Delta Testing/Interview

Could this video have been made because Delta runs their own licensing class for internals and they may not be getting the numbers they hoped for?
 
...and the only place you can find this video internally is under the Development and Career Planning->Delta Dispatch Educational Opportunity... and below the video is "Click this link to submit and expression of interest"
 
Every indication I have is that the school is up and running, and the first wave of internal hires that came through the program (I don't know if it's all folks that went here specifically) is on the floor doing OJT right now.

Rather than think that Delta is having difficulty generating interest from people on the ramp or in office jobs to entice them to a career where they find themselves rewarded with excellent pay, and a lot of time off... perhaps it's better to ask the question "Why wouldn't they? Maybe it's a great idea!"

Because if it's a company that has a yearly percentage goal to develop and promote internal employees, then why bother getting people throughout the company as excited about the idea as some people on the outside are who watch it? Why bother doing more than writing a text description to entice people on the concept? Why not just keep things murky and fuzzy and hear about it from pilots and ATC people who can't really tell you what it is we do for a living, or periodically check the website for internal postings and wonder "what's this Flight Superintendent thing?"

The crew was filming in here shortly after the announcement of its creation too. The answer is simple; because they had a plan.

But anyway, I just work here man.
 
I was not aware the school was that new. I thought it had been going on for some time now.

As for my video comments I standby it being well produced. What I don't get is if they have no trouble lining people up for the class, why they feel they need it. But I digress.
 
Delta Echo said:
I was not aware the school was that new. I thought it had been going on for some time now.

As for my video comments I standby it being well produced. What I don't get is if they have no trouble lining people up for the class, why they feel they need it. But I digress.
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Getting people to line up for class is one thing. Getting "qualified" people is another. Sure, there's no shortage of interest in the job, but there may be a shortage of people who meet their standards. Just from what I saw in the video, I'm guessing they want a little more than someone with a dispatcher's license and a couple of years experience.
 
Yeah I'm super bummed out too! I flew down, tested and interviewed last week. I just got my email today saying I didn't make it. :( Maybe next time.
 
Flying Saluki said:
Getting people to line up for class is one thing. Getting "qualified" people is another. Sure, there's no shortage of interest in the job, but there may be a shortage of people who meet their standards. Just from what I saw in the video, I'm guessing they want a little more than someone with a dispatcher's license and a couple of years experience.
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If its geared toward internals then I imagine they are hoping for a higher quality from their internals to apply for their dispatch licensing class. If for externals then its made because Southwest, United, and AA/US have been hiring a lot lately and taking a lot of quality people who Delta also wants to hire.
 
WN/AA/UA is hiring up all of the talent because DL is disqualifing all of the talent with the damn testing battery which has nothing to do with dispatch or not calling them at all in the case of some great people I know.

So instead of getting the most talented dispatchers into the OCC they would rather subsidize people who can pass their moronic tests and get $2000 a pop from them to boot. It doesn't help that the company has hog tied them to provide advancement from within.

Confucius say currency coversion ability does not a great dispatcher make.
 
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McCrosky said:
Maybe they're just getting ahead for the end of the Euro?

I really had the hard time with the personality assessment. I mean, who hasn't wanted to kill their parents?
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They should really screen the candidates more closely, Lyle...
 
MT said:
WN/AA/UA is hiring up all of the talent because DL is disqualifing all of the talent with the damn testing battery which has nothing to do with dispatch or not calling them at all in the case of some great people I know.

So instead of getting the most talented dispatchers into the OCC they would rather subsidize people who can pass their moronic tests and get $2000 a pop from them to boot. It doesn't help that the company has hog tied them to provide advancement from within.

Confucius say currency coversion ability does not a great dispatcher make.
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I met a Delta Flight Superintendent years ago. He was an internal hire, started with the company working the ramp, and worked his way up. He had something like 25 years and supervisory experience with the company before he was selected for the OCC. And I think that was typical for Delta back then. They never hired outside candidates.

With that as a backdrop, this video makes much more sense. They are trying to generate internal interest. But they don't just want some guy who threw bags for 6 months. They want someone who has been there for a while, with a proven track record of success. They want someone who has "grown up" with Delta.

The problem is, if you've got 15 or 20 years in the customer service/airport operations side of the house, how likely are you to want to change over, go to the bottom of the seniority list, and start all over again? It's one thing to do it when you're 25, it's another when you're 45. Not everyone is a dispatch geek.

So, as I see it, it's not about garnering $2000 from would-be Delta dispatchers. Nor is it about hiring the most "talented." (which is not a word I would associate with the dispatch profession. Any job you can qualify for in five weeks isn't exactly rocket surgery.) It's about getting people who understand that Delta is a customer service company that happens to fly airplanes, not the other way around.

