And so my first day of my internship in Shanghai arrives … I walk in through that door, along with Eric, my program coordinator, to a room of young casually dressed people, happily typing on their computers. We are escorted into the conference room, offered tea and kindly asked to wait for the HR contact person.
Hannah HR: Something something something in Chinese.
Eric: Something something something in Chinese.
Eric looks at me, and says: Monica, there is a problem, the system is all in Chinese. And this is how my first work day in China begins!
I overcome the fact that my computer is all in Chinese and I start working. I do marketing for the Fashion section of the site. I think of a theme for upcoming promotions, pick out images, write slogans, and make it all blend in. With the help of my two supervisors and co-workers, Lucy and Kristen, and the graphics department, we create great images for Lightinthebox.com’s Fashion section. I also promote the company through social media outlets and research quite a bit. The girls make me feel very welcome; they are my Western contacts in the company, since they both studied in the US, respectively UK.
Below is the view from their offices in Shanghai:
