Back in June, a friend (hereafter called Bill) invited me to go to a gaming convention with him. Normally, this would be a big expense, but we could go on the cheap by working for a gaming company called Your Move Games.
Our jobs would be simple and relatively easy. We were to help the company set up and demo their product. Bill had already done this a couple times before, but it would be a first experience with me, which led to a couple of problems later on.
After a long but enjoyable trip (despite West Virginia), we arrived in Columbus only a little behind schedule. Having ventured further west into America than I'd ever been before, and being at my first gaming convention. I was elated. There was tons of stuff to do and see. First things first, though, so Bill and I dutifully made a beeline for the exhibitor's hall where I'd meet my bosses.
We got a lukewarm welcome. Nobody smiled, laughed at my jokes, or even looked me in the eye. I don't know why. Maybe it was because we were a little bit late and missed their set-up time. Maybe they weren't thrilled at having me around or paying our gas to get to the Con. Maybe these people were just plain unfriendly. In any case I certainly didn't feel welcome or appreciated, so I did what people usually do when they get that reaction from near-strangers.
I went the hell away.
Yes, after that initial meeting I went straight back, talked it over with another friend who was also attending the Con, and decided to share a hotel room with him instead of working for Your Move Games. It might not have been very professional of me to bail on them like that, but I wasn't about to spend my first gaming convention rooming with and working for people who didn't seem to like me that much.
I write this as a cautionary tale to any business professional who might hire somebody on a temporary basis, or indeed hire anyone at all. Everybody wants to be appreciated, even temps. So, even if you're only hiring somebody as a favor, even if you're only working with them for a week, be nice.
The cautionary aspect of this story hinges, of course, on Your Move Games suffering for their stand-offishness. I doubt they suffered much, but they did ask if I was available to help them during busy times. I wasn't. And, then, here I am, 4 months later, writing about the treatment I received. Why would any company want to risk that, when all I wanted was a hello to keep me happy?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Wow thats so weird that they'd do that. I mean you're helping them and they're going to be pissed off?? I'm not really sure what I'd do in that situation. Maybe I'd confront the boss personally and see if there was something I could do to help, and try and make even more of an effort since I was late. I'm not really sure, I've never been in that type of situation with a trade off.
I agree that it is important to make sure your employees (no matter how long they'll be there) feel welcomed. This will most certainly better the chances of the employee wanting to work for you and do a good job.
I don't know either if it was the best idea to bail, however, I understand why you want to. I have no idea what I would have done in this situation, but your story has definitely got me thinking...
Gamers are hard people to deal with. My best friend since middle school turned into a hyper otaku after high school and and we could never really communicate after that. I wonder if YourMoveGames was staffed by the same kind of introverted personnel that spend days in front of TV screens with only fictitious friends.
The other explanation is that the company was so used to temps who take advantage of their employment to get to expos and other benefits. Maybe not but I think you're right when you say that it was because you were only temporary that you were treated the way you were. Not really a good excuse. This treatment was probably a reaction to making too much of and investment and YourMoveGames went to the other extreme. Good communication has to find a balance between being overwhelming and non-existent. Sucks you had to go through this, sounds like it could have been pretty cool, and you got trapped in an expensive trip.
Post a Comment