Service engineer or computer repair on the road
Like every student, I was faced with the problem of lack of money, so I came to the obvious solution - to look for work. I didn’t work full time because of my studies, so a second problem followed - the need for a free schedule. I am not the genius of writing code, so freelance was left for a bright future. But the passion for IT made it impossible to give up and go to work at McDonalds.
At first, the issuance of a search engine could not but rejoice - every second metropolitan company promised an initial salary of about 50,000 rubles for students with a free schedule. I don’t know that I didn’t understand correctly in these announcements, but all the preliminary telephone interviews ended after dubbing their age, despite confident answers to their questions and careful preparation before each attempt.
Hope was almost lost, but at the regularbinge party at the hostel I was offered a job in a computer repair company. Position sounded tempting - "Service Engineer".
The essence of this work is to go to the client (private person or company) and repair computers on the spot, namely: diagnostics, replacement of components, installation and / or customization of software.
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At the interview I went not alone, but with a friend whose knowledge in this field left much to be desired. But, to my surprise, the interview was no more than a formality. A small test of knowledge of abbreviations and standards was put aside even unread, and a company representative gave a short lecture on how to correctly squeeze money from customers. In order to consolidate the acquired material, we were given the task: to write out more than 7,000 rubles for reinstalling the Windows XP OS so that the client could not object. It is said - done, good prices in the price list are not small, and the names of the items were very vague. On the same day we were sent to the first order, taking on work with a “trial period”, which implied a tricky salary calculation, which cut our percentage of the order from 40% to 25%, not counting the “average order amount” system, which I already I do not remember. But should try.
It was scary to demand that kind of money from a client for what he used to do to his acquaintances for a symbolic amount or a couple of bottles of beer, but also did not want to work for a penny. In the end, the money did the trick. I brought in 7-30 thousand a day to the company, spitting on the conscience. Orders were issued by phone, and the money had to be brought at the end of the working day or the next day in the morning. Every penny was under control - we were given forms with a copy paper for the calculation. The original remained with the client, and a copy was given to the secretary.
Two weeks have passed and the long-awaited salary time has come. I went to the office with high spirits - according to my calculations, in 2 weeks I earned 35,000 rubles, which for me was a fabulous sum for a fairly attractive task. I gained experience, I learned how to make diagnostics on the spot with the help of available tools, I even made a USB HDD with Debian and OS images in order to fulfill orders faster. But the mood on the same day dropped below the baseboard. Instead of 35,000, I was paid 7,000, citing what I still owe them. It turned out that almost every day I had a breakdown of the order due to the fact that I did not pick up the phone while driving from the previous one to the subway or was on pairs, the schedule of which I provided to them. My salary barely covered my travel expenses (metro + ground transportation) and meals between orders.
Naturally, I left this company, going through all the curses known to me in my head. A friend who was hired with me was in the same situation and made a similar decision.
It would seem that I should have given up trying to make money in this way, but I am an Aries, and it is not my habit to give up. I worked in three more companies in the same position. But I did not repeat the old mistakes. Here are a couple of my tips:
As a result, the last company turned out to be honest and completely suited me as a source of money, but ambition and conscience forced me to abandon this profession.
PS: I described my personal experience , and brought subjective conclusions. If you want to try yourself as a service engineer, then this article should not force you to change your mind.
Afterword: It took some time and I found a job for the soul. Learned languages and engaged in the development and implementation of automated medical systems. Money is not so easy, but I feel that I bring benefits.
If interested, I attach links to our projects: Clinic Automation Program and Clinic Administration Service . The second project expands the possibilities of the first, but is self-sufficient.
At first, the issuance of a search engine could not but rejoice - every second metropolitan company promised an initial salary of about 50,000 rubles for students with a free schedule. I don’t know that I didn’t understand correctly in these announcements, but all the preliminary telephone interviews ended after dubbing their age, despite confident answers to their questions and careful preparation before each attempt.
Hope was almost lost, but at the regular
The essence of this work is to go to the client (private person or company) and repair computers on the spot, namely: diagnostics, replacement of components, installation and / or customization of software.
')
At the interview I went not alone, but with a friend whose knowledge in this field left much to be desired. But, to my surprise, the interview was no more than a formality. A small test of knowledge of abbreviations and standards was put aside even unread, and a company representative gave a short lecture on how to correctly squeeze money from customers. In order to consolidate the acquired material, we were given the task: to write out more than 7,000 rubles for reinstalling the Windows XP OS so that the client could not object. It is said - done, good prices in the price list are not small, and the names of the items were very vague. On the same day we were sent to the first order, taking on work with a “trial period”, which implied a tricky salary calculation, which cut our percentage of the order from 40% to 25%, not counting the “average order amount” system, which I already I do not remember. But should try.
It was scary to demand that kind of money from a client for what he used to do to his acquaintances for a symbolic amount or a couple of bottles of beer, but also did not want to work for a penny. In the end, the money did the trick. I brought in 7-30 thousand a day to the company, spitting on the conscience. Orders were issued by phone, and the money had to be brought at the end of the working day or the next day in the morning. Every penny was under control - we were given forms with a copy paper for the calculation. The original remained with the client, and a copy was given to the secretary.
Two weeks have passed and the long-awaited salary time has come. I went to the office with high spirits - according to my calculations, in 2 weeks I earned 35,000 rubles, which for me was a fabulous sum for a fairly attractive task. I gained experience, I learned how to make diagnostics on the spot with the help of available tools, I even made a USB HDD with Debian and OS images in order to fulfill orders faster. But the mood on the same day dropped below the baseboard. Instead of 35,000, I was paid 7,000, citing what I still owe them. It turned out that almost every day I had a breakdown of the order due to the fact that I did not pick up the phone while driving from the previous one to the subway or was on pairs, the schedule of which I provided to them. My salary barely covered my travel expenses (metro + ground transportation) and meals between orders.
Naturally, I left this company, going through all the curses known to me in my head. A friend who was hired with me was in the same situation and made a similar decision.
It would seem that I should have given up trying to make money in this way, but I am an Aries, and it is not my habit to give up. I worked in three more companies in the same position. But I did not repeat the old mistakes. Here are a couple of my tips:
- Immediately ask about the system of fines and payroll
- Make a contract, where your obligations are indicated, and have one copy in your possession (I understand that it is obvious, but I neglected it and paid for it in the first company)
- Require payment of fare
- Do not settle for problem orders (if someone has failed, then you should not be a hero - you will not be paid anymore, but you will need to get it from both the client and the management)
- Leave customers a personal phone number to solve problems without a company + then you can work for yourself, having received 100% of the proceeds (disputed item - customers can use you as a free support service)
- Determine in advance the amount that the client expects (you can increase by 25-30%, and do not waste precious time on disputes and work for a symbolic amount)
- Insure yourself if you don’t believe the employer, and find a “loophole” in their control system (the third company also reduced salaries for obvious reasons, and I made a 14,000 “black” bonus next week)
- Do not go to this job if you believe in honesty and good, do not want to deceive people, etc. (I was often ashamed of divorcing naive clients)
- Do not count on career growth
Afterword:
As a result, the last company turned out to be honest and completely suited me as a source of money, but ambition and conscience forced me to abandon this profession.
PS: I described my personal experience , and brought subjective conclusions. If you want to try yourself as a service engineer, then this article should not force you to change your mind.
Afterword: It took some time and I found a job for the soul. Learned languages and engaged in the development and implementation of automated medical systems. Money is not so easy, but I feel that I bring benefits.
If interested, I attach links to our projects: Clinic Automation Program and Clinic Administration Service . The second project expands the possibilities of the first, but is self-sufficient.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/131952/
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