Please Advise

I recently got fired from my job as a help desk tech because a big time client complained about me and it truly was not my fault. The problem is I was there only for 3 months and in those three months I learned a lot and some of the legitimate skills i learned from that job are strongly desired by employers. Should i even put this on my resume? I'm worried because although i do have IT experience, it was 4 years ago and the last maybe 3 years i worked in retail. That help desk job was my attempt to get back into IT and like i said, my technical abilities I picked up during those 3 months are real but worried that 3 months on a resume will put me in the trash pile. Can someone please advise thanks.

Find more posts tagged with

Free for TechExams community: Cybersecurity salary guide

Compare cert salaries and plan your next career move

Button

Comments

OctalDump

Do you have anything to lose by trying? If you put it on a resume, then it is something. Maybe it will be harder to get interviews, but you will likely still get interviews.

kkeopradit

Thanks for the response. I'm in the Northern Virginia area and it's very competitive to even land an interview at all.

Chev Chellios

Definitely go for it dude, it's all about selling yourself!

I was in a similar position years ago, it sucks horrendously but you have to get out there and back on the wagon, use previous references or whatever but sell the skills you have mate. Good luck, and these forums are great for help and advice!

UncleB

You could put it on your CV and pretend you still work for them and you don't want then contacted for a reference as it could get you sacked.

Or you could own up to it, have the situation very clearly defined in your mind and use it as a discussion in the interview if you are asked to tell of a mistake you made and how you rectified it. We all mess up sometimes or end up in an impossible situation but it is how we grow from it that really counts.

Lastly, and most probably best, say it was a 3 month contract to cover sick leave.

Unfortunately if the company do give a bad reference then you will probably have to write it off your history and start again - 3 months is nothing in a career that will probably span decades so learn from the situation and don't let it happen again (i.e. it may not be your fault but you need to learn how to stop situations escalating in future to the point where you get blamed).

thanks
Iain

Nightflier101BL

I HIGHLY suggest that you do not lie. Honesty is always the best approach, especially being in the Northern Virginia area (which I am also). You never know when you'll get an opportunity for a clearance/government and it will come back to bite you big time.

Put it on your resume with do not contact and when asked about it, be honest and explain your situation. Even if asked on an application form if you've ever been fired for any reason, be truthful.

You may get eliminated based on that or you may have to start somewhere else lower on the totem pole and re-build your work history. However, you do not want to be labeled as dishonest in this area.

TechGromit

Nightflier101BL wrote: »

I HIGHLY suggest that you do not lie. Honesty is always the best approach, especially being in the Northern Virginia area (which I am also). You never know when you'll get an opportunity for a clearance/government and it will come back to bite you big time.

What I would do would include it on my resume and tell them it was a short term assignment. But if your asked to fill out a background check form, put the real reason down, do not lie on a background check form. Chances are you background will clear and your hiring manager will never see your background, just that you cleared. It's when they find discrepancies when it becomes an issue.

I had a similar situation. I terminated from a position I only held for 6 weeks and had to fill out a background check form. I included the job and termination on the background form and my background cleared without problems. Later when I applied for a full time position as contractor, I didn't include the job I was terminated on my resume. I ended up getting the job and it was never an issue.

scaredoftests

Don't lie and in my opinion, 3 months is too short a time to fire someone from a job. I am sorry that you got fired (been there). If you can, leave it off your resume.

636-555-3226

1 - any objection to moving? Job market may be tough in your current area, but are any ties holding you from going to another area? There are lots of great places to live out there, and you have the benefit of the internet a) helping you locate "best places to live in the us" and b) free, automated online searches to tell you how available relevant jobs are in those best places to live (without even having to live there first!)

2 - I'd put it on the resume. Don't say you were canned, just list your jobs as the years you worked in them, so just list "JCPenny Help Desk 2015." If you land an interview and they ask specific months, explain the situation clearly. Don't lie, don't point fingers, don't act bitter or spiteful. Explain the situation calmly, fully, and fluently and if it you come across as honest and it really wasn't your fault, any good interviewer will see that and not count it against you

kkeopradit

Hey thanks guys, I didn't expect such great responses from so many techs. I really appreciate the advice and i'm putting it in my resume because the skills I got there are real and I think I have a lot to offer. The truth isn't so bad as long as i can show an employer that I can meet or even exceed what they're looking for. I will keep you guys up to date on what occurs and thanks again.

kkeopradit

This place was an IT outsourcing company and I think it's just growing to rapidly without real focus. While I was there, they were hiring at least 10 help desk techs a month in that particular location i was at alone and would have to fire half of them because they either had little experience or provided zero guidance. The guy that complained about me was an IT manager of a big company and he didn't know who I was and why I was calling him because he was use to one particular group of techs that handled his company's problems. I found out later that I was put in a group that supported a specific region and all of them new all the crazy third party software everyone uses, knew who to avoid if they didn't want to get into trouble but no one bothered to inform me about any of this. I even had help desk managers in this region try to convince me that it was ok to install software on computers even though the company had zero subscriptions available. I was told to get it somehow from some where else.

$bvb379

I only put approximate dates on my resume. I have had a few jobs that only lasted months or fewer than 12 months. If an employer cares that much about specific dates, especially when someone is in grade school or college, and gives you crap about it, you probably do not want to work for that company. Not sure how old you are though. Post-graduate job hopping/getting fired, maybe so, but not in the early stages of career. Just my opinion. It is very subjective as well. I know people have never had a job in their lives, graduated college, and now have jobs with zero job experience and everywhere in between.

NetworkingStudent

Hello,

Be honest.

I would list your skills and time with the company on your resume.

Also, during the interview you can mention how some managers wanted you to install software on machines, and the customers didn't pay for this service, nor did they authorize this action. You can say you didn't feel right about this situation. Maybe during your interview you could says one of your skills or attributes is that you try to be honest with the customer and the company. You want to do what's right for the customer and the company.

This is my 2 cents

Good luck