Is this what people mean when they say companies are H1B fishing?

Thacker

Midtown Atlanta, for reference.

I applied to a company a while back and recieved this as a response.




I told them no, and gave them a range more in line with that I thought the responsibilities should entail. I never heard back.

60k would not be bad... but the following is the job description that was attached.

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Job Title: Network Administrator

Reports To:

The role of the Network Administrator is to ensure the operation of the company wide network

infrastructure and recommend specific networking products and technologies to provide cost-effective

solutions in alignment with the business objectives and technology requirements of the company. Under

general direction, this motivated self starter designs and maintains our network architecture to include

hardware platforms, client applications, server services, Operating Systems, and network equipment as it

applies to our LAN/WAN and Data Center infrastructure. In addition the Network Administrator will

analyze current enterprise trends and makes recommendations for capacity planning and performance

tuning. Make recommendations on upgrades or replacement to hardware, OS, NOS, network and

applications and evaluate their impact on existing system configurations. Independently research and

resolve technical problems related to network service disruptions. Maintain and compile documentation

of standards, implementation procedures, and troubleshooting processes. The Network Administrator may

also act as project manager on one or more projects as relates to new software implementations and

network upgrades.

Responsibilities:

This position is responsible for overseeing our worldwide network consisting of the Atlanta headquarters,

four US branch offices along with offices in Brussels, and Beijing. The Network Administrtor maintains

and supports all networking hardware and software company wide.

Duties to include but not limited to:

 Monitor and maintain the overall health and performance of the network to maintain stability.

This includes bandwidth analysis; resource utilization, hardware health, and log file analysis.

Perform capacity planning and application analysis for network performance and sizing

recommendations.

 Maintain the company’s SAN environment and other storage resources monitoring for health and

availability. Perform capacity planning and planned upgrades/replacement to ensure adequate

capacity and performance.

 Maintain the company’s virtual infrastructure based on VMware vSphere performing all

necessary upgrades and maintenance patches. Develop and maintain the company’s strategy for

virtualization related to servers, desktops and the use of VMware.

 Manage our current Microsoft Exchange e-mail environment and planning for future upgrades to

keep current with new product releases. This includes support and maintenance of Exchange

front-end and backend servers, OWA, Windows Mobile devices, MX records for multiple

domains, SMTP connectors, Backup and disaster recovery, SPAM and Virus filtering.

 Monitor and maintain our Internet and WAN connectivity in each office ensuring proper

bandwidth availability to support forecasted needs. Manage our Cisco ASA firewalls and other

WAN components in conjunction with this responsibility. Liaise with our communications

provider and participate in contract negotiations to ensure proper requirements and SLAs are met.

 Manage and maintain multiple Microsoft Windows Servers and the associated Active Directory.

This includes monitoring the hardware health and planning for upgrades and replacement.

Maintaining software patches and upgrades on the OS and associated applications. Monitoring

Active Directory health and configuration.

 Maintain and support the company’s Cisco UCM VOIP implementation and associated

infrastructure. Tasks include troubleshooting problems, implementing new features as applicable,

applying patches and upgrades as needed.

 Monitor and maintain backups of all network resources, select client systems, and all SQL

databases. This includes reviewing of all pertinent job logs, verifying backup integrity, and test

restores. This also involves coordinating of offsite storage of data backups and disaster recovery

planning.

 Create and maintain support documentation, asset inventory, and technical drawings of the

enterprise network infrastructure.

 Develop network policies and maintain security configurations in compliance with industry best

practices.

 Act as backup for critical and routine tasks to ensure proper coverage is available when the Senior

Network Engineer is unavailable.

 Act as backup for the Desktop Manager and provide helpdesk support as needed.

Professional Qualifications:

 Strong analytical skills with a focus on business process mapping and the ability to apply system

solutions to business problems.

 Ability to quickly learn and enhance current technologies and systems as well as identify, lead

evaluation of, and implement new and improved technologies to enhance the efficiency of the

company.

 Must have proven written and oral communication skills; strong customer service skills, and

leadership skills.

 Proven project life-cycle documentation skills; e.g., functional user requirements, technical

requirements, testing documentation, etc.

 Must be able to plan, conduct and direct major projects, including project definition, cost

assessment, and ROI analysis.

 Must be able to direct teams of cross-functional professionals involved in the analysis, design,

development and implementation of large-scale software applications with the integration of

multiple systems and data sources.

 Ability to work with people at all levels within the organization.

 Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, or a related discipline is required along with three years

or more of work experience.

 Must be comfortable working in an ever changing IT environment, have excellent project

management skills, and easily connect with Department staff.

