Workplace reviews and discussion: Dr.Nail足研所(問題甲國際股份有限公司)

Clean environment

A horrible experience that happened in 2018—I wonder if the interviewer still talks like that.

My résumé clearly stated that I had no experience, yet they sent me an interview invitation for a graphic design position and asked me to bring a portfolio.

When I arrived, I waited an hour for the previous interviewee to finish.

I had studied graphic design at a cram school, where the teachers also taught us how to take on some freelance projects, so naturally my portfolio consisted of work from the cram school and freelance projects.

The interviewer seemed to be the founder (a woman). She immediately started tearing me down, saying that my portfolio was no different from high school homework.

Then she looked at my résumé (I had previously worked at ZARA and at department-store counters) and said, “I can tell you used to party hard” (??? What does that mean??? Because I worked in the service industry??)

Then things got even more absurd. She said, “With experience like yours, it’s already very generous of me to hire you as an administrative assistant. We happen to have an administrative position open, and you only need to know how to draw a little. The salary is NT$26,000, with six days off per month. You’ll have to go outside and properly learn graphic design on your own. If we still have an opening for a graphic designer in two or three years, we’ll of course hire from within. With a portfolio and experience like yours, I even think offering NT$26,000 is a little high.”

Then she said, “That designer just now” (she pulled out his portfolio to show me), “asked me for NT$50,000. I’d rather hire him…”

Of course, I didn’t take the job~ But six months later, I saw that they were still hiring.

The interviewer was probably the founder (female). She was really good at PUA/manipulation~~

Don’t let her behavior make you undervalue yourself or lower your salary expectations during negotiations.

First, she completely tore you down, then said that her company happened to have an opening and would reluctantly let you join—but wouldn’t pay you very much, supposedly out of the kindness of her heart so you could come in and learn. (The benefits violated the Labor Standards Act.) After being subjected to her tirade, I felt depressed for a long time.

It wasn’t until I was hired by another company I had interviewed with around that time that things improved. After joining, not only was the salary higher than what this company offered, but everything also complied with the Labor Standards Act.

The owner was also willing to accept someone with no experience.