(no subject)

[kayfox.livejournal.com]

So, anyone have any helpful suggestions for interviewing at Speakeasy?

Comments

[ex-deliveryboy.livejournal.com]

Don't shit on anyone's desk or piss in their coffee.


People tend to frown on that.

[snoopyh42.livejournal.com]

So THAT'S what I was doing wrong!

[kalium.livejournal.com]

You know, that reminds me of a certain story involving Steve Jobs and his Reality Distortion Field.

[viper0775.livejournal.com]

drop my name , they all know me, if Chicago goes down I'm the first caller =P

LOL

j/k =)

[omg-teh-funnay.livejournal.com]

Yeah.. don't.

Just kidding. I was terminated in December for an incurable case of incompatibility. Before that, one of the greatest companies I've ever worked for.

Know your shit, be cool, don't act like a 'tard.

If you're interviewing for the PTA role, you need ot know basic domains and hosting, IP infrastructure, basic troubleshooting, email, web, ftp. They'll teach ya the good stuff, but if you know about the different types of DSL (ADSL, IDSL, SDSL) and have good troubleshooting skillz, then you should be fine.

Did I mention don't be a 'tard? Don't be a 'tard. I HATED some of the assholes they brought in simply because we needed bodies in seats. I still have friends there. And I have no compunctions about harming people...

Tats and piercings are cool, it's a relaxed environment. Good luck!

[twfarlan.livejournal.com]

(snerk) Here's one: tell them you're perfectly willing to tell the customer anything to get them off the phone whilst simultaneously sucking up to Covad and bowing to their BS policies, seeing as you'll be running interference between the two like a crack-addicted chihuahua chasing its own tail.

[joester-the.livejournal.com]

heh. Former Covad employee here...

[twfarlan.livejournal.com]

I note the operative "former" modifier. From my experience, Speakeasy is in a somewhat nasty position when the fault in an issue belongs to Covad, because Covad frankly has never seemed to be capable of caring less if one of their connectivity resellers' customers is having a problem. Covad will do just about anything to close a support ticket, and required Speakeasy to open a new support ticket from scratch to assess any issues that remained unsolved.

[joester-the.livejournal.com]

wasnt that way when I worked there, now though I hear almost everything has gone to india and after all the good people left or were let go it went WAY downhill.

In General...

[tecie.livejournal.com]

Be honest about what you know and don't know and what you are willing to do in the long term. Seriously, if you get a bad vibe, just walk away and save everybody (especially yourself) the trouble.
Be willing to explain every line of your resume in detail, and provide an anecdote for each concept if the need arises
example:
Q: Are you familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of an RIP based network versus a OSPF network?
A: "Yes, I am familiar with RIP because of a broadcast storm that we once had at my former employer. After that I learned and reconstructed our network from the ground up and investigated OSPF as a possible solution to stop the situation from reoccurring. Here's some major differences...."
Adding that line in there (doesn't have to be first) puts in that you don't just have theoretical knowledge, which is just about useless (IMO), but you have practical experience in a worst case scenario, which is what tech support is all about (at least in my case.)
Also, if you know something in depth, flaunt it! Tastefully of course... but don't be afraid to briefly expand on experience in a particular field that you're an expert in.
As for working specifically for a VOIP provider, know your networking. Know your DSL's and the major inner workings of cable networks, home networks, and random telephony knowledge generally proves handy. If you know astrix, then you can probably diagnose a bad modem :-)

One other random thing: if you end up talking to an HR drone, drop as many buzzwords as you can, and pretend not to notice they they're completely and utterly unqualified to be talking to you about a position that they have no idea what's involved in doing. They get really annoyed when you tell them this.

Last thing -- if they can't nail down a job description, and it changes radically, run. RUN. RUN AWAY AND NEVER LOOK BACK. It means they're hiring you to be a level 3 network tech making squat for pay.

Hope this helps.