I have no idea how to behave at an interview in Taiwan. I think almost everything gets done here through personal connections. I heard that borderline bribe or “gifts of friendships” are very common.
Back home in US, I think employers tend to look for people who are honest, friendly, and down to earth. I pretty much get every job I interviewed with because I am quite honest about myself and people can sense that. From my experience, ability and work ethnics are way overrated. They are not as big of a factor as people tend to think. People don’t want a prick on their team, and they tend to screen those out.
I am not sure about Taiwan though. I think culturally people try to be as humble as possible and never brag about themselves. That makes interview difficult. I am not sure about the psychology over here.
Just remember to brachiate. All top primates can brachiate, so demonstrate your pedigree by coming out swinging (and use deodorant if needed. No-one likes to stare at dark circles in the armpits!)
You better be careful, man, isn’t this dude a preacher?
You may be called upon to justify your suppositions within the paramatrices of Intelligent Design…
joeman_O -
Good topic. Something I have a bit of experience in, hiring & firing as it were, and am always glad to chat about.
My comments are not specifically directed at you, however since you posted this I will use your comments as a guide.
I employ the occasional ‘sub-contractor’ for various reasons; usually location and sometimes expertise in a particular matter. However back in the USA I had the responsibility over the years to hire literally hundreds of people for various needs and positions. It can be a dismal task.
I hope this is of help for you and others. Like I said - Don’t take this as a dig at you.
[quote=“Joeman_0”]I have no idea how to behave at an interview in Taiwan.[/quote]An all too common situation. Too many applicants have no idea what the hell they are applying for, position-wise, and what the company does. Do your homework. Be prepared. Don’t waste"my" time.[quote=“Joeman_0”] I think almost everything gets done here through personal connections.[/quote]Thats a good general observation. Required skills and experience can count heavily in the right situation also.[quote=“Joeman_0”] I heard that borderline bribe or “gifts of friendships” are very common.[/quote]Don’t count on this type of gossip to weigh heavily in your obtaining actual gainful employment. Now after you get a job…and need to schmooze an client…well…keep things in perspective. Don’t be a chump.[quote=“Joeman_0”]Back home in US, I think employers tend to look for people who are honest, friendly, and down to earth.[/quote]Good qualities. Add “Team Player” and “Do you want fries with that?” and you’ll get That Job![quote=“Joeman_0”] I pretty much get every job I interviewed with because I am quite honest about myself and people can sense that.[/quote]Congrats! How good a job were they? Self-confidence, not arrogance, combined with experience and needed skills go a long way towards getting hired.[quote=“Joeman_0”] From my experience, ability and work ethnics are way overrated.[/quote]Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. I’ll grant that in many “fill the seat”-type jobs just showing up on time and everyday you can score big points. But face it…that type of job can be filled by anyone with a pulse and sense of direction to find the chair. Easy to fill - Easy to fire.[quote=“Joeman_0”]They are not as big of a factor as SOME people would like to think.[/quote]There, fixed that for ya.[quote=“Joeman_0”] People don’t want a prick on their team, and they tend to screen those out.[/quote]They try to…damn skippy thay try to do that.[quote=“Joeman_0”]I am not sure about Taiwan though. I think culturally people try to be as humble as possible and never brag about themselves. That makes interview difficult. I am not sure about the psychology over here.[/quote]Depending on the job and company policies I’ve noted, and seen, several important job-type attributes for ‘furriners’ here that might be of interest:
For your first (1st) year - Do not say or do anything other than what you are instructed to do. Do Not try to impress anyone with your “valuable skills on how to do things 'The Right Way.” You’ll cause a massive loss of face for your boss and whoever hired you.
Watch the people around you and pick-up on the pecking order.
Make alliances/network. Always expand your group.
Invest in good quality business cards. Keep them simple and clean looking - Professional. When you receive someones business card (which yo should do with both hands - also hand it to them with both hands), immediately write on it who they are, where you met them, what they do and any info about them you can get. ASAP. Get a good pocket-sized business card holder.
