Reflections On IDT

It is now 2:30 in the morning and I am not at work. On a Thursday night no less (which is the beginning of the weekend in Israel). After working the overnight shift for slightly over two months it's somewhat of a relief to have a more standard schedule. It will be particularly nice tomorrow night on Shabbat. For the past two months I had to flip my schedule around and usually ended up somewhat dazed and incomprehensible by the end of dinner. It also made waking up for Shabbat morning services an adventure.

Now that I've finished at IDT I though it would be nice to share some of my thoughts about my time there:

First and foremost, I want to say that enjoyed my time at IDT. Despite the difficult hours, the atmosphere was great and comprised a diverse, fun group of people. The work wasn't overly stimulating, but it was my first experience with sales and I think I learned a reasonable amount in a short period of time. One thing about working for the AOL cancellation department - people keep calling. And while I didn't love being on the phones, I certainly didn't loathe each incoming call. Overall I was happy in my job and I certainly wasn't seriously looking for a position elsewhere.

Second, I think IDT offers an important service to the English speaking community of Israel (people travel for almost 3 hours each way to work there) and it's really a win-win situation. For the employees, IDT provides a job in English at a more than reasonable Israeli salary. In many cases these employees are new immigrants who lack the connections or language skills to land a job in their given profession. IDT provides them with an Aliyah "grace period" where they can acclimate to society and learn Hebrew without starving. Extensive research has proven that there is a high correlation between starvation and Yeridah (people leaving Israel). It's also beneficial for IDT (and companies that it outsources for) because it can employ over-qualified native English speakers for what amounts to a low wage by US standards.

Good for us. Good for them. But now on to bigger and better things.