June 25, 2012

  • Interview & Testing

    I mentioned last week that I was asked in for an interview. When the owner called me he said they did not have any editing positions but there was a need for someone to help with admin work and do some proofreading, because the girl currently doing that job (N) was planning to do more work in another department that would take her away from the office on occasion. It is only an entry level position for just over minimum wage, with as yet unknown (to me) hours. 

    During my interview on Wednesday, the owner said that there was a lot of growth from this position. I could move to another department like N, and in time there might be a need for an in-house editor, that it was something they had been considering and will likely become necessary down the line. He also told me that the "people upstairs" were currently wanting someone who had a senior level of formatting experience. If the fact that I do NOT have said experience is acceptable to them, then I would be asked in for some testing to see where my skill-level is at... First of all, not part of the previously given job description. Second of all, that isn't entry-level work. shocked

    I was called and asked to come in for a day or two for the testing. Thursday was fine, I was just proofreading, which took me about six hours to do the one chapter. It shouldn't have taken that long, but I was very nervous and it was a bit before I got into the swing of things figuring out what they were actually wanting from me. Friday I was to do one assignment, but given that was taking forever to load onto my computer they had me format a word doc onto their design program using style sheets. I had a lot of trouble with that because I have never had to use a style sheet before, I hadn't used that program in over a year, and I was not taught everything that program could do -like style sheets! 

    On Friday I was asked to come back on Monday to do the "test" I didn't do (the one that took forever to load) and later learn about the admin work. When I arrived at the designated time, the person who told me that time (M) had not even arrived yet and didn't for another hour. I decided to go downstairs to learn about what gets done downstairs at the front desk and in the gallery for something to do. Before N was finished explaining some things, M showed up and said to come up in a few minutes to go over Friday's work, yet M was too busy to deal with me for another half-hour to an hour! Thankfully one of the other workers there, C, gave me some tax forms and an agreement to deal with -which makes it seem like I will be hired- but I couldn't finish them due to needing to get/know the numbers from my other job of editing for taxation purposes. 

    M and I finally went over what was done on Friday, and I was told it was a lot better after it being checked on Friday afternoon. I had called her over because I wasn't sure what I was doing, which made her a bit worried about my abilities in that regard. She made some minor improvements to it, things I did not and still don't know how to do, but not too many changes. There were some things I could have done had I known it was permissible, but considering I was not trained in this department I didn't know it was something I was to do. whatevah

    After lunch I started working on the planned project, but within an hour something came up that caused a rearranging of priorities and assignments. I was asked if I knew any web coding -I don't- and ended up being given the work R had been working on so that R could work on the coding. It was just some alterations on a word doc based on the notes made on a pdf file. I thought this was the easiest work yet! Well, I couldn't do anything about the graphics that needed changing because I had no access to the originals, but I did do all the textual edits. I even stayed an hour later than expected getting those done so R wouldn't have to add that on top of all the extra time the coding would take. 

    Because of this mad scramble, it was decided that my one-to-two-days-that-became-three-days of testing would now have another two days added! Tomorrow I am expected back a little earlier so that I can finish up the abandoned project, then actually get some training for the admin work, and who knows what else. I guess I will be shadowing N for a time and eventually be left on my own to do it while N is out of the office. Personally, I don't think it is very smart to be leaving someone who hasn't even been hired yet in charge of the front desk with no one to ask questions of, but c'est la vie. 

     I am merely hoping that the five days will NOT become seven, because I have some freelance editing I need to get going on and my book review blog interviews to catch up with and also get ready for my week out of town for my bff's wedding!

    SUMR