Series: The All-Rounder Employee Becomes a Legend
Chapter: 49
Title: If the Center Director Says So
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After returning home, Taeseok sent a message to his former colleagues about what had happened that day.
Kim Taeseok: It was my first day today, and the branch manager is a woman. How do I get on her good side?
Taeseok asked everyone. The chaebol Taeseok replied.
GangnamHottie: Taeseok, that woman, she's a total bitch. lol. An incredibly selfish bitch.
Seo Yoonji: Oppa! I wish you wouldn't swear in the chatroom.
GangnamHottie: Am I wrong?
Seo Yoonji: Ugh~ Cut back on the swearing. Ah~ Kim Taeseok! It’s probably going to be a little tough. That branch manager is an old maid and pretty hysterical.
Kim Taeseok: How so?
Seo Yoonji: Hmm, it's hard to explain in words, but her mood changes several times a day. Like a roller coaster? Anyway, that’s how she is. Maybe the best way to get on her good side is to not clash with her?
GangnamHottie: LOL Yoonji!
Seo Yoonji: Yes?
GangnamHottie: LOL It feels weird when you talk so casually to Taeseok. LOL
Seo Yoonji: Hehe. Then what should I call you, oppa? Should I call you Hottie like your ID? Hehe.
GangnamHottie: LOL Never mind.
Meanwhile, a new message popped up in another chatroom.
Startled by Donghoon’s message, Taeseok quickly replied.
Jang Donghoon: What's with you, Kim Taeseok?
Kim Taeseok: Huh? Oh, that guy has a foul mouth, doesn't he?
But his senior was criticizing him.
Jang Donghoon: No, I'm talking about you. Are you a bat? Why do you cozy up to one person and then another? I'm disappointed.
Kim Taeseok: ㅡ.ㅡ;; Donghoon, I was never on anyone's side to begin with.
Choi Jinyoung: LOLOLOL That's true. He never bad-mouthed the chaebol Taeseok. Donghoon! How is it working with the chaebol? Is it bearable?
Jang Donghoon: No, it's totally grim. LOL It was his first day, so the section chief suggested a welcome dinner, but he ditched to eat with his girlfriend. The section chief and the Team Leader had a meltdown.
Kim Hyeonsu: LOLOLOL So that's why Yoonji left work early today?
Jang Donghoon: LOL Was that it? It’s practically a public relationship at this point. We find out everything they do. LOLOLOL
Choi Jinyoung: LOL Public relationships are hilarious. You get caught even if you don't want to be exposed.
Kim Taeseok: ......
Taeseok sighed and opened the catalog he had brought from the store.
The only way to learn about the products sold by El Sung Electronics was to read it over and over again, dozens of times.
‘Starting tomorrow, it’s the real deal. I have to work hard and make a good impression on the branch manager.’
The next day.
When Taeseok arrived at work at 8:30 a.m., some of the employees who had come in early were already arranging products on the shelves.
They were checking newly arrived products from the factory and putting them in the warehouse.
And processing products sold through home shopping networks or online for shipment.
Come to think of it, the building was bigger than he had expected.
If the store took up 60% of the total area, the warehouse, hidden from customers, accounted for about 40%.
There, the branch manager asked Taeseok a question.
“Manager Kim Taeseok, let me ask you one thing. You don't plan on staying here, do you?”
Taeseok nodded and answered the woman who had questioned him like this from the very beginning.
“I’ll still do my best.”
“No. I’ll give you a good evaluation. So you don't have to work hard. Just don't cause any trouble.”
“……”
Taeseok thought.
‘They never intended to assign me as a store sales manager from the start.’
‘I hadn't done enough to change her mind.’
His thought was spot on.
“Instead of store sales, go to the 4th-floor Service Center.”
“The Service Center, you mean?”
“Yes. Go there and report to the Center Director. I'll let him know.”
“Understood.”
Kim Taeseok now understood what Yoonji and the other Taeseok had said.
‘Does she not trust me?’
He did as the branch manager instructed and went up to the fourth floor, but the Center Director there had the same attitude.
A man in his mid-fifties.
“Hello.”
Taeseok recognized the Center Director and immediately greeted him politely.
A man with 27 years of experience repairing home appliances.
At this branch, he was the de facto king.
But the Center Director responded to Taeseok with a blunt tone.
“You're here?”
“Yes. The branch manager sent me. What should I be doing?”
“There’s a computer at that counter over there, so go there and do whatever you want. You don't have to talk to the customers, just go sit there. I won't bother you for two months.”
“……”
Taeseok felt it. This atmosphere. It was all created by the other Taeseok.
‘What on earth did he do here for two months?’
The people at this branch were all treating him like a weirdo. From the sales managers to the repair center staff. He could clearly feel their disapproving gazes. It was absurd, but this was his reality.
A person who would leave anyway. A selfish person. A different class of person from them. That's what they thought of Taeseok.
In their eyes, Taeseok was undoubtedly a member of the elite.
The woman who came last time was from Harvard.
The man was a chaebol.
They thought of it as a work experience activity, a publicity stunt to show that the group was nurturing its talented people.
That's why they were sending him such piercing glares. Taeseok didn't dwell on it. Words were useless in a situation like this. Everything had to be shown through sincere actions. So he looked for something to do.
First, he started with cleaning. And the system instructed him to do just that.
[Sub Quest: Change the Center Director's Mind]
You can do it with effort. Find what needs to be done and do your best. Show them your sincerity.
[Reward: A change in the Center Director's and Branch Manager's attitudes]
The store opened at 10:30 a.m.
He rinsed a rag and meticulously wiped down his surroundings first.
The Center Director saw Taeseok's actions and thought he was making a fuss.
‘Tsk, tsk. Why come to a place like this? Does he think we're dirty?’
But the kid didn't just clean his own desk; he also cleaned the path customers used to enter.
‘What's this?’
What he did after he finished cleaning.
He read a book.
The El Sung Electronics product repair manual.
The Center Director still didn't believe his actions.
He thought he'd do it for a day or two and then stop.
But he was wrong.
During the quiet lunch hours when there were no customers, Taeseok made sure to introduce himself to the center's staff.
“Hello. I'm Kim Taeseok, the new employee. It's a pleasure to work with you. I wasn't able to greet you earlier because you were busy.”
“Ah... yes.”
Even when they treated him bluntly, he never got discouraged and always faced people with a bright expression.
After two days, he started doing things he wasn't asked to do.
He took on the role of guiding customers who came up to the 4th floor to an empty desk at the repair center.
“Ma'am, what did you come to have fixed?”
“My phone screen went out.”
“How long has it been since you purchased it?”
“Three months.”
“Let me just check a few things. It's not broken. Was it water-damaged?”
“No. It just suddenly went out. I'm so annoyed.”
Taeseok finished the basic checks and responded to the customer with a smile.
“You must be very upset. Fortunately, I believe that part is covered by a free repair. I'll escort you to desk 16 over there for now. The technicians here will fix it