 Familiarity of association management and non-profits is beneficial.

 Successful track record with IT applications in the financial area of large, complex, organizations

and/or consulting firms beneficial.

Technical Qualifications:

 In-depth knowledge of Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Server, Microsoft SQL Server,

Microsoft Exchange Server, WSUS, SharePoint Services and Server, Active Directory, Terminal

Server, IIS Server, Office system components

 In-depth knowledge of Cisco ISR routers, ASA Adaptive Security Appliance, Catalyst series

switches, IOS software, Unified Call Manager.

 McAfee Virus Scan, EPO, MXLogic Anti-Spam Servies

 Symantec Backup Exec, SQL Server maintenance plans and backup jobs, disaster recovery

planning.

 Operational knowledge of VMware vSphere, HP Lefthand SAN components, HP Proliant

Servers, APC UPS systems.

---

What is happening to our industry?

TechGuru80

I have seen reqs that have a ton of stuff listed that do not even apply to the job. HR gets their hands on the information and tried to make them have a lot of details for levels that don't even make sense.

That specific job sounds like a senior level type position but they want to pay a very junior salary.

techfiend

Except for the responsibility of overseas location networks, which is crazy, and the cisco bit, it looks like a very detailed list of my responsibilities as a sys admin. I don't get paid $60K in a higher COL location then Atlanta, I'm also looking to move on. I'd take the OP position if offered for the experience, looks like a good stepping stone.

TechGuru80

techfiend wrote: »

Except for the responsibility of overseas location networks, which is crazy, and the cisco bit, it looks like a very detailed list of my responsibilities as a sys admin. I don't get paid $60K in a higher COL location then Atlanta, I'm also looking to move on. I'd take the OP position if offered for the experience, looks like a good stepping stone.

Some of that is typical system admin type tasks...but when you start getting into "Must be able to plan, conduct and direct major projects, including project definition, cost assessment, and ROI analysis"...that doesn't really sound like a lower level admin.

Danielm7

TechGuru80 wrote: »

Some of that is typical system admin type tasks...but when you start getting into "Must be able to plan, conduct and direct major projects, including project definition, cost assessment, and ROI analysis"...that doesn't really sound like a lower level admin.

Yep, but also remember that a lot of companies create their job listings like lists of dream requirements. My very first IT job said they required a BS, wanted an MS, X years of experience, etc. I got the job on my first interview with no degree, zero professional experience and a MS cert.

The posting here even mentions a Sr network engineer, I doubt they'd have a administrator running entire projects if they had people much higher than them in the same org.

If they were H1B fishing they'd probably list the salary at 33K and when they can't find anyone at that rate then use it as an excuse to look elsewhere.

wtrwlkr

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but can someone explain to me what H1B fishing means? I tried using the googles but couldn't find a good answer.

cshkuru

They write a set of requirements that they know no local candidate will meet and then set a salary at the very low end of the range so that if they do find someone they wont accept the job. They can then certify to the department of labor that they looked for a local candidate and found no one qualified or willing to accept the job and that clears the hurdle to apply for an H1-B.

Winzer

Their salary cap is basically the salary floor for this much responsibilities. Indeed they may be H1B fishing, or they just don't understand that whoever had the job before was a bargain and quit because they knew they could get more money elsewhere.

Thacker

I am trying to figure out if it's me or them that is the problem here. From the salaries that I've been offered and told about lately it seems they have been falling... yet everything I read on glassdoor .. robert half.. indeed etc show that salaries have been rising. Are my expectations really that out of line or is this job posting as big of a joke as I think it is? Of note, I sent them a reply of 72-80k and did not receive a response.

hellolin

Thacker wrote: »

I am trying to figure out if it's me or them that is the problem here. From the salaries that I've been offered and told about lately it seems they have been falling... yet everything I read on glassdoor .. robert half.. indeed etc show that salaries have been rising. Are my expectations really that out of line or is this job posting as big of a joke as I think it is? Of note, I sent them a reply of 72-80k and did not receive a response.

It's probably the area you are looking at, 72k-80k with your experience in a big metro like NY, Boston or LA is pretty common, but since you are looking for work in the south, 60k is where they put you. Yes the location of your job might have high COL in ATL, but there are penlty of places near the city you can live with very low COL ($600-$700 a month rent for a 1br is pretty cheap for me). I say if you can try to find somewhere in the middle like 65k and do it for a year or 2, then jump ship if you can find one better.

pevangel

I wouldn't call this H1B fishing. Like Danielm7 said, they would have advertised it for a lot less if they were H1B fishing. 60K is pretty much on par with other JOAT positions I've seen lately.