skilled trades technical operationsdata centerhardware break fixrack and stackstructured cabling
Complete evaluation framework
What to assess and how to score it
Review the evidence signals before interviewing. Then use the anchored descriptions—not instinct alone—to choose the score that best matches each answer.
01
Evaluation factor
Hands-on competence
35% weight
Check hands-on racking, cabling and break-fix work: server rail installs, SFP and fibre patching, RAID and DIMM swaps, ToR switch ports, DCIM ticket volume per shift.
Evidence to listen for
Names the equipment, materials, and tolerances they work to
Can describe a job start to finish without hand-waving the hard parts
Holds the tickets, licences, or certifications the work requires, and they are current
Knows what they are not qualified to touch
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Cannot describe the work concretely; lacks required tickets or licences.
2
Needs Improvement
Basic familiarity; needs supervision on routine tasks.
3
Satisfactory
Competent on standard work; slower or unsure on unfamiliar jobs.
4
Very Good
Skilled and independent across the normal range of the role.
5
Excellent
Names specific chassis and switch models handled, cites daily rack-and-stack or break-fix throughput, and describes cable management to a documented standard.
02
Evaluation factor
Safety discipline
30% weight
Probe electrical and physical safety in live halls: lockout/tagout on PDUs, arc flash PPE, dual power feed discipline, hot aisle work rules, ESD grounding, lifting heavy chassis.
Evidence to listen for
Treats procedure as protection rather than paperwork
Can describe a time they stopped work and why
Knows the specific hazards of this trade and the controls for each
Reports near misses instead of hiding them
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Casual about safety; describes shortcuts with pride.
2
Needs Improvement
Follows procedure when watched; cannot name the hazards that matter.
3
Satisfactory
Sound safety habits; less certain on unfamiliar hazards.
4
Very Good
Safety is instinctive; can describe stopping work over a real concern.
5
Excellent
Describes verifying redundant feeds before any PDU work, follows LOTO and ESD steps unprompted, and recounts stopping a job over an unsafe condition.
03
Evaluation factor
Fault finding
20% weight
Test diagnosis of intermittent faults: distinguishing failed optic from bad patch, reading IPMI or iDRAC logs, memory and disk failure triage, isolating a flapping link.
Evidence to listen for
Has a method for narrowing a fault rather than swapping parts
Reads schematics, manuals, or error codes and acts on them
Knows when to escalate rather than guess
Can describe a fault that took real work to find
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Parts-swapper; no diagnostic method.
2
Needs Improvement
Fixes symptoms; cannot explain how they found the cause.
3
Satisfactory
Solid on familiar faults; less structured on new ones.
4
Very Good
Clear systematic method with a real hard-fault story.
5
Excellent
Walks through a real fault logically, uses console logs and loopback or swap testing, and knows when to escalate to network or facilities.
04
Evaluation factor
Reliability and conduct
15% weight
Assess shift reliability: on-call and night rotations, change window adherence, ticket documentation quality in ServiceNow or Jira, escort and badge protocol for vendors and auditors.
Evidence to listen for
Turns up, on time, prepared
Handles shift work, callouts, or travel as the role requires
Documents work so the next person can pick it up
Deals with customers or site staff professionally
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Unreliable attendance; unprofessional on site.
2
Needs Improvement
Inconsistent; documentation is an afterthought.
3
Satisfactory
Dependable; paperwork is adequate.
4
Very Good
Consistently reliable, documents well, professional with customers.
5
Excellent
Shows consistent attendance on 12 hour or night rotations, closes tickets with asset tags and photos, and respects change freeze and security escort rules.
Put this rubric to work
Score every candidate against the same standard
Add these weighted factors to Hirevire and let AI evaluate recorded answers against your rubric.
