14 April 2012
My Shanghai life is two weeks underway. I've spent one week at my work placement with Hercules Industry & Trade Co. My project is to source contact information for USA garment importers and contact them with a business introduction.
I've taken on this challenge and ran into a wall nearly 4 days later. I've written a business introduction letter that has been approved but I really do not know the working details of Shanghai Hercules. The internet does not provide this information for me and my boss, Mr. Wang is the only one in the office that speaks any English. I also believe he is the only one that works with the international market as he is the business owner.
As the managing director Mr. Wang is very busy. He touches base each day but does not care much about the details of what i've done. If I try and ask more information to understand the companies operations his response is so basic and repetitive that I feel as though I get nowhere. Given that I have not conducted any international trade before I seek a bit of learning about procedural details. However, I am there to just make it happen.
After only a 3 days I dreaded going into the office. The chair I sat in was more than uncomfortable. I worked alone on my computer and talked to noone(because we can't understand eachother) and the environment is poor; lackluster and a bit rundown with a toilet that questions 'do I even really want to use it'?
Needless to say, even if this job may give me an opportunity to gun-a-go at facilitating international trading I have decided that the company itself is not something that I am excited to work for or work in. The premise of work is o.k. but the execution is bad and a development plan non existant. I gave it one week and I will now wait to start a different job opportunity that my placement company can find me.
In the line up is a high ranked PR company that does event marketing, digital marketing, sports marketing and public relations for national and multinational companies.
Cheers to the weekend,
Niko
