Just Had A Technical Analyst Interview

[craigie1977]

First of all, please let me start by saying that I have no IT qualifications at the moment. However I do have experience of using MS Office 2003 & Exchange 2003 and a sound understanding of basic IT principles.

My career to date has been in Management and Financial Services with a focus on customer service. I changed my CV round to be focused towards IT in general and started to apply for roles one week ago, about the start of May '08.

I was called by a recruitment agency stating that they had a role and was I interested in a 1st Line Technical Analyst role, and that there was great career progression.

They then wanted to know if I was able to be booked in for a telephone interview on the same day, Wednesday 7th May '08.

The telephone interview consisted of a general conversation and then some technical questions which where:

1. What is a .pst file and what are they used for?
2. How would you change a Users password?
3. Name three DOS commands to check network settings.

Now, I believe I got the first two right, and only 2/3 of the last one. They then invited me in for my interview which I had this morning Friday 9th May '08.

The interview was perhaps the strangest one I have experienced (or perhaps this is normal in the realms of IT).

The first part was a technical test consisting of 22 questions, of which I feel I scored around 70& ish. Examples of some of the questions are:

What is MMC and what is it used for?
Name the file extensions for Word, Excel & Powerpoint
How do you find out a mailbox size?
If a User had an issue and they could not connect to the network, what questions would you ask?
What does TCP/IP stand for?
What does USB stand for?

Then the actually interview was really different, it was just a conversation for around one hour. I was'nt really asked any STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Results) questions it was more just chatting about the role.

I feel the reason for this was due to the way I carried myself in the phone interview, being polite, but engaging and enthusiatic.

The interviewer even stated that the credentials they are looking for are NOT technical skills for 1st Line Support as these can be taught easily, more based around attitide and willingness to learn.

So I have my fingers crossed for the results, however I have but below an extract from my CV in relation to my personal statement to help out anyone who is struggling to achieve interest or interviews.

Self motivated and enthusiastic customer service professional with first class IT and communication skills. Versatile and highly capable with a strong track record in customer relationship management. Regularly exceeding customer expectations within a high profile business environment. Comfortable within a team and equally focused using own initiative and creative problem solving skills. Results orientated with an ambition to succeed.

Hope this helps and if anyone has any questions, I would be happy to help,

Craig

[greenbrucelee]

Good advice, you don't really need IT qualifications to get an entry level job although it can help. Sounds like your interview went well. Good Luck

[The_Geek]

Sounds like a good start, good luck to you.

However, having been in that role before, be prepared to wear a headset all day long and answer about 50-80 incoming help desk calls. At this point all you'll be doing is keeping the calls answered and the second line support will work the issues. Work hard and show them you are willing to learn and you'll be 2nd level support in about 6 months.

[craigie1977]

Just had a phone call and they have offered me the job

Going to have a think about it over the weekend, but I'm pretty sure the answer will be yes as they have also agreed to pay for my MCDST exams and also MCITP exams and to review salary based around passing these.

[jammed24]

I just had a very similar interview too. they didnt ask many techie questions but lots of customer service skills...etc

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by craigie1977

The interview was perhaps the strangest one I have experienced (or perhaps this is normal in the realms of IT).

The first part was a technical test consisting of 22 questions,
...
Then the actually interview was really different, it was just a conversation for around one hour. I was'nt really asked any STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Results) questions it was more just chatting about the role.

That's actually pretty typical.

Congrats on the job! And thanks for the testimony - it'll be a good motivator for others here who are looking to get their start in IT!

[Fastracksteve]

Excellent!!! Congrats

[sunn]

Well done & Congratulations...

[onoski]

Congrats on new role and thanks for sharing your interview experience

[fatp]

Congrats mate!!!

I am a few steps on from you. I have been in an entry level job for about 5 months.

Just a few questions really:

1) Whats the scope for progression, short / long term wise?
2) What city are you based in and what salarly have you been offered (if you dont mind sayin)
3) Is it a blue chip / multinational company or a small firm?
4) Is it a call centre environment (call loggin / helpdesk) or more practical (face to face)?
5) Would you consider doing the Comptia A+ or Network+ as this is a good start and build up to the MCDST?

FatP

[Notes_Bloke]

Congrats on the job
NB

[craigie1977]

Originally Posted by fatp

Congrats mate!!!

I am a few steps on from you. I have been in an entry level job for about 5 months.

Just a few questions really:

1) Whats the scope for progression, short / long term wise?
2) What city are you based in and what salarly have you been offered (if you dont mind sayin)
3) Is it a blue chip / multinational company or a small firm?
4) Is it a call centre environment (call loggin / helpdesk) or more practical (face to face)?
5) Would you consider doing the Comptia A+ or Network+ as this is a good start and build up to the MCDST?

FatP

Hi FatP,

1. The scope for progression is the main reason why I have taken the job. Short term wise the company I now work for is a Microsoft Gold Partner and they really want you to complete your MCDST, then upgrade that to VISTA (MCITP) within six months. Once this is done they will then review salary.

Then onto MCSA and then MCSE. Not sure if I want to do the MCSE or not at the moment, I might consider specialising before then if the right opportunity comes along.

2. City is Northampton and the salary I have been offered can be found on here http://www.itjobswatch.co.uk/default.aspx pretty cool site to find out salary expectations. Once you have clicked the qualification, scroll down to the bottom to find out the average pay for your area.

3. It is a a company in the FTSE Allshare, however there only business is IT, from Desktop Services, Remote Hosting/Management, Project Services, Business Continuity etc.

4. It is a Call Centre environment, but a relatively small one. You actually sit in rows of four people, with two being 1st Line and two being 2nd Line. (Which was one of my questions at the interview to check scope for progession). I think there is a total of around 30 people with 15 1st and 15 2nd line in the department.

5. Not considered the A+ certification. The reason for this is mainly down to advice from my elder brother who is a specialises in backups. His opinion was that it was not worthwhile as he felt it would be better to get a first line job with an MCDST as in our area these seem to be more in demand.

Hope that helps FatP

[Sparky]

Congrats on the job mate

[fatp]

Cheers for that - very informative.

It will certainly help other newbies thinking / coming into i.t.

FatP