But that's just my opinion.
 
Flying Saluki said:
I met a Delta Flight Superintendent years ago. He was an internal hire, started with the company working the ramp, and worked his way up. He had something like 25 years and supervisory experience with the company before he was selected for the OCC. And I think that was typical for Delta back then. They never hired outside candidates.

With that as a backdrop, this video makes much more sense. They are trying to generate internal interest. But they don't just want some guy who threw bags for 6 months. They want someone who has been there for a while, with a proven track record of success. They want someone who has "grown up" with Delta.

The problem is, if you've got 15 or 20 years in the customer service/airport operations side of the house, how likely are you to want to change over, go to the bottom of the seniority list, and start all over again? It's one thing to do it when you're 25, it's another when you're 45. Not everyone is a dispatch geek.

So, as I see it, it's not about garnering $2000 from would-be Delta dispatchers. Nor is it about hiring the most "talented." (which is not a word I would associate with the dispatch profession. Any job you can qualify for in five weeks isn't exactly rocket surgery.) It's about getting people who understand that Delta is a customer service company that happens to fly airplanes, not the other way around.

But that's just my opinion.
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Excellent point on starting over,but if you're at a major and take a shot as an internal chances are that you'll probably start off near or at your top out as a ramper starting as an assistant DXer or DXer.

For myself 14 years of bags is more than enough. For all the complaining I'm amazed more guys don't research other positions in operations. I ran into a ramper getting off an CRJ as an FO about 6-7 years ago. Started thinking....I don't want to do ramp forever. I'll admit....I did my share of complaining, but I always figured there had to be something else to do besides bags. My problem was I'd look at the cost of school and let that discourage me. Year and a half ago I said screw it. Dispatch or bust. Anything but the ramp LOL The DL people are lucky. They actually have a school lol. I tell guys at work all the time go get your license. From talking to most of them they have no clue what a DXer does. And if they dislike the ramp as much as I think.....no burning fire to change it. This is where you are right. That and, no.....everyone isn't a dispatch or aviation geek though they work at an airline.

Yes you can make $ on the ramp, but who wants to kill them self doing it ? An internal at a Major hits top out and one can get comfortable.

If my company had something like that I'd have signed up ASAP.
 
av8or757 said:
Excellent point on starting over,but if you're at a major and take a shot as an internal chances are that you'll probably start off near or at your top out as a ramper starting as an assistant DXer or DXer.
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Good point. A major airline dispatcher or assistant dispatcher generally starts out at 45,000-55,000 a year and tops out a 100,000-120,000 per year range. All this for a job that requires a month of schooling. The $2,000 you pay for dispatch school quickly pays for itself.

Now I can see the work hours being an issue. A junior dispatcher is going to get the worst working hours and a schedule that can be all over the place. You will likely see a lot of midnights and start times in the 2-5 AM range with 8-10 hour shifts. It will be highly likely to work most weekends and holidays. If you are a ramper or customer service agent or any other internal with any kind of seniority or good schedule, I can see some being reluctant to get into such a situation where your life routine needs to change so much. The working hours dispatchers do aren't for everybody. You can be junior as a dispatcher for ten to twenty years.
 
Flagship_dxer said:
Good point. A major airline dispatcher or assistant dispatcher generally starts out at 45,000-55,000 a year and tops out a 100,000-120,000 per year range. All this for a job that requires a month of schooling. The $2,000 you pay for dispatch school quickly pays for itself.

Now I can see the work hours being an issue. A junior dispatcher is going to get the worst working hours and a schedule that can be all over the place. You will likely see a lot of midnights and start times in the 2-5 AM range with 8-10 hour shifts. It will be highly likely to work most weekends and holidays. If you are a ramper or customer service agent or any other internal with any kind of seniority or good schedule, I can see some being reluctant to get into such a situation where your life routine needs to change so much. The working hours dispatchers do aren't for everybody. You can be junior as a dispatcher for ten to twenty years.
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I'm so tired of GUA turning GUA, LAX turning PTY on 800's or 57's I'll take A/C and a chair for $500 Alex. :D:D Any schedule in DX is good with me.

Right now I'm 0700-1530, TUE/WED. 14 years. My line and one other were the last two day shifts left. In the last 2 years I've slid from 445-1315 to 1230-9, 1300-2130, 1430-2200, 1600-0030 to my current shift.

Plus being in dispatch I think you get a real sense of truly doing your part in the operation or company.
 
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