On TYKTWD I watched over my mom and her average day as an HR manager. Her work is hybrid, meaning some things are online, and some in person. Since her office is based in Vietnam, she showed me all the online part, which is done right at home.
As a manager, her job is to communicate with other regional managers/teams in case of a problem, and ensure everything is running smoothly in the office. Which is why we spent a large part of the day going through and responding to emails, arranging meetings, talking to other colleagues, and making calls. One thing I found interesting was how her way of talking changed based on the culture of the person she’s talking to, like how she jokes more with her Vietnamese coworkers and how she’s more enthusiastic to the expats from foreign countries. Besides communication, my mom also showed me how she manages data about other employees, training, contracts, salaries, finance, and new recruits. Most of it was done over Microsoft Office, but the company also uses systems to help organize things, like SAP and SuccessFactors.
We ended the ‘visit’ at lunch and went to make food. Overall, it was interesting seeing how a job works in depth, minus the Excel worksheets. Here are some extra information about the work environment:
What did you see, hear, smell, and feel?
Hear: keyboard typing, scribble of a pen; phone calls; traffic; TV; dishes being washed; other conversations
See: bright screen; cars passing by; family members walking around and doing chores
Smell: paper and books; food
Feel: interested; cold; a bit distracted
What about the environment would motivate you to wake up every day to attend work?
Comfortable atmosphere since it’s at home; most resources/things available; relaxed schedule and ability to change things (space, temperature, sound, dress code, etc.) without having to consider other employees/formality.
What about the work environment would discourage you from waking up every day to attend work?
Lack of face-to-face interactions, moving around, and ability to consult colleagues/boss; loud and distracting/too quiet atmosphere; same environment every day; harder communication.
What is ONE thing you found interesting about your workplace visit?
How much more distracting it is to be working alone in a quiet room compared to a loud office.
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