Coworkers are easy to get along with because everyone is having a terrible time.
Within the group, there are some troubling issues. A senior executive seems keen to intervene in everything, from project management and detailed arrangements to even seating assignments. They regularly fly back and forth every week just to attend meetings and enjoy good food, yet have not significantly improved economic efficiency or generated more revenue. This management style has already left many people dissatisfied, leading entire departments to resign en masse, while the person involved believes the problem lies with others.
Projects or requests often require a certain amount of time to handle, but that time is shortened so that they must be submitted the next day. However, after these urgent requests are completed, they are often forgotten, as if their purpose were simply to keep people scrambling. Every day is spent either in meetings or on the way to meetings. Countless meetings seem never to resolve practical problems, but they leave those responsible for execution utterly exhausted.
In addition, another manager who curries favor with this senior executive is even more skilled at managing upward. When conveying information, they act merely as an intermediary, yet they continually anger colleagues and leave everyone feeling frustrated. The arrangement of company activities has also failed to ease the atmosphere; instead, it requires each department to report its performance and work plans, making it feel like a criticism session. These developments are affecting team morale and the overall work atmosphere.
1. The benefits are good for the publishing industry.
2. The policies are clear and comply with the Labor Standards Act.
3. Most colleagues are easy to get along with.
1. Some senior managers do not do their jobs properly and only put on a superficial show. They spend their time doing public relations everywhere, coast until retirement, and like to shift the blame onto subordinates. In addition, whether employees receive a raise is entirely at the discretion of their direct supervisor, so they can only endure suppression and deliberate difficulties from their supervisors.
2. Even though each publishing house has independent performance results, they insist on holding meetings and sharing resources together. Apart from wasting time, this provides no substantial help in improving performance.
None
I was hired, but I deeply regret not taking the reviews on Tienyan Tong into consideration. It is completely an echo chamber, and one of the supervisors loves to flaunt their authority. The division of responsibilities is also extremely unclear, and everyone often has to gauge this supervisor’s mood before taking action.
None
HR requires you to register with City State’s internal HR system before the interview. Once you complete the information, the system automatically asks the manager to conduct the interview.
However, this system is clearly collecting applicants’ personal information for various companies.
1. It requires you to enter your former supervisor’s name, department, and your monthly salary. If you do not provide this information, the system gets stuck and leaves you at the incomplete information stage.
2. It forces you to provide the information of two references. You cannot leave it blank or provide only one; otherwise, the system gets stuck and leaves you at the incomplete information stage.
3. It also requires you to agree to let several other companies in the group use your personal information.
Then, even if you voluntarily complete all this information, they first give you a half-hour test and then interview you for half an hour.
Forget it......
It's a place where you can more or less wait until retirement.
It's simply a group that's gradually being controlled by China.
Can't think of any at the moment
The performance evaluation system is opaque and pseudo-democratic. If they want you to leave, they'll say everything about your performance is wrong and scrutinize it excessively.
The team is harmonious, and all colleagues are friendly.
My workplace is a unit that is not located on the ground floor, so the following suggestions for improvement apply only to that location:
1. One supervisor is a harsh and unusually emotional manager who uses authoritarian management and requires a great deal of flattery.
2. Nitpicking and excessive micromanagement.
3. Endless, lengthy meetings whose content consists entirely of one supervisor’s small talk. They delay employees’ work, yet there is no overtime pay.
1. Some colleagues are easy to get along with.
2. As long as your position is not high enough to get in anyone’s way, you generally will not be fired even if you are terrible in every respect.
1. Hong Kong company + traditional industry base = endless political struggles. The Taiwan units have very little authority; they usually have to bow to Hong Kong.
2. Unless your supervisor has enough influence and does not frequently forget about you, your raise may forever be 0... (Raises are only possible when proposed by the supervisor.)
3. There are many cross-unit and cross-department collaboration needs, but basically everyone has their own agenda. There will never be a day when everyone’s goals are aligned.
4. There are quite a few employees who slack off or lack ability; everyone just wants to stay secure until retirement!
I applied for an editor position in the manga department at Sharp Point Press. There were two interviewers, and Editor-in-Chief Chen was very kind. When I called back to ask about the result, he also explained very carefully why I wasn’t hired. It was a shame I couldn’t get in.
I originally wanted to give a poor rating, but thanks to Editor-in-Chief Chen, I gave it an average rating instead.
Although they supposedly don’t restrict the editor’s area of focus, the other female interviewer kept asking whether a male applicant liked BL. I know the BL market is very large, but is it really appropriate to blatantly target and give male applicants a hard time like this?
1. Colleagues from different departments get along well (but since it is based in Hong Kong, factional infighting is extremely serious)
My workplace is a unit that is not on the ground floor, so the following suggestions for improvement apply only to that location:
1. A great deal of time needs to be spent flattering OO and putting on a smile, which often causes delays to work
2. OO is exceptionally emotional
3. There is no overtime pay (very difficult to apply for)
4. The salary is only slightly above the minimum wage
Basically, I do not recommend working in this unit unless you can tolerate a low salary and a work environment that requires ingratiating yourself with others.
Otherwise, it is not suitable for staying long-term.
You cannot discuss the company or make negative comments.
You cannot discuss the company or make negative comments.
A large company
1. The publishing industry is in a downturn—really in a severe downturn—and it directly affects your salary and benefits.
