| Vom Thema belegte Seiten: [1 2] > | Off topic: Crazy experience with an agency Initiator des Themas: Paula Delgado
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Paula Delgado 
Portugal
Local time: 00:21
Englisch > Portugiesisch
+ ...
Hi,
I would like to here your opinion on this. Some days ago I answered a job post and provided the sample translation they required. After speaking to the poster some times, he confessed me that he didn't know the language. Now for the best part: He ended asking me yesterday to take a look at 4 of the sample translations and choose what was the best, in other words, to order them by first, second, etc. This task was going to be paid, of course. And I said no, of course. What an ind... See more Hi,
I would like to here your opinion on this. Some days ago I answered a job post and provided the sample translation they required. After speaking to the poster some times, he confessed me that he didn't know the language. Now for the best part: He ended asking me yesterday to take a look at 4 of the sample translations and choose what was the best, in other words, to order them by first, second, etc. This task was going to be paid, of course. And I said no, of course. What an indecent proposal!!!
I was not good enough to do the job, but I was good enough to choose the translator wich was going to do it.
What do you think of this?
[Edited at 2007-02-10 12:18]
[Edited at 2007-02-10 12:24]
[Edited at 2007-02-10 12:26] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Vito Smolej
Deutschland
Local time: 01:21
Mitglied (2004)
Englisch > Slowenisch
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER | I would not call it indecent ... | Feb 10, 2007 |
What an indecent proposal!!!
... for me it's above all completely off-base and unprofessional - the person does not know his front from his backside. It's ok to ask for advice, but he/she should go and get it somewhere else.
Were I in your place, I would take a deep breath and apologize, that "thank you, but thank you, no, under these circumstances I can't be an objective judge of the performance of others".
And of course avoid the agent in the future - looks like a car salesman without a driving license to me. It could just as well be, its pure luck you will NOT have anything to do with the agent right from the start.
Hypothetical question: you're not among the first four, based on what? It cant be the quality of the translation - it could as well be in Urdu or Kiswahili and the agent would not know. So it must be your qualifications (aka price): let the lowest bidder win!
But, hey - thinks the agent - let's play smart and just check it's not Urdu or Kiswahili and ask our #5 about it. And pay her a pizza for the suggestion.
Regards
[Edited at 2007-02-10 12:41]
| | | | Nicole Schnell
Vereinigte Staaten
Local time: 16:21
Englisch > Deutsch
+ ...
In stillem Gedenken | Ahem. Communication? | Feb 10, 2007 |
Paula, did the PM in fact tell you that your translation was not accepted?
Exactly the same way I received a big, fat, well-paid translation project a few years ago. I could choose among various test translations from colleagues - sole purpose: to save me a lot of time and research as I could build upon the terminology (patents, nanotechnology). To pick my favorite.
If they didn't like your work, why would they have given you this incredibly important task of picking th... See more Paula, did the PM in fact tell you that your translation was not accepted?
Exactly the same way I received a big, fat, well-paid translation project a few years ago. I could choose among various test translations from colleagues - sole purpose: to save me a lot of time and research as I could build upon the terminology (patents, nanotechnology). To pick my favorite.
If they didn't like your work, why would they have given you this incredibly important task of picking the best?
Guess, you just managed yourself out of a nice job. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Paula Delgado
Portugal
Local time: 00:21
Englisch > Portugiesisch
+ ...
THEMENSTARTER | Crazy experience with an agency | Feb 10, 2007 |
Dear Nicole,
Yes, he told me that he was not going to give the job to me. And it was not the PM, it was the director/president.
[Edited at 2007-02-10 13:45]
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Paula Delgado
Portugal
Local time: 00:21
Englisch > Portugiesisch
+ ...
THEMENSTARTER | I was among the first five | Feb 10, 2007 |
[Hypothetical question: you're not among the first four, based on what? It cant be the quality of the translation - it could as well be in Urdu or Kiswahili and the agent would not know. So it must be your qualifications (aka price): let the lowest bidder win!
He told me I was among the first five, can you believe this? I think this is completly out of line...
Tks for your answer, Vito
| | | | Riens Middelhof
Niederlande
Local time: 01:21
Spanisch > Niederländisch
+ ...
| Right Nicole | Feb 10, 2007 |
That was EXACTLY my first idea...
They offer you a pay (not a pizza) for a job. Payment might be good or bad, but a reaction like this won´t help to negotiate a better. The fact that the agency doesn´t speak the language, well, if they KNEW the language there might not have been a job in the first place...
and Vito, sorry but:
...looks like a car salesman without a driving license to me.
Do I care if my car salesman has a driving license or ... See more That was EXACTLY my first idea...
They offer you a pay (not a pizza) for a job. Payment might be good or bad, but a reaction like this won´t help to negotiate a better. The fact that the agency doesn´t speak the language, well, if they KNEW the language there might not have been a job in the first place...
and Vito, sorry but:
...looks like a car salesman without a driving license to me.
Do I care if my car salesman has a driving license or not? I expect him/her to give me a great service, a fair price and a fair amount of guarantee. I´m buying a car, not hiring a driver... Whether the car (brand, model) is a good choice is MY responsibility too as a customer. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Nicole Schnell
Vereinigte Staaten
Local time: 16:21
Englisch > Deutsch
+ ...
In stillem Gedenken
I am sorry to hear that.
When I was asked to pick the best, I was told that the final decision had not been made yet.
Turning down your work explicitly AND asking you to do a PM's job is bizarre indeed.
Whenever I think I've heard it all...
| | | | Paula Delgado
Portugal
Local time: 00:21
Englisch > Portugiesisch
+ ...
THEMENSTARTER | I don't think Nicole is right... | Feb 10, 2007 |
Dear Riens,
The problem is that this person told me that he was not going to give me the job. However, he was willing to pay me to choose among the other 4.
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Paula Delgado
Portugal
Local time: 00:21
Englisch > Portugiesisch
+ ...
THEMENSTARTER | It's my first time hearing somthing of this kind too... | Feb 10, 2007 |
Dear Nicole,
No problem. I think in this world everything is possible.
I'm not going to say the name of the agency but it's from your country.
| | | | Riens Middelhof
Niederlande
Local time: 01:21
Spanisch > Niederländisch
+ ...
| The problem of combining writing with making coffee | Feb 10, 2007 |
... is that the answer often comes too late, and the coffee doesn´t taste half as good afterwards
Agencies, can´t live with them, can´t live etc...
| | | | Vito Smolej
Deutschland
Local time: 01:21
Mitglied (2004)
Englisch > Slowenisch
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER | Do I care if my car salesman has a driving license or not? | Feb 10, 2007 |
Well, I do. I would not want to do anything with him. Neither would you.
The problem may not knowing this from the start. But on the other side it's never too late to get out.
Regards
smo
| | | | Ken Cox
Local time: 01:21
Deutsch > Englisch
+ ...
| not exactly indecent... | Feb 10, 2007 |
but certainly chutzpah (in the negative sense)
You have to see it from their perspective: they're free to run their business any way they want, and according to a business ethic that is widely endorsed by people who are essentially in it for the money, it's OK to treat people any way you want as long as you pay them.
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Moofi
Local time: 01:21
Polnisch > Englisch
+ ...
To be honest, some of the morons we've encountered in this job, I find this quite un-surprising. And I'd love to be paid in pizza. Would be more worthwhile than some of the peanuts I've been paid in the past
| | | | Özden Arıkan
Deutschland
Local time: 01:21
Englisch > Türkisch
+ ...
| Moved the topic... | Feb 10, 2007 |
...to Business Issues.
Regards,
Özden
| | | | | You will forget it in one or three weeks | Feb 10, 2007 |
Was it really a disaster in your professional career?
Is it worth discussing it here to such an extent?
Be harder and avoid reactions incommensurate with the incident.
Best regards
Andrzej
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