You do not want to start talking about full time work the very first thing as you start a temp job. You are there to do a job, and that should be your first obligation. If you do not make a good first impression, no one will want to help you network your way into full time work. In fact, if you make a bad impression, people who could have helped you will choose not to. Look what happened to Sandra.
Sandra wanted a full time job in the entertainment industry. She had a degree in business with an emphasis in the recording industry. She had worked as an intern at a radio station in the city where her college was located. She had worked for no pay, something common for interns at her college, and she had worked in the mail room of the radio station, also common for interns.
Sandra decided to move to Los Angeles, where there were more companies in the recording business. She called several of the recording companies and learned they hired their employees through temp services and through internships. Since Sandra had already worked as an intern, she was not interested in doing so again. She asked the recording companies what staffing services they used and learned that most of the companies used the same three staffing services. One staffing service specialized in accounting, and the other two services did general office placement.
Sandra had taken two years of accounting and had trained on the computer programs that most accountants use. Since she wanted to work in the business office of a recording company, she decided to focus her energies on the staffing service that specialized in accounting.
At an interview with the accounting service, Sandra said she had chosen that service because she wanted a permanent job in the recording industry. She was introduced to Bill, who handled most of the temporary placement in the entertainment business.
Bill reviewed Sandra's application and her resume. He tested her on several accounting computer programs and told her he would call her after he checked her references.
Sandra called Bill the next day to see if he had a job for her. She knew Bill was busy and supervised lots of temps, so she did not want him to forget about her. Bill told her he was still looking and would be in touch when he had something for her. Sandra wrote Bill a thank you note and called him again in three days.
Bill was impressed by Sandra's persistence, and her references had checked out. The staffing service Bill worked for had a temp to hire opening in a recording company. He told Sandra it was an entry level position in the accounting office for someone to enter information on the computer. It was an important position, because the person entering the information needed to be accurate and concentrate on what he or she was doing. The recording company wanted to hire the temp full time after 12 weeks if everything worked out.
Sandra was so excited. She told Bill she really wanted the opportunity. Bill warned her that this was a very important client to his service and he was risking a lot by sending her there. Sandra promised him he would not be sorry, and he gave her the job.
Sandra reported to work the next week and was introduced to her supervisor at the recording company, whose name was Jane. Jane was very glad to see her and said the department was behind schedule and needed someone who could really concentrate on what needed to be done and could stay focused.
Sandra had been at work about an hour when she left her desk and walked around to the various departments. She introduced herself to everyone she met, told them she was the new employee in the accounting office, asked lots of questions, and visited with many people. Jane was frantic when Sandra got back to her desk. It was only 10:00 A.M. and Jane thought Sandra might have left the building or walked off the job because she did not like it. Sandra assured Jane she wanted to stay and promised she would not leave her workstation except to go on scheduled break, to lunch, or to the bathroom. Jane thanked her and returned to her own work.
That afternoon, Sandra heard that one of the recording stars was in the building. The star was one of Sandra's favorites, so she left her desk and interrupted an important meeting to get the star's autograph. The star was nice enough to Sandra, but his manager was not impressed with Sandra, who had interrupted the meeting.
Jane's boss called her to complain about Sandra. When Bill called from the service to see how Sandra was working out, Jane said she did not think Sandra was going to be a match for the recording company. Her work was good, but she appeared to be too immature to concentrate on what she was there to do. Bill said he would replace Sandra. He also had to agree not to bill the business for any of the hours Sandra had worked as a temp. That meant the staffing service made zero money the day Sandra worked for them, but the staffing service had to pay Sandra for her hours.
Bill asked Sandra to come to his office at the staffing service at the end of her workday. He then told her she was fired from the staffing service and explained it was because of job performance. Sandra said she would do better the next time, and Bill said that might be true, but she should work with other services and not for his staffing service.
The recording company business was a small world, and the news about Sandra's job performance quickly spread from one company to another. When the other two services tried to place her, the recording companies refused, saying that they had heard about how Sandra behaved on her first temp job, and they did not want her to act the same way at their company. It was a tough lesson for Sandra to learn, and eventually she left Los Angeles and tried to start over at another location.