Learn to recognize what I (and others) call the [i]Asian Adios.[/i] When you see this happening - its time to move on. It can come from a client, from a co-worker, from your boss-type person; it means you are no longer considered a person of value. It will happen. Your calls won’t be returned, your will no longer have access to needed information, etc… If you linger or persist you will lose more face…not a good thing. You will not be told flat-out to -F*ck Off…but thats what it means.
You are being hired for a reason - Try to learn that reason. It might be entirely different from what you think. Subtlety can be a bitch.
Learn to give ‘Thank You’ gifts to persons. Something as simple as buying an occasional iced tea or box of cookies or something in a nicely wrapped box can do amazing things here.
Say “No” three (3) times before you accept a gift. Really…3 times.
There are quite a few other tid-bits that I hope will be shared.
Joeman_O, A person gets hired based on what they can do for their employer. Its pretty much as simple as that. Unless you are some sexy cutey Miss/Mr. being hired as nothing more than wall-paper, its based on ‘What You Can Do Fir Us.’
Show your skill-set, contacts and experience;if they match what the employer needs…You stand a good chance of being hired and getting the rewards. The person hiring you wants to hire someone who will make them look good and be dependable.
Set around and whine about being ‘discriminated against’ and how it “Just ain’t fair” and thats what you’ll spend your time doing. (I am NOT saying you are doing this)
Sorry if I mixed up Western and Taiwanese business practices a bit. I hope you can sort that out.
Its “engrish teechur”…neither do I.
My …others on here have written a lot of great information on this topic also. I hope they will share it with you, and others who might have these questions.
Hey! Big thanks to you! The first real helpful reply I have received since I started posting here!
Some of the things you mentioned are mind boggling. I feel like there is so much to learn! It does sound like there is just as much corporate BS in Taiwan as in US. In US everything is very subtle, and there is a much bigger difference in corporate culture from place to place. In Taiwan it seems like the BS is more out in the open, and the practice is more uniform among all different places.
LOL! Quite. Simply do what you’re frackin’ asked to do, don’t try to reinvent the wheel, stop trying to “improve” systems by cutting corners because you don’t yet understand the bigger picture (because you’re new, remember). After you’ve been here for three years (not three days), we’ll ask you for your “valuable” input, perhaps. Until then, STFU and do what you were hired to do in the way that we want you to do it! How hard is that to understand?
Joe, pardon my bluntness, but with that kind of crappy attitude you’ll be lucky to land a job. Quit with the damn bitching about corporate culture and quit with the needless worrying about Taiwan v. US.
If you don’t like working for a company, don’t. Go start your own business or whatever. But if you hope to land a company job you’d better start learning to think and act positive. No one wants to hire a whiner, a complainer, an employee who thinks the company/boss/system sucks, or owes him something more, and drags down everyone else’s morale. I was very thankful when they fired one lady in our department who had nothing but negative remarks every day.
Instead, it should be perfectly obvious what the employer should want: someone who is skillful, competent, honest, reliable, a good communicator, a self starter, sees what needs to be done and tends to it even if it means working late (and doesn’t demand extra rewards for every contribution), has a positive attitude, is nice and likable and an inspiration to others, doesn’t bitch and moan, doesn’t complain, gossip or spread rumors, cares about the company and trying to add lasting value to it (not merely completing the required daily tasks), tries to make life easier for others (especially, but not exclusively, the bosses), solves problems for others rather than creating problems, solves problems or at least proposes solutions rather than simply telling others of problems, and so forth. Put yourself in their shoes. Imagine the dream employee whom they can trust 100% to make their lives easier, the kind of guy they’ll all greatly appreciate for his wise and devoted contributions. Then try to become that person. In the interview try to convince them you are that person.
As for Taiwan v. US, forget all that crap. It’s basically the same worldwide. Regardless of cultural differences, the guy I describe above is a great worker in any culture. Don’t try to act phoney or be someone else. Just picture the dream employee and try to be him.
[quote=“Mother Theresa”] No one wants to hire a whiner, a complainer, an employee who thinks the company/boss/system sucks, or owes him something more, and drags down everyone else’s morale.
