Am I being lead on?

I had a phone interview for an entry-level help desk position. It went very well. About 10 days later I was invited in for an interview, which also went very well.

After my interview, I sent a formal Thank You e-mail to the hiring manager. 2 days later, he responded with "Nice thank you note... (-:"

Then, he went quiet for almost 3 weeks! He finally e-mailed me back saying, "Hi, still available?"

To which I replied:

John,

It's great to hear from you. Yes, I am still available. I look forward to starting soon!

Thank You,
Mike

This was exactly 2 weeks ago! Why would he ask about my availability, only to keep me in the dark for two weeks? Should I attempt to contact him? What is going on here?!

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Comments

buzzkill

If the messages from him are the exact and full extent of the quotes then he sounds like a ******* idiot.

MSP-IT

I would avoid all non-verbal communication, if possible. Phone conversations can and will be much more direct and to the point.

TonyBoy

Should I have called when he asked if I was still available? Replying to his e-mail seemed the appropriate course of action.

networker050184

Agree with MSP-IT. Give him a call and get it straightned out. Make sure everyone is on the same page.

ptilsen

That sounds annoying. Don't stop looking/interviewing, however. Never let the possibility of a pending offer stop you, for situations exactly like this. If this were you dream job, it might be a different story, but help desk is a dime a dozen. Move on and don't get hung up over this. If it still works out, great, but the extreme delay would put me off, for sure.

Bokeh

Maybe their first choice didnt work out? I already ran into this recently. Was runner up and then I found a much better position. Got called on Fri asking if I was still interested in first position. No thanks, Ive moved on.

I agree, should all be voice contact from now on.

NetworkVeteran

Why would he ask about my availability

They have/had an opening and wanted to know if you were still available.

Then, he went quiet for almost 3 weeks! This was exactly 2 weeks ago!

Interviewing you did not obligate the employer to send you regular updates on their job-search.

only to keep me in the dark for two weeks?

Plenty of things could be happening. For one, you could've been a strong runner-up for round one, and when their top candidate(s) fell through, they wanted to know if you were still in-the-running in case their round two candidates also fell through. For two, the political or economic climate within the company may have changed and they're having difficult hiring anyone.

Focus on your own life and other prospects. You've done your job by strutting your stuff! Maybe he'll call, maybe he won't. It's only a big deal if you're doing something silly like putting your life on hold waiting for that call.

TonyBoy

I appreciate your responses.

Unfortunately, I am relying pretty heavily on this job.

Aside from my HS Diploma, I have no formal education, training, or certifications. However, I have been repairing PC's and audio/video equipment for 15+ years. It has always been just a hobby. But recently, I picked up some A+ practice tests. I aced them all. It gave me the confidence to say "I can be successful in IT."

So, for a few months I have been sending out resumes. I must have contacted over 100 companies. Only ONE company, the one I am waiting on, has even contacted me. They are looking specifically for someone who has no experience. The hiring manager told me it was "truly entry level." I have heard some say that "help desk jobs are a dime-a-dozen." What am I doing wrong? Where should I be looking for a truly entry-level tech support job?

Essendon

I reckon you've got a poorly done resume. If you've repaired stuff for so many years you should be putting it on there (if your leaving it off) or wording it better. Can we critique your resume? Sanitize and post it here and we can help. Get that A+ ASAP and work on something better right after I reckon. There are hundreds of folks with A+ certs out there that your competing with, so do that one bit extra to be able to stand out.

ChickenNuggetz

I would add in a "technical skills" section. Include things like operating systems you have deep knowledge of, specfic programs you can configure/troubleshoot, any programming/scripting you've done or are familiar with, any hardware you can build/configure/troubleshoot.

Here's some food for thought: as it stands right now, the ONLY thing that jumps out at a prospective employer is your summary of qualifications and even that is somewhat lacking. You are trying to sell yourself to these companies, you need to have your resume reflect why they should WANT to hire you. Give them something to work with and consider!

Essendon

PLEASE post a pdf version, what we currently see isnt what an employer would.

