Phone Interview

Mr.Robot255

I have finally landed a interview for a technical support level 1 position.

It will be a 30 min phone conversation/interview to go over my CV and what skills i have etc. (also to check my personality/manner im sure)
While my Word-press knowledge is limited i am going to watch a couple of videos and also created a word press page just to flick through some of the stuff so i have a basic knowledge. The rest of the items listed i tick the boxes.

How do you approach/prepare for a phone call like this, i was thinking of printing out some of the stuff listed just to have it hand in case i'm questioned about say SFTP etc i will have something immediately to reply back with in my own words.

The job is :
As a Technical Support team member you will provide world-class support to our customers over our live chat system, via support tickets and/or over phone

• Have a passion for technology, helping customers and learning.
• 1-2 years experience working in technical support or a customer service position.
• Technical aptitude: you have strong troubleshooting skills and are able to easily identify problem.
• Basic knowledge of WordPress: you have built, installed or supported a WordPress site.
• Basic knowledge of DNS: you should know what a CNAME and an A Record is.
• Basic knowledge of Network fundamentals: You know what a traceroute is and can use ping.
• Basic knowledge of FTP: If you know what SFTP is and why you should use it, that's even better.
• Basic knowledge of linux command line and SSL.
• Able to type 50 - 60 WPM.
• Customer focused: You're a people person who looks forward to helping the person who just called you for help.
• Team player: Teamwork isn't something you just talk about, you believe it and help keep it going.
• Able to multitask: You can handle multiple tickets at once, but you can tell which tickets are priority.
• Detail oriented: You like to take detailed notes of what you're doing so others can see what steps you've taken to help the customer, we work as a team and having detailed notes is helpful for everyone.
• Great communicator: As the most visible part of the company, it matters what you say and how you say it.

[FONT=&amp]Nice to Have:[/FONT]

• Basic knowledge of WordPress Plugins and Themes.

NetworkingStudent

Phone Interview Prep

• Have a copy of your updated resume and a pen to take notes of conversation
• Know what is on your resume and be prepared to answer questions about it
• Make sure that you are in a quiet room
• Interview can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes
• Make sure that your voice projects a professional, but personable manner – speak clearly, slowly, and smile
• Most importantly – BE HONEST!!! If you are asked about a certain skill or technology and you are not familiar with it, say something along the lines of, “I am not familiar with that skill/technology, however, I have used **fill in the blank here with something that might be a similar skill or technology**
• At the beginning of the call: Make sure you get the name of the manager; thank them for calling and to loosen the mood up a little, ask them about their role/title there and the team they are on.
• BE PREPARED to answer questions about your strengths & weaknesses as well as challenges you faced in your previous positions. Write them down and be prepared to give an example.
• DO NOT GIVE STRAIGHT YES OR NO RESPONSES – it will flatten the tone of the interview
• Make sure that you have some questions in mind throughout the interview; for example:
o What skills do you feel are important to be successful in this position?
o How would you break down the responsibilities of the position?
o How would you describe the corporate culture?
o Do you foresee any changes in the company within the next year? What changes would you make if you could?
• FOLLOW UP
o Request the manager’s e-mail address so that you can send the manager a Thank You Email for their time – it helps you stand out


More tips:

This video has helped me:

I.T. Interview Tips - Verbalize Your Thought Process When Asked Questions


https://youtu.be/YvvTV-jZGJw

Also, I would research the company. Years in business, what they do? Who are their customers?

As far as what they would ask, well everything on the job description is fair game.

Have you you have built, installed or supported a WordPress site?

Please describe what a know what a CNAME and an A Record is?


Good luck, I hope this helps

Nik 99

Hi Mr.Robot, I've also got a phone interview tomorrow for level 1 Noc role.

Good luck for both of us! =P

EANx

Throw in 2-3 sir's or ma'am's, it makes you seem respectful.

scaredoftests

..try to relax..good luck.

yoba222

Creating a page at wordpress.com is considerably less complex than installing the WordPress CMS on a server as a website. I'd suggest installing something like Ubuntu in a virtual machine and then installing WordPress in it. Plenty of tutorials out there. It can get involved though and easily consume several hours to work through. Another alternative to a Linux VM would be installing something like XAMPP if your stuck with something like Windows.

"Basic knowledge of WordPress: you have built, installed or supported a WordPress site."

This to me implies installing the WordPress CMS from wordpress.org not simply creating a blog account like from wordpress.com. Good luck.

TechGromit

Mr.Robot255 wrote: »

I have finally landed a interview for a technical support level 1 position.

Basic knowledge of WordPress: you have built, installed or supported a WordPress site.

Word what? I've never built a website, it's far easier for me to make fun of someone else's website.

Mr.Robot255 wrote: »

• Able to type 50 - 60 WPM.

Damn, I'm lucky if I could type 30 WPM, I don't even qualify. 50 to 60 WPM is pretty steep requirements, that's approaching professional typist speeds, I believe the average is 40 WPM.

Bokeh

Ask the person how long they have been there? What brought them there? What excites them about coming to work each day? People like to talk about themselves. Remember, an interview is a two way street, both get to ask questions. Ask why this position is open - new/replacement/growth.

Mr.Robot255

hey thanks for all the great replies and Tips very much appreciated.

i will do an install of word-press a bit later on tonight i will use xamp, i am still waiting to hear for a reply for when the call will be scheduled.



And Nik 99 Good Luck too hope you get it

Nik 99

Had my phone interview. Got a call back from the recuriter 30 mins later to confirm they wanted a face to face. In terms of feedback my interviewer said I was really personable and had excellent technical knowledge. Only critisim was lack of helpdesk precedure, not to surprising given I've never worked on a helpdesk before. I didn't have a clue what IPMI or IDRAC was so just admited it and moved on. Nor did I know about NTR traceroute, but I did explain what I knew about tracert + traceroute and what they did, which might have got me partial score there.

I do hope you have equal success with your own phone interview Mr.Robot255

clarkincnet

That's funny that they are stressing you should be able to type 50-60 WPM and then ask about IPMI (which I had to look up). They just should have asked if you have general experience with monitoring or remote login. You can learn a specific tool if you know the concept.

Good luck.

Mr.Robot255

Nik 99 wrote: »

Had my phone interview. Got a call back from the recuriter 30 mins later to confirm they wanted a face to face. In terms of feedback my interviewer said I was really personable and had excellent technical knowledge. Only critisim was lack of helpdesk precedure, not to surprising given I've never worked on a helpdesk before. I didn't have a clue what IPMI or IDRAC was so just admited it and moved on. Nor did I know about NTR traceroute, but I did explain what I knew about tracert + traceroute and what they did, which might have got me partial score there.

I do hope you have equal success with your own phone interview Mr.Robot255

hey Nik well done , hope you land a nice job.