[/quote]
Every place I worked in Taiwan was full of people who complained constantly and thought the company sucked and their superiors were morons. Kojen isn’t the greatest buxiban in the world, I’m sure, but compared to the places I worked in Korea it was heaven and the bosses were angels. I wrote lesson plans for another school, and was surprised at how negative the other foreigners were about the place; it really wasn’t that bad. I worked at a publishing company where even the Taiwanese employees did little but bitch about their boss.
wow what an interesting topic here!
last time I went to a interview here in Taiwan I just talked and talked about myself and my skills because the interviewer asked me… but I’m not sure about what tone of attitute you need because it depends of the job.
Sometimes they just one someone shy and quite and usually foreigners aren’t like that…
[quote=“bababa”][quote=“Mother Theresa”] No one wants to hire a whiner, a complainer, an employee who thinks the company/boss/system sucks, or owes him something more, and drags down everyone else’s morale.
[/quote]
Every place I worked in Taiwan was full of people who complained constantly and thought the company sucked and their superiors were morons. Kojen isn’t the greatest buxiban in the world, I’m sure, but compared to the places I worked in Korea it was heaven and the bosses were angels. I wrote lesson plans for another school, and was surprised at how negative the other foreigners were about the place; it really wasn’t that bad. I worked at a publishing company where even the Taiwanese employees did little but bitch about their boss.[/quote]
It seems to be quite common here. It seems to rub off, because I’ve also been guilty of it once or twice. Now I just stick to the tried and true, “Do your job with a smile. STFU at work. Complain to the wife if necessary.”
Partly because I’ve found that suggestions aren’t really taken any note of anyway, so no sense in complaining or offering opinions on how to improve this or that.
[quote=“bismarck”]
Partly because I’ve found that suggestions aren’t really taken any note of anyway, so no sense in complaining or offering opinions on how to improve this or that.[/quote]
Oh yes, in those small companies.
I say the device doesn’t sell (a fat and heavy tablet PC way before the iPad), present analysis to management. Right afterward they made me the Sales guy for the stuff and say they expect huge sales numbers. Well, I left the company. Device sold like stinky bricks. Not at all.
Another small company, making a small USB HDD like the one from Sony. I say ours is same price as Sony’s and so our’s (with a name like Gobbledigobbletec on it) will not sell. Boss blames me, how dare I to say such thing, device doesn’t sell, company almost closes. Bob leaves when salaries are in question…
Yeah, another one of my grandmother’s gems. Never fully understood it until I came here.[/quote]
How true. The trick is to appear as a reed reacting to the wind, within which one’s hidden nail has a built in periscope.
Dive! Dive! Dive!
I recently witnessed a mid-level manager getting yelled at and blamed for something that was totally beyond his control. He didn’t even know it had happened. He lost face in front of a large crowd of high-level managers. But… he made no effort in defending himself. Later that day my boss told me this story and complimented this manager for his ‘high EQ’.
That’s a kind of employee that is highly sought for mid-level management in Taiwan.
[quote=“elburro”]I recently witnessed a mid-level manager getting yelled at and blamed for something that was totally beyond his control. He didn’t even know it had happened. He lost face in front of a large crowd of high-level managers. But… he made no effort in defending himself. Later that day my boss told me this story and complimented this manager for his ‘high EQ’.
That’s a kind of employee that is highly sought for mid-level management in Taiwan.[/quote]
been in a similar situation, but in private by the boss. but because I shut up, didn’t protest, became a yes-man (which I normally don’t do), he later called me back in, praised me for my conduct, and said I deserved another chance or something… :loco:
In the book ‘Cryptonomicon’ by Neal Stephenson, there is a excellent part of the book where General MacArthur explains why he doesn’t care if the Japanese has found out if the Allies has broken the key or not. While the Allies went to great lengths to ensure that the Germans never realized that their Enigma code was broken, this was according to MacArthur not necessary for the Japanese. The reason? The Japanese officers in charge of their encryption system would never want to lose face and admit to their superiors that their encryption system had failed. All they wanted was ‘harmony’ and to continue as if nothing is wrong. Things haven’t changed much since WW2.
(This is from a book where it’s sometimes hard to tell if it’s for real or if it’s fictional, but I thought it was a pretty accurate thing to write about the North-East Asian mentality of hiding mistakes and thereby getting deeper and deeper into trouble).
…others on here have written a lot of great information on this topic also. I hope they will share it with you, and others who might have these questions.
