Hello i have recently passed my class 2 and i am in the typical catch 22 with regards to the 2 years experience barrier
I have a CV prepared ready to be sent out or more to the point be taken out as from what i read again and again your best bet is to get out there and “knock on doors”
my problem lies in the next part of this approach, what do i actually say when i arrive.
I know to ask for the transport manger but thats about it i don’t want to just shove my CV in his face and say “give me a job” so i would like some advice on how best to actually word things once i get to see the him/her.
very basic stuff i know just having problems “selling myself” at the moment, I find it a hard thing to do with no experience
any advice at all would be most appreciated thank you
Kyle2643:
Hello i have recently passed my class 2 and i am in the typical catch 22 with regards to the 2 years experience barrier
I have a CV prepared ready to be sent out or more to the point be taken out as from what i read again and again your best bet is to get out there and “knock on doors”
my problem lies in the next part of this approach, what do i actually say when i arrive.
I know to ask for the transport manger but thats about it i don’t want to just shove my CV in his face and say “give me a job” so i would like some advice on how best to actually word things once i get to see the him/her.
very basic stuff i know just having problems “selling myself” at the moment, I find it a hard thing to do with no experience
any advice at all would be most appreciated thank you
I’m glad you asked, I’ve been wondering what to say etc as well.
On another note, I’ve been doing the usual apply for all the jobs I can since I’ve passed, CV going out left, right and centre, mainly to agencies who I know I’ll never hear back from. Then tonight I get an email, from an agency manager, thanking me for my email, and saying he’d be interested to talk to me about the job further, and could I call him to arrange a meeting. Now I know it might be nothing, and may lead nowhere, but to actually get a reply, and not a generic one at that, really gave me a lift.
Thought I would say how my son got started, he passed his Cat C in November 2011 got a few shifts in with an agency then they asked him to go on nights for Hermers up to Christmas ,he decided that we would be better off work wise if he took his Cat C+E so the first week in December after he had finished work in the morning he would have 4 hours training a day and had his test on the Friday and passed, the instructor or the examiner had never had anybody do it like that before, did a couple Sunday shifts on the artic for Hermers that was his experience
After Christmas no work from the agency went on the internet got all the names of haulage companies in his area (South Wales) e-mailed his CV then went round knocking on doors only S&K Haulage asked him in for an interview they asked due to his lack of experience would he be prepared to work 2 days for free shunting around the yards with one of their older drivers in the passenger seat , yes I have seen it on here never work for nothing but he was doing nothing else and it would be a bit more experience for him , they offered him the job started on local work for about a month then onto distance UK work after about 6 months at that went continental Belgium, Holland, northern France last month started long haul this week his is down in Spain.
Don`t give up hope
hi Kyle. if you take your phone with you, when you go to a company, do a search for example Google “company name transport manager”
generally on the first page it will give you the info you want (usually LinkedIn is at the top and gives detailed info)
now you know the name of the tm, so you know exactly who you want to speak to. sometimes it pays to look where they worked before, maybe a subtle name drop
and Google the company as well. you want to know the basics of what they do. if its heavy haulage they will want someone who can chain and is good with load security. if they move high value loads they will need a security conscious driver, if its a tipper firm they want you to be efficient and get from a to b as quick as possible. basic stuff, but you would be surprised how many people rush in without a thought of what the job entails. true story, a guy came for an interview at dhl, when asked if he knew what the job involved he said “2 or 3 drops nationwide?” the job was local multidrop! he didn’t even read the advert!!!
even if you get a knockback, you will stick in the tms mind because you knew details about him and the company and when you turn up next time in a week or two he will remember your face. it all comes down to the impression you make
got my best ever job by simply ‘knocking on the door’.a company called Carryfast had a depot in a mates village,and i just walked into the office one day,asked for the TM,told him i was 23y.o. with less than 6 months expierience,but was prepared to drive one of his big trucks.after a bit of head scratching,he(Malc Richardson,Top Bloke),decided to give me a chance -thanks to that man,i’ve had a great career driving lorries,so it’s always worth giving it a go!
If you see they are looking for drivers on the job seekers website or any other website, search the company and take a trip if viable. You have a valid reason to be there, and they can’t turn you away if you’re there about a job. I went to a company to see if they could help me gain any extra licenses, make me their ‘apprentice’ so to speak. The manager although who said he couldn’t help me as they don’t do as I had asked, he did say if I had my license there and ready I would have had a start as he could see I was more than interested in the job. So although it wasn’t the answer I wanted, it gave me some answers that I will need in the future! Good luck in the job search!!
Thanks for all the advice i have signed up with a couple of agencies as back up but now all there is left for me to do is get out there and go for it with regards to knocking doors i will keep you posted cheers !
-thanks to that man,i’ve had a great career driving lorries,so it’s always worth giving it a go!