正月明けの一週間は結構、仕事の密度の濃い5日間になりました。
支援先に外資系企業が多いため、クリスマスの前あたりから顧客の反応がスローになり、年末は少し楽になりました。
しかし、逆に年始、海外の企業は2日から始まっているので、メールも溜まっていますし、エンジン全開の人もいます。
こちらも年始の挨拶もそこそこにほぼエンジン全開でした。
この三連休はありがたい。旧正月、早く来てくれ（アジア地域の会社が休みになるところが多いので）。
さて、いよいよ第四章です。ヨーロッパの旅から帰ったRonさんは、グローバルビジネスを目指しますが、。。。。
この章も、3回に分けて掲載します。
Chapter #4: TURNS AND TWISTS EARLY IN THE CAREER
Coming back from Europe I knew I wanted to get into the international business community in some capacity. I sent out resumes to every American multinational corporation I could think of, from international carriers to corporations with investments and partners worldwide.
My Father, having worked for Bank of America for many years, set up appointments for job interviews throughout the bank in San Francisco. In one of those interviews the interviewer was very mean to me. He kept repeating that I do not nearly have the background to qualify for the type of position I was looking for. He said I would at least need a masters’ degree, a second language or specialty in a given country or region to even be slightly considered. So, I had no hope at that time and would have to explore how to move forward. I went back to San Jose to my rooming house completely dejected.
After some deliberation, I decided to take the first management job I could find as business management was my major at San Jose State University, and for the time being I would have to give up on all the change of any career in international business.
In San Jose, F.W. Woolworth’s needed store managers, and I was employed as a store manager trainee.
I started out in the stock room checking in merchandise and putting them into stock or taking them to the showroom floor. I learned how to receive goods, compare them with purchase orders, and stock them in the most ideal location and how to monitor inventory control.
From there, I moved to the store sales floor. At that time, I was promoted to assistant store manager, and I managed half the store sales floor and another assistant manager had the other half. I learned on the sales floor how to keep the merchandise out on display and meet customers. For most of the time I was at FW Woolworth’s, I had to cover the entire showroom floor, as the assistant managers kept quitting.
Several things I learned at Woolworth’s. One is I that enjoyed working with the public and interacting with a lot of different people. I also learned I had a knack with managing people particularly women for some reason. I guess it was because I grew up with women, my mother and sister. The more I learned the better manager I became and the more respect I commanded in the store, in some cases more than the store manager himself.
During those years, I was still in the Army Reserves. Therefore, I was not only learning management skills at Woolworth’s, I was learning management and teaching skills in the Reserves as well. Right in boot camp I learned the management and motivational techniques of competition among groups and team pride. My company had three platoons with four squads each. One squad has made up of about seven people, and I was a squad leader. I learned that a leader has to participate just as much as the rest of the quad. He cannot sit back and let everyone else do all the work, as respect will be lost. That is something that has held true in every company I managed in. Our squads would continually compete against each other in a wide range of very detailed activities and each platoon generated its own pride. With those techniques, we were all highly motivated even though none of us wanted to be there! About 90% of that company was reservist trying to stay out of the Vietnam War.
支援先に外資系企業が多いため、クリスマスの前あたりから顧客の反応がスローになり、年末は少し楽になりました。
しかし、逆に年始、海外の企業は2日から始まっているので、メールも溜まっていますし、エンジン全開の人もいます。
こちらも年始の挨拶もそこそこにほぼエンジン全開でした。
この三連休はありがたい。旧正月、早く来てくれ（アジア地域の会社が休みになるところが多いので）。
さて、いよいよ第四章です。ヨーロッパの旅から帰ったRonさんは、グローバルビジネスを目指しますが、。。。。
この章も、3回に分けて掲載します。
Chapter #4: TURNS AND TWISTS EARLY IN THE CAREER
Coming back from Europe I knew I wanted to get into the international business community in some capacity. I sent out resumes to every American multinational corporation I could think of, from international carriers to corporations with investments and partners worldwide.
My Father, having worked for Bank of America for many years, set up appointments for job interviews throughout the bank in San Francisco. In one of those interviews the interviewer was very mean to me. He kept repeating that I do not nearly have the background to qualify for the type of position I was looking for. He said I would at least need a masters’ degree, a second language or specialty in a given country or region to even be slightly considered. So, I had no hope at that time and would have to explore how to move forward. I went back to San Jose to my rooming house completely dejected.
After some deliberation, I decided to take the first management job I could find as business management was my major at San Jose State University, and for the time being I would have to give up on all the change of any career in international business.
In San Jose, F.W. Woolworth’s needed store managers, and I was employed as a store manager trainee.
I started out in the stock room checking in merchandise and putting them into stock or taking them to the showroom floor. I learned how to receive goods, compare them with purchase orders, and stock them in the most ideal location and how to monitor inventory control.
From there, I moved to the store sales floor. At that time, I was promoted to assistant store manager, and I managed half the store sales floor and another assistant manager had the other half. I learned on the sales floor how to keep the merchandise out on display and meet customers. For most of the time I was at FW Woolworth’s, I had to cover the entire showroom floor, as the assistant managers kept quitting.
Several things I learned at Woolworth’s. One is I that enjoyed working with the public and interacting with a lot of different people. I also learned I had a knack with managing people particularly women for some reason. I guess it was because I grew up with women, my mother and sister. The more I learned the better manager I became and the more respect I commanded in the store, in some cases more than the store manager himself.
During those years, I was still in the Army Reserves. Therefore, I was not only learning management skills at Woolworth’s, I was learning management and teaching skills in the Reserves as well. Right in boot camp I learned the management and motivational techniques of competition among groups and team pride. My company had three platoons with four squads each. One squad has made up of about seven people, and I was a squad leader. I learned that a leader has to participate just as much as the rest of the quad. He cannot sit back and let everyone else do all the work, as respect will be lost. That is something that has held true in every company I managed in. Our squads would continually compete against each other in a wide range of very detailed activities and each platoon generated its own pride. With those techniques, we were all highly motivated even though none of us wanted to be there! About 90% of that company was reservist trying to stay out of the Vietnam War.
