IT Employment

Ask something
Discussion Locked

Help Desk Support Tech Interview Questions Wanted!

0 helpful
10 replies

by jmottl 1 view

Closed to new repliesThis discussion is closed. It stays readable, but it takes no new replies.

We're putting together a list of job interview questions for hiring a help desk support technician and hope our Support professionals will share an interview questions that relates directly to the job. What we're looking for are those 'scenario' questions help desk techs are asked as part of a job interview. Thanks in advance for your help!
Judy Mottl
Senior Editor, TechRepublic

10 replies

by wordworker

You answer the phone and:
the customer starts cussing you out.
the customer is crying.
the customer doesn't speak English.

During the call:
the customer insults your intelligence with a sarcastic or stupid question.
the customer asks for your name.
the customer asks to speak to your supervisor.
the customer is unable to follow the simplest command.

What you gonna do hot shot?

by oz_media

After answering the phone:
-Agree that I am an a**hole, loser, goof who has no ability to do the job.
-Empathy and understanding, one tone softer, one key lower.
-try ad determine what language the person speaks so as to find more suitable help.

DURING THE CALL:
-"That's a good question! Let me find you an answer, okay?"
-Give the customer my name, first and last anyway
-Ask the customer if he/she would like to hold for the supervisor or would he/she prefer to be called back at a more convenient time.
-Slow down and start again from step one, I am being paid by the hour right? ON someone else's time?

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Then again, I used to train and monitor these positions for the CRTC, so what you SHOULD do and what you WANT to do are two different things.

by lady12farwalker

First of there are no stupid questions, and second it is only sarcastic if you take the question personlly. First thing to remember is to
help the customer. They may not know how to put the problem into a question. So just be patient and listen to the customer and help as much as you can. If the customer still wants to speak to your sup. then by all means let him, but first explain to your sup the issue and let him/her take it from there.

by agama72

if the customer does not speak english, it will be in the best interest of the two of you to look for someone who speaks his language, as it may be the reason the customer is frustrated in the first place by his inability to communicate his problem effectively, support staff are not anyones punching bags so you may want to remind an abusive caller to adhere to an acceptable level of professionalism or else you'll be happy to pass him to a management level type.

by phillip.r.miller

I am sorry that you feel that way let them vent, get whatever has happened off there chest in the mean time I am either looking at a website, playing a game or reading a magazine till the have finished then I say thank you for calling Tech support my name is Phillip how may I assist you, and they don't really know how to respond. The same goes for crying let them finish and then attempt to help them.

by oz_media

For an unrelated job as a manager of a retail store?!?

If a customer was to call and say "When in Netscape Navigator, I have no cursor."
what would you tell them?

I promise that nobody will come up with the answer I was given as the correct response, but I'll share that later.

by mikey.hall

At a recent Helpdesk interview:

What is SUS?
Explain what TCP/IP is?
How would you connect a printer to a network for users to share?

Hope this is useful!

Mike

Hope these help!

by zaltech

Helpdesk questions

What would they do/ask when a user calls with these problems:
q1) Their application doesn't run
q2) They can't log in
q3) Printing problem
q4) Application Icons are missing from the desktop
q5) Getting an error from Dr. Watson

I currently perform Tier3 level application support - I routinely have calls routed to me as application problems for all of the above - each of which could have been easily resolved had the helpdesk personnel asked these kinds of simple questions.

1) Verify nothing has changed on pc (reimaged or recently worked on) and that user is properly logged in.

a) When did it quit working? Are you aware of anything that has changed on your pc? Has someone recently worked on your pc? Are there more than 2 drives visible when doubleclicking My Computer?

2) Verify context, user ID, lockout and or password

a) Did you recenltly change your password? When was the last time you used it? Does it give you an error? If so what does the error say?

3) Start with a1 then check this

a) Open your printers folder - are any of them showing "offline"? Can you print from other applications?

4) Verify user has used that pc, that application is actually installed, and that user has rights - in case it is normally a different user logged in and this user just runs up under other persons ID - a NO NO of course but...

a) Does anyone else use this pc or just you normally use this pc? Are just the icons missing or does your desktop look completely different?

5) Verify what error says - try to duplicate. Most users can't write to WINNT so if Dr. W writes the log there they get an error.

a) Would you mind trying it again, and letting me know what it says before you click OK?

Hope this helps some.

This discussion is closed to new replies.