife doesn't have to like it. That's a long story in and of itself.

Would it be easy to use my free time there to study for more Cisco certs and test for them? I have no interest in traveling or sightseeing in the middle east, might as well put the time to good use! And the no alcohol rule isn't a problem for me.

What's the danger level in these jobs? Do I have an above average chance of encountering an errant bullet or roadside bomb?

Based on my experience with the guys here in AF, if you can spell PC and arent currently doing time you should be all set. If you can hold a conversation with somebody you may even be in charge. There is a Pearson VUE testing facility on base that is actually run by Vectrus and you can do some college classes with them as well. Just apply. It is very safe here and in Kuwait as well.

MRUP10

DB, based on your feedback the guys the work for Vectrus over there must be really bad at the quality of service they are providing. Do you have any direct examples of this that you can share? I would like to know more information about some of the challenges you faced or witnessed dealing with them. Thanks.

MRUP10

Today marks day 35 since submitting E-Qip for security clearance, not holding my breathe but fingers crossed maybe I will hear something this week. As it was recently posted on clearancejobs.com the new average wait time for interim clearance was 35 days. Howwever, that may not be the case as my recruiter advised 120+ days to wait for interim-clearance...

curtisc83

MRUP10 wrote: »

DB, based on your feedback the guys the work for Vectrus over there must be really bad at the quality of service they are providing. Do you have any direct examples of this that you can share? I would like to know more information about some of the challenges you faced or witnessed dealing with them. Thanks.

Back before ITT split up and became Vectrus i use to work for them and what he is saying was true when I worked for ITT. After the Army they were the company that was doing cattle calls for positions so it was easy to get hired. So when I did CRC back then it was all ITT folks since we all had the same hire dates. And I can tell you there was a huge portion that had no business in IT. I'm not talking about just laziness I'm talking about some didn't really have an IT background. This was before the DOD Directive for Certs came out so you didn't need certs just a pulse. One dude was a security guard before ITT hired him for a IT postion. I moved on to a much better company after a year and grew my skills. But that time with ITT is why I will never work for a company that is related to them or was spun off.

MRUP10

Joshmadakor,

How long did it end up taking for interim and final Secret clearance?

devilbones

MRUP10 wrote: »

DB, based on your feedback the guys the work for Vectrus over there must be really bad at the quality of service they are providing. Do you have any direct examples of this that you can share? I would like to know more information about some of the challenges you faced or witnessed dealing with them. Thanks.

I can tell you that everyone I know that deals with them runs into the same issue. I am the IMO for my organization and serve as a liaison between our users and Vectrus. They fall under the 25th Signal Bn and provide local comms (Phone/SIPR/NIPR). We have our own phones and networks that we support but because a few of our guys must interact with the base they need to use the base comms.
First thing I had to do was go to a class where they show you how to use their ticket system. The IA guy described himself as the sheriff and his sole purpose was to catch people and shut down their systems.
Next it took them over two months to create my account correctly for remedy.
After I had access to remedy I found out that somebody at a different location had been using my name to reset passwords and they were given the passwords over the phone. My name is unique and it would be really hard to mess it up.
They constantly change their processes and dont even publish them, so if you come to turn in gear the way you did the previous month you could be doing it wrong.
The employees are very unprofessional, one of they 'Network Admins' didnt know what DHCP was and could barely speak English. I work with non-native English speakers all the time and I cant even understand how this guy would make it past the interview process.
I dropped 3 computers off to be re-imaged with paperwork that included my phone number. Their ticket system was down when I created the request so I could not put the ticket number on the paper. I explained this to the 'technician' when I dropped it off and he confirmed the system was down and it wouldnt be a problem. A week later I still hadnt received a call so I went to pick them up. The guy with no interpersonal skills went to look for them and told me he didnt have them. He allowed me to come in the back and look, they were nowhere to be found. I asked him if there was anywhere else they might be and he walked me to the workspace and directly to my stack of 3 computers. He said they were not imaged because they didnt have a ticket. At this point I was so frustrated in this guys general lack of even caring. He didnt call me so I could give him the ticket numbers over the phone, no follow up at all. It took 3 more weeks to get them all back.
I wish you good luck working for them. It must be pretty easy money though because you probably wont have to do anything and still get paid. The guy I know out here only gets 35% on his base and only works 6x10 or something like that.

LittleBIT

Yikes man, talk about real poor customer service.

LittleBIT

Spoke to a friend just now and he said it took him 9 months... hes a federal employee. He went straight from the military into feds, and even with an active secret clearance, he still had to wait for a secret clearance. Hopefully we have a shot in half the time lol. Heres other peoples experience so far, read the bottom comments.

http://clearancejobsblog.com/are-you-experiencing-security-clearance-processing-delays/

Chicks7519

I've accepted the offer for vectrus may 2016. My recruiter says my clearance is still pending. Has anyone experienced this long wait before? I already have a secret clearance and job requires secret, i have also worked over seas before 4 plus years. What is really the hold up?

curtisc83

Chicks7519 wrote: »

I've accepted the offer for vectrus may 2016. My recruiter says my clearance is still pending. Has anyone experienced this long wait before? I already have a secret clearance and job requires secret, i have also worked over seas before 4 plus years. What is really the hold up?

When was your clearance last active and when was the last renewal?

MRUP10

So quick question, I have accepted a conditional offer with Vectrus to work overseas. All prerequisites have been met accept for obtaining secret clearance which is in process and may take a while. I have received another offer from another Federal contractor to work stateside at an Air Force base in my region. This offer is also contingent on me obtaining my secret clearance, however I can go to work for them immediately while the clearance procedures are processing. My question for those of you follow the thread is.. If I accept the offer with the Federal contractor and start working stateside how will that effect my clearance proceedings with Vectrus, could it possibly delay the clearance process even longer? My ultimate goal is to go work overseas with Vectrus but it would be nice to work in the same arena in the mean time. Should I just wait out clearance procedures with Vectrus and go work for a private company or should I go work for another government contractor working stateside while waiting on my clearance, while also possibly having to re-initiate the clearance process? I hope that made sense let me know your thoughts. Thanks!

LittleBIT

I'm in the same boat as you MRUP10.

I got an offer to go to Hawaii as a contractor for a year... Pay is decent, but no where near a year's pay with Vectrus, but I'm on a tropical island drinking fruit smoothies. I was also told it would be tax exempt (not sure how...)

So now I'm deciding what to do. They also want me to have a secret clearance.

MRUP10

I ended up declining the offer as I do not want the clearance procedures to interfere or delay. the the clearance that I am trying to obtain with Vectrus. Also, the pay would be quite a step back from what I am used to. I am at 42 days since submitting for clearance with Vectrus ofcourse no news yet. I will work in the private sector in the mean time.

LittleBIT

Bro, 42 days?! It seems like the going rate is 3 months. From reading up on the link I posted earlier and reading comments. Also when I interviewed I asked them if I would have to go through the clearance process, as I'm doing that with Vectrus, and they said yes, but often times recruits hear back within 3 months, not usually longer.

Bleh...

Private sector work in the mean time...

Though a tropical job would be nice over 1 year oversea's... Not sure what I'll do.

fmitawaps

Leonardo Fantastico wrote: »

There is no reason to work for Vectrus.

If you already have at least an interim clearance there are firms that pay a lot more.

If you don't already have at least an interim clearance the wait from your first interview until your first paycheck is about 6 months. That is how backed up things are at the moment just to get a determination on an interim clearance [no fault of Vectrus - it is affecting everybody]. Plus, there is NO GUARANTEE that a final determination on your clearance will happen before your year is over. If you quit Vectrus they will pull your application and have to start all over again with another company.

You could be stuck in the Middle East/Asia for years until you are given a final clearance. This isn't Vectrus' fault. The whole clearance process is in chaos.

What other companies are hiring IT contractors that pay more money?

anhtran35

It takes 3 to 4 months to get a Secret. Not sure if you can go overseas with just an interim.

EANx

People go overseas with an interim all the time, it's entirely dependent on the circumstances.

joshmadakor

anhtran35 wrote: »

It takes 3 to 4 months to get a Secret. Not sure if you can go overseas with just an interim.

I'm in Japan right now on an interim

fmitawaps

I was looking over the certification requirements for some jobs, and it seems a CCNA is generally required for one of the certs, or a Microsoft cert of some kind. For the security side, the Security+ seems to be popular, but what about CCNA Security? It seems like it'd be better than a Security+, and cheaper to take the test for too.

LittleBIT

I was told, and confirmed, that you don't get mail in Iraq, FYI. It's true. So plan accordingly!

ITGeek30329

I accepted the offer on 5/27/16. I did all the medical, dental and shots within the month. Also within the month I passed both of my certificates. I turned in my security clearance application on 6/22 and today I received my interim security clearance. Hope this helps.

LittleBIT

When are you leaving?

I also just got mine and will be leaving for CRC soon

PM if you are uncomfortable sharing on the forum. Always good to know people.