Additional food for thought - That Summary of qualifications puts me off right away. You are going to have to word it better. First, remove family and friends, use the word clients. They were clients right, whether they paid or not is a different matter. Second, arrange it better and give it some structure by putting stuff about computers in the same (or two) bullet points. It must the formatting, but two words look like one in many instances.

You write about repairing computers and other stuff but I dont see if anywhere in the actual experience section. Find a way to incorporate that into the resume. Basically, what an employer sees is this guy appears to have no experience doing computer work and tosses your resume into the trash pile. You want the employer to atleast notice something on there, something that'll pique their interest and reach out for the phone and call you. Nothing on there, at the moment, makes me want to call you. Harsh, I know, but that's the way it is.

You've listed that you gained repeat business, write in dollar terms of the profit this brought to the company. Similarly, write about how much sales you generated. HR like to see dollar values.

As ChickenNuggetz said, you want them to WANT to hire you. Nothing jumps out from the resume for now. Work on these points we've listed, get that A+ ASAFP and work on a CCENT or something right after. If you cannot sell yourself enough, you aint going to get called.

NetworkVeteran

Well, you have zero degrees, certifications, or work experience. That is why only 1 out of 100 companies responded. Over 800,000 people have had their A+ knowledge certified by CompTIA, and many people have higher-level knowledge and so never even bothered with the A+. You should be aiming to be able to boast at least an A+ certification and hopefully more.

ptilsen

There is plenty I'd change on your resume, but I'm with NetworkVeteran. I would have to be desperate to interview you, and you would have to really impress to get the job. Sorry to be so harsh about it, but you don't any especially relevant qualifications. Get your A+ or something and I'm betting you'll see very different results.

davidboy

Did you ask him when you should receive a follow-up response from him? I would have contacted him 1-2 weeks (instead of waiting for 3) after hearing nothing from him. I once waited 2 weeks w/o a response then sent my interviewer an email asking for an update and restating my qualifications; he emailed me back the same day and told me I had the job. Im not sure if he was busy during this time and forgot all about the hiring process or if he was just waiting for me to reach out to him.

I once received a response from my interviewer 5 weeks after the interview telling me I did not receive the job. The interviewer explained in the email that it took so long because she was still interviewing other candidates during that time frame.

With that said, Congrats!! I also recommend continuing to find higher positions while you work at this help desk so you get get out of there sooner and move on to bigger roles.

nestech

@TonyBoy you did the right thing. I would send him a fallow up email. But you have to keep on looking...

Also if you are studying for an exam make sure you put that on your resume as in progress... You need to get your A+,N+ and Security +
if you need any help I be happy to assist you any way I can...

This is a good site: Professor Messer, CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, Linux, Microsoft Certification Training

bobloblaw

Show up mid work day there with a boombox above your head playing "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel. You'll get the job then. No question.

Kidding aside, everyone's advice here is spot on. Go grab an entry level cert(s).

bub9001

Sounds like they know your desperate, and for that they are keeping you in the dark for now. They more then likely have a prime candidate, if it's you it's anyone's guess. Remember HR can really drag the hiring process down, and turn it into the longest weeks of your life.

I would move on, get on Profeesor Messors site and get to work. Sitting around waiting on a very thin possibility of getting hired is a waste of time. Start working on your A+, then move on to Network+ or CCENT. Sometimes when your in the middle of bettering your self, potential employers tend to notice you. They are also more likely to take a chance on someone that is "Hungry", rather then on someone that lacks motivation.

I have had twice as many job interview then jobs, doesn't mean I'm not a good employee. Just means I didn't fit what they were looking for. Keep on learning, this field isn't for those that don't want to learn something new.

RouteMyPacket

buzzkill wrote: »

If the messages from him are the exact and full extent of the quotes then he sounds like a ******* idiot.

Exactly, some retard that has been given the duties of hiring HD people. Move on would be my advice.

TonyBoy

Great news! He called back, and asked is I was interested in a Project Management position! I accepted, and I start work on Monday!

Thank you all for your feedback!

Zartanasaurus

IT Project Management?

yuddhidhtir

Don't know what kind of position you've got but congrats anyway