2. The manager mentioned that the publishing industry is undergoing a transformation, but the direction was vague and full of bureaucratic jargon; I couldn't sense any details during the discussion.
3. It was apparent that, in addition to the position I applied for, the manager expected me to take on and learn many other duties at the same time.
4. Many technical tasks are outsourced, with no professional team to provide support.
5. There was a 5% or 6% benefits deduction in the salary deductions—I can't remember which. When I asked what it was for, I got a bunch of bureaucratic jargon, leaving me feeling that money was being deducted for nothing.
None
1. A bunch of aptitude tests
2. The supervisor was somewhat sexist and did not really trust men
3. They want to hire bilingual talent at a low salary
First, I took an aptitude test in the HR department. Then I went to a meeting room to complete a questionnaire and translate some content. After looking at the questionnaire and seeing that I did not have any favorite books—or had not read the company’s books—they said I was not suitable. I wonder, then, why did they ask me to take all those tests in HR in the first place? They could have asked directly on 104, or given me the questionnaire first and simply asked me about it. They also said that the job involved many miscellaneous tasks, and that men were generally not very detail-oriented in this respect, which worried them. (Then why did they ask me to come?) Overall, it felt like a waste of time. They also said that salaries in the publishing industry are not high (and were unwilling to disclose the salary). They want to find someone fluent in English and Japanese at a low salary? I suggest they wait another ten years!
None
In the past, I was invited by Jianduan to interview for a graphic design and editing position. The interviewer seemed impatient and conceited, and apparently mistook a Mac for graphic design software. As soon as I arrived, they said, “You’ve never used a Mac system—how can you do the job?” and immediately, loudly told me to leave. It was quite rude.
Regardless of whether we were really so slow that it would take a year and a half to learn the Mac interface~
They didn’t read my résumé, casually called me in without clarifying the situation, and immediately drove me out. That attitude made me feel extremely disrespected.
Fortunately, I didn’t have to work under someone like that~
None
Nong Nong International Media (Bella): During the interview, the interviewer criticized me in a very disrespectful manner solely to cut my salary. So I stated that after the three-month probationary period, my salary would need to be restored to my expected salary for me to be willing to join the company. I documented all these terms in our email correspondence, and they agreed. When my probationary period ended, I specifically reminded the company about the salary increase, but the supervisor who interviewed me suddenly denied having ever agreed to it! They even told me that it was only a few thousand dollars and that I shouldn’t care so much!! Changing jobs is troublesome and hard for everyone. The terms of my employment were clearly stated in writing, but they went back on their word in the end, wasting my time. I’m really angry!
None
Interview x magazine content planning
The senior manager was extremely arrogant and looked down on people.
This position requires cooking, photography, and editing skills; ideally, you should handle everything.
The interview process was very unpleasant, and even if I got the job, I wouldn’t want to go.
1. The interview is very detailed and provides an in-depth understanding of the responsibilities of the position. It is recommended to set aside 2–3 hours for the interview and written test.
1. Responsibility system: You are still expected to be on call at any time after going home from work, leaving little room for a private life.
2. The culture of working overtime is deeply entrenched, and there is no overtime pay. Those without a fresh liver and passion should think twice before joining!
None
I once interviewed for an online operations planner position for e-books.
The interview lasted only five minutes; the time allotted and the attitude shown were completely disrespectful to the interviewee.
President He Feipeng talks online about how well the company is managed and how good its hiring practices are, but none of it is actually implemented~ From now on, I have no desire to apply for any positions at Cite Publishing.
Complies with the Labor Standards Act, with flexible working hours. Overtime pay is provided when overtime is reported in advance (although many people quietly take the work home to finish it themselves).
1. Management by personal discretion
2. Although this is non-contract employment and the positions on 104 are not posted as contract positions, after joining through the interview process, newcomers sign a three-month fixed-term contract. The contract is renewed only after they pass the probationary period.
A company with a very comprehensive system, good benefits, and plenty of room to grow in the work.
Many miscellaneous tasks.
None
The department conducting the interview was Bella International Media (Bella). The original position I interviewed for was Digital Marketing Planner, but the interviewer immediately asked whether this was my first full-time job interview. When I said that it was, they said, “I think you lack experience. I have many résumés from candidates with more experience than you, and you probably won’t be able to handle this job.”
However, while I was a student, I had extensive experience managing social media. The interviewer did not ask at all about my work performance or responsibilities during my internship, but instead judged my work experience based on whether I had held a full-time position. I found this quite unreasonable.
The interviewer then said that the company had another position that was open to recent graduates. I will not go into detail about the job responsibilities, but the starting salary was extremely low—shockingly low! This job may only be suitable for people with an inexhaustible passion for the media and magazine industry. Please think twice before submitting your résumé.
None
The interview scheduling was extremely insincere. They scheduled it for 11:30, then went off to lunch after less than ten minutes. Other people’s time matters too.
Almost every month, there are new book events that require sacrificing evenings and holidays and traveling to other counties or cities for a same-day round trip. Overtime must be applied for in advance and approved by the main branch. Aside from event-related work, no one has ever submitted an application; everyone just works overtime silently. During leave, supervisors send emails and Line messages to discuss work matters. The starting salary is low, and the raises are small. There is a lot of work, and it is miscellaneous; one person is made to do the work of two.