Question for people who work in the IT industry

[odc1333]

Would you hire someone whom previously worked at geek squad for a number of years and is the only tech job they've had. Just curious to see what your take on this is. I've never worked at geeksquad so i dont know how work is done in there that might be comparable to an IT environment.

 

[spidey07]

If they knew their shit and could prove it I don't care where they worked.

 

[Theb]

Sure, for an entry level help desk position.

 

[amdhunter]

If they knew their shit and could prove it I don't care where they worked.

:thumbsup:

 

[odc1333]

What if the only experience they have is system restore and/or hardware replacement? Ive heard that they were notorious for doing that. In this case, would you be willing to hire them and train them?

 

[theevilsharpie]

If they knew their shit and could prove it I don't care where they worked.

So you're saying that a candidate capable of performing the job would be considered for the position?

Thanks for that stunning revelation 😛

To the OP, a job at Geek Squad would have some overlap with an entry-level desktop support job at a corporation. I know a handful of people that moved from Geek Squad into the the corporate IT world, so it's not a black mark or anything. That being said, there's a substantial difference between supporting the general public and supporting a corporate environment, so somebody coming in from the Geek Squad would be starting at the beginning.

 

[clamum]

It depends... the job description they were applying for, how well they could demonstrate during the interview their knowledge, etc. Basically what spidey said though.

 

[theevilsharpie]

What if the only experience they have is system restore and/or hardware replacement? Ive heard that they were notorious for doing that. In this case, would you be willing to hire them and train them?

It may be different in other areas of the country, but here, training is only expected for specialized systems. For something as general as desktop and hardware support, companies are going to expect you to be competent already. If they provide any training, it will be on workflow, not technology. Established employees (i.e., you've been there for a while) may have training opportunities open to them, but not an entry-level worker fresh off the street.

 

[Doppel]

Yes, sure.

 

[odc1333]

It may be different in other areas of the country, but here, training is only expected for specialized systems. For something as general as desktop and hardware support, companies are going to expect you to be competent already. If they provide any training, it will be on workflow, not technology. Established employees (i.e., you've been there for a while) may have training opportunities open to them, but not an entry-level worker fresh off the street.

Ah okay, got it, thanks for your insight. The reason for my question is because from what ive heard, geeksquad does their job differently.

Do you consider geeksquad workers as "IT professionals"

 

[Harvey]

In my last couple of encounters with Geek Squad guys, I was helping a friend navigate his way through some support issues under his extended warranty. I encountered two guys who knew what they were doing.

I had already done some diagnostics, and I knew the problem was with the motherboard. They listened and followed my explanations about what I had found, and they took care of the problem right away.

Before I got to them, I encountered one guy who didn't know enough to do the job. He insisted that the problem was with the hard drive, even after I showed him that the machine failed the same way when connected to the backup clone that was last run two weeks before the failure. That's when I asked to speak to another tech.

The point is, having worked for Geek Squad doesn't guarantee that someone is a tech genius, but it doesn't mean they're not qualified for more advanced jobs. Each candidate for a tech job should be tested and qualified based on what he or she knows.