My last day at my old job was Tuesday, June 29, 2021. Through networking, I’d applied for a job at a Fortune 200 company. I started the interview process about three weeks ago, fast forward until June 18, 2021, and I met with the manager of operations and the senior director of operations. I did my homework and did a lot of research on the company.
On the day of the interview, I took the day off. I even made sure I had plenty of STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) questions and answers ready for the meeting. That’s the format that this company uses, and the company also mentions this on their website. The interview was virtual, and it went well. However, they could not see me on video for the first 30 minutes! Whoops, I thought they could. I could see myself and both of them just fine when this was brought to my attention after finishing the STAR questions. I immediately started the process of troubleshooting this situation. It took about three minutes, and they were able to see me and commented on my perseverance in resolving the issue quickly. They cheered once we were all on video. The Senior Director of Operations joked about starting the interview again, and we all had a good laugh. I must say it was one of the best interviews I’ve had, and I left with the feeling that “This job is mine!”
I GOT THE JOB!
Of course, I didn’t find out that news until two days later. The talent agent reached out to me on Friday, 6/18/21, and gave me the good news. I was at work and stepped outside to take the call. I did an excited fist pump when she told me the news. She was so excited for me also. I like this talent agent. She’s friendly, responsive, and has gone above and beyond to assist me when I had questions. After the initial excitement and chatter had dissipated, “A” went on to say that it was apparent that I did my homework. Because both of the interviewers were very impressed with my responses to the STAR technique, she was right; that weekend leading up to the interview, I did research the STAR technique, came up with numerous questions, and used five incidents throughout my work career that could be used in any scenario presented. Later that evening, she emailed me the acceptance letter. They were offering me much more than I originally had anticipated. She was so happy when she told me my salary on the phone. She also mentioned that she would be sending over the paperwork to grant my permission to do the background check.
The next phase was the background check. Over the years, I’ve had several of them, and so I was not concerned at all. That is until I discovered the company they were using. It appears that a lot of the popular companies that do background checks outsource their work to other countries. That’s not automatically an issue; however, time constraints and occasional trouble understanding one another can be an issue. I’d read this and discovered this for myself with this background check. Everything, except for my employment, came back clear. Since I’d already read horror stories about this, I was prepared. I had W2 transcripts for past jobs; they used paystubs and all three years of W2’s for where I was currently working. I did not want them to know I was looking for work. Monday, June 28, 2021. I received word from my new company Investigative Team that my background check had cleared, and the Talent Agent would be contacting me to go over the next steps. She did the following day. I received my credentials for Workday, and I’ve begun the Onboarding process. I still need to take a photo, which I will complete today. I also need to complete the tax information. Everything else, except a few benefits-related videos, was completed yesterday. I must say that my entire interaction with my new place of employment has been positive. I’ve dealt with five people from the new company, and they all have been cordial, professional, and prompt. That’s exactly how I am at work, so you know I’m thrilled to see that with all that I’ve interacted with thus far.
Preparing for working at home full-time
Monday, I had a cable technician come to the house to install Xfinity Blast; however, since there was a tree in our yard that had grown over the telephone and power lines. He told me that he could not do the job and would have to come out once the tree limbs had been removed—more on that in a later post. My employer still have to send out the monitor, computers, and I’ll need to do my I-9 verification. It’ll be exciting being on the other side of the verification. As an independent contractor, I’d occasionally conduct inspections to verify that a remote worker had the proper office set-up. I always knew that I most likely would be on the other side of that equation.
No more weekday commute!
I will not miss the daily traffic on 695. It typically took me 1.5 hours round trip. Of course, that was on a good day; sometimes, it took a bit longer. I’m also loving the fact that I won’t be using as much gas. My Prius gets excellent gas mileage; however, I’m thrilled that I won’t have to travel for work. I’ve worked from home several times throughout the years, so this is not a new experience. I prefer working from home, and it means I’ll get to see my daughter more!
I must say that I’m thrilled with the opportunity. I was listening to my interviewers, doing my research on employees that work at the company, and viewing how they treat their customers. I’m very sure that I’ll be happy working at this organization. A bonus is that the company is recognized as one of the top places for employees to work.
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