I'm peeved, why does this still happen.

[blakerwry]

Awhile back I was interested in a job at a local computer service/repair and retail shop.
I went in one day to see what this store had to offer(it had just opened) I BS'ed with the clerk(who was actually the manager @ another one of the store's locations) and found out that there was a position available and they were looking to hire. The clerk said I was more than qualified and in fact knew more than him about the stuff they deal with.

A week or so later I went in and I met with the owner who was managing the new store at the time... I gave him my resume, talked with him awhile and it seemed like he was interested in hiring me.

A couple weeks went by and I still had no word from the owner, so I went back down to the store... The owner was still managing the store and had not hired anyone...

I gave it a couple more weeks... still no one had been hired...

Well, today I went down there and there was a new clerk... I asked if they had any 10baseT or 100baseTX hubs.... the guy didn't seem to know what I was talking about and said "no.. i dont think so" after a bit of intense pondering. He then asked if there was anything else I needed, as if I had to say it then or forever hold my peace.

I saw on the shelf an Atrend 100Mbit switch... and I questioned the clerk... he was like "Oh.. yes we have these" I asked him if they carried any other brands because I had never heard of Atrend switches... he said "people say they are good" and went on to say they used to carry Asus (I think he was confused with linksys) switches, but people returned them because of faults so they stopped carrying them.

I told him that I would decline on buying the Atrend stuff... I also needed a monitor cable.. I saw the one I needed(surprisingly) it was an HD15 to 5xBNC cable in retail packaging with no price tag... I asked him the price and he had to call someone which took ~5 minutes... however the price was no better than anywhere else so I decided to hold off on buying it.



So here's where I'm peeved... why does this guy get the job, when to me it seems obvious his technical knowledge is lightyears behind mine, he knows little about the products he himself is selling, and his communications skills are lacking?

I would like to say it is because of his race/ethnicity. The owner of the shop is Middle-Eastern, and so are all of the clerks I have seen(except one). The owner runs 6 of these shops all under the same name, and I have been to 2 of them.

I keep telling myself that it is not a reace/ethnicity issue, but in the end that is the only reason I can come up with.

 

[Cliptin]

Sometimes it's timing, sometimes it's who you know.

Sometimes it's something else.

Small businesses get very weird with their hiring practices. Ask Tannin.

 

[Buck]

[Politically Correct Statement]

You're over qualified for the amount of money that the owner was expecting to pay.

[/Politically Correct Statement]

 

[Prof.Wizard]

Heheheh...
so you still want to work with computers?
We are often asked what the best way is to get into the computer industry. There is no one right answer. Training helps, practical experience helps a lot more. (This needn't be commercial experience, a keen mind and a home PC is all it takes.) But the most important thing of all is attitude. On those very rare occasions when we hire a new staff member, what we look for above all else is someone who will slip straight into the team. This means having an open, friendly nature, a will to stick at something until you get it right, and the ability to call for help when you need it. You must be able to get on with people from all walks of life, and see it from their point of view. These qualities won't get you a job at Red Hill—we never have vacancies—but they will get you one somewhere sooner or later.
(excerpt from Tony's employment page)

I find THIS even scarier...

 

[Mercutio]

I know, after training several people who have wanted to work as salesmen or techs at Best Buy, that retail stores in general don't have any real desire to hire truly competant employees. Two reasons: 1.) A competant employee might desire a higher wage or leave his job for more challenging work and 2.) A competent employee who deals with the public may end up spending more time helping/being helpful to customers than the average morons they'd rather hire.

Anyone ever walked into a big computer store, heard an employee give wrong information, correct them, then draw a crowd of other people with questions? Happens to me from time to time (yes, I should know better).

 

[Pradeep]

Don't forget, a competent employee makes the incompetent ones stand out, gotta keep those tall poppies down.

 

[blakerwry]

I know, after training several people who have wanted to work as salesmen or techs at Best Buy, that retail stores in general don't have any real desire to hire truly competant employees. Two reasons: 1.) A competant employee might desire a higher wage or leave his job for more challenging work and 2.) A competent employee who deals with the public may end up spending more time helping/being helpful to customers than the average morons they'd rather hire.

Anyone ever walked into a big computer store, heard an employee give wrong information, correct them, then draw a crowd of other people with questions? Happens to me from time to time (yes, I should know better).

I've had that happen several times.... I just can't help myself.. those best buy boys are asking for it.


I have over 2 years experience working with computers as a job but can't find a decent part time job around here that pays well or has any benefits.

I interviewd with a place on campus but they were trying to pay me half of what I used to make in high school. Right now I'm temporarily working at a day care to pay for my christmas presents. I like working with kids and the job is easy so I don't mind the pay.

 

[blakerwry]

Do any of you guys actually think businesses don't hire people that are overqulified?

Sometimes it really seems this is the case, but I find it hard to believe.

I can understand not hiring a person if you think they just want temprary work while they look for a real job. However, if the person intends to stay for a longer period of time I would think that their skills/knowlegde would be valuable.

Having a few knowledgabe staff members really helps to train the lesser skilled/trained staff(it seems to rub off), it will probably also benefit your customers. This is just my personal belief, I am surely no expert on hiring, but this seems like common sense to me.

 

[jtr1962]

I'm not surprised. It seems nowadays they would rather hire morons so that they can justify paying them $7/hour. I guess they figure anyone better qualified will either eventually want too much money, or will leave once something better comes along. Also, the part time market is by definition rather limited. I was never able to get a summer job when I was in college. I didn't know anybody who needed help and all the places I asked were reluctant to hire and train someone for just a few months, much less a few weeks during the holiday season.

I guess stick with your day care job for now. It takes talent to be able to deal with small children. I once helped my neighbor during the summer with his kiddie entertainment business(truck rides, cotton candy, etc.). The older kids, especially the teenagers, weren't bad, and I sometimes actually enjoyed them. However, I hated dealing with the younger children, especially those under five, with a passion. They would never listen, and very often lacked the ability to communicate what they wanted. While I never wanted children of my own even before this, after spending a summer with small children the decision never to have any was set in stone. I couldn't imagine dealing with a toddler on a continual basis, and to me an infant is just a whining shit factory that I would feel like throwing out the nearest open window. :evil: I admire your patience. I like cats much better than children. 8)

 

[Mercutio]

I looked for a full-time, permanent job for years before I started doing what I do now. I can honestly say that I was overqualified for about 85% of everything I did as a contractor, and I can honestly say that I know that my qualifications got me turned down more than they got me interviews or contracts.

When I was hired to work for Purdue's computer help desk, I was put in a lab of more than 200 stations. I was either working by myself (i.e. I could handle the workload of 200-odd liberal arts types futilely attempting to work with UNIX and Windows 3.1 systems), or given new hires who were given explicit instructions not to bother me unless they couldn't help someone, and then watch very carefully while I fixed whatever was broken.

Most of the IT folk I've worked with are real morons. Ever wonder why MCSEs and CNEs have a bad name? Why calls to corporate helpdesks are viewed with enthusiasm normally reserved for prostrate exams? Why there are IE-only web pages with graphics in .BMP format?

It's because the wrong people are doing the work. The guy whose previous work experience involves filing and copying doesn't need to be working on a helpdesk. A housewife who manages to pass 70-218 isn't instantly a consultant. An HR rep with a D cup and a tight sweater isn't qualified to evaluate any of the above, nor is the coke-snorting technical recruiter with a degree in art history and an amazing grasp of buzzword bingo.

I've worked with "technical" people whose skills could only impress upon me how easy it is to get a driver's license. People who, according to the Peter principle, should probably be dead. There are a lot more of those people out there than there are good workers. It's a hard thing to see, and a hard thing to accept, but it is the way of the world, and I'm sure it's true in any field.

Some of the chaff manages to hang on, far beyond their competence, for years. I have a student right now whose job title for the last four years was "System Administrator" in an all windows environment, who doesn't know how to install Windows NT/2000 or what a service pack is. He rode the wave - knew just enough to make it seem like he could actually do his job, and did who knows how much damage to his employer's computing systems and to his employer's confidence in IT professionals.

Not that I'm bitter or anything.

blakerwry, all you can really do is heed Tannin's advice (posted by PeeWee), and remain confident in your ability. When you walk into an interview, look the HR-bimbo straight in the eye and say "I can do the job you need done, and I found it worth my time to entertain the possibility of accepting your offer of employment, and say, what would you like me to cook you for breakfast tomorrow?"

OK, maybe not quite that cocky. But you get the idea. If you're overqualified, it's your burden to bear. Wear it proudly, dammit.

 

[time]

I wish Mercutio was exaggerating ...

 

[Prof.Wizard]

Every area has its occupation problems. I think the worst is to be over-qualified and still without job.
Happens... especially hard if you also study a lot and for long, ie. Medicine.

 

[.Nut]

Every area has its occupation problems...

I keep hearing that the hottest business startup activity nowadays is in setting up E-Mail farms in the remote jungles of Nigeria.

 

[Cliptin]

Every area has its occupation problems...

I keep hearing that the hottest business startup activity nowadays is in setting up E-Mail farms in the remote jungles of Nigeria.

How much E-mail can you get from an acre of land?

 

[blakerwry]

I think that's a function of time and child labor.

 

[Dïscfärm]

...However, I hated dealing with the younger children, especially those under five, with a passion. They would never listen, and very often lacked the ability to communicate what they wanted...

What I always hated dealing with were the 3 year old with AK-47s. If it moved, they shot at it.

Fortunately, most of the bullets would go into the ceiling because the recoil would swiftly pull the barrel upwards as they emptied the clip.

 

[Cliptin]

Fortunately.

 

[blakerwry]

I work with the school age children anyway. Although my favorite are the younger ones in kindergarden (5-6 yr olds) They are the most physically expressive and you can always tell what's on their minds or how they are feeling because of it.