[advice needed] Interview for IT support helpdesk (entry level) position

[Son of Lothar]

Ok so, I am pretty nervous about tomorrow. I have an interview for entry level position for an IT helpdesk for my local power company. I would only be dealing with internal endpoint users within the company and not external customers. The company uses windows XP pro and some 3rd party IT security called "SAMIAM". Anyway... I have been with power company for over 2 years now as a CSR (customer service rep) answering calls for customers who have questions regarding billing and such. I don't have a degree but, I have taken IT classes and will soon attempt to get a MCDST or a MCE certification.

They said the interview will be an hour long with a 30min hands-on test after...

Anyone work in this field that can provide some insight as to what to expect?

Thanks,

[ayako]

Every company is different but just try to relax and don't make any simple mistakes. The interview will likely not be the full hour, they will want to focus on the hands on test.

[Heliorad]

Yeah, it's little different for every company. 1.5 hour interview/test isn't bad. I once had a 5 hour interview with at least 8 different people with a 2 hour follow up on another day for an entry level quality assurance position. (My background is in customer support/tech support too). I did get the position.

Basically, if you've been through verbal interviews before, those are very similar across the board until you get to management positions where they expect you to be a good talker and confident. For low-level tech monkies, they'll want to know why you're looking to move into this position, why you think you'll be a good fit. They often ask what you see yourself doing in a few years--they're trying to sniff out A) if you'll try to move out of this position in a mere 6 months or something, or B) see if you are goal-oriented and have a plan for yourself. Which attitude is "right" in that they'll approve of it depends on what they want to fill the role with. Some places want intelligent go-getters that are on the ball, others don't want to go through the hassle of hiring all over again if you're going to abandon them in under a year so they want unambitious warm bodies that are content to stay. They may ask what you want from THEM in a job, what you expect to get out of it. They may ask you what you think a decent pay rate is, what you've comfortable with. They may ask you why you like computers or IT. Try to have those answers set up in your head before you go in.

The hands-on test for help desk will probably be making sure you are comfortable with the inside of the computer. If all you have is your IT classes to go off of and you don't fiddle with your computer at home as a hobby enough to be comfortable and familiar with popping out ram and stuff, diagnosing if a cable isn't hooked up, etc, they'll probably notice it and you could have an issue. They'll want to know if you can diagnose email issues. Not just web based stuff, but Outlook and Thunderbird with POP or IMAP. They'll want to know if you can diagnose network issues, if a user calls up to complain that they can't get on the internet. Users will often call help desk up and tell them stupid things like "The internet is down" when it's actually only one specific site, or one specific thing, so you'll need to know how to ask questions that will get you the proper information you need to actually fix the issue. So they may act like a user with a problem, and have you ask them questions so you can figure out what the issue is. They may also give you a problem, such as "the printer isn't working" and ask you to give them all the ways a printer may fail to print, such as being out of ink/paper, the printer not being on the network properly, the user trying to print might not have the proper drivers installed, the user trying to print may need to walk over and turn on the printer, etc.

[bals]

^what this guy said. Internal IT pretty much just takes care of all the computer illiterate people in the company to make sure they can do what they need to do, which usually just consists of fixing silly things

[hdblue]

^what this guy said. Internal IT pretty much just takes care of all the computer illiterate people in the company to make sure they can do what they need to do, which usually just consists of fixing silly things

Hi,

Thank very much for your comment. It make me to think about for my ideals. I'll send later

Tks again

[Mortiegama]

I oversee the help desk and techs where I work and I can tell you what I look for:

1) Show confidence and knowledge in your ability to troubleshoot over the phone
2) Give examples of "banter" that you make with the customers on the phone, nothing diffuses a problem like a good attitude
3) Make reference to your ability to handle customers varying from irrate maniacs to keyboard turners

As far as a test expect simple things like How do you get an IP from a computer. Generally the questions are enough to tell that you've been around computers and can figure out command prompts, the control panel, etc.

[lordmatthias]

Hey what these guys have said all holds water. Early this summer I got a IT support job, system admin, because the company isn't huge I handle everything from tier 1 help desk stuff to advanced trouble shooting, hardware repair/installation, mobile device support, and software support for our in house software.

With a tier 1 position you will likely be dealing with a lot of fairly simple issues as have been stated. Really it is going to come down to being able to recognize fairly obvious problems as well as having excellent customer service skills. More than likely the stuff you are totally unfamiliar with will end up being escalated to tier 2 or higher. Based on your background I would really promote your customer service background, along with any technical situations you have been in (like a previous poster said, working on your own home system, helping friends with computer problems etc...). In general try to be confident in the skill sets you have, your verbal presentation, if you are good at reading people, try to use that to your advantage. If the interviewer is seems really interested in something you are presenting try to elaborate on it further. Try to make the interview process positive, keep in mind that a lot of these people doing these interviews end up doing a LOT of these, and it can really get fairly boring, if you can get the interviewer to laugh or enjoy the process while maintaining a professional manor, they are more likely to remember you, and have a positive feeling from the interview. This will also really speak to how you handle people and keep your cool in stressful situations.

If you do/did get the job, make it a point to learn EVERYTHING you can about tickets that get escalated, and try to learn as much as you can from your co-workers. That will be the key to advancing up the chain, as broadening your technical knowledge and troubleshooting skills will get you into the higher tier support levels.

Anyway, hopefully my particular insight will help you some, and I hope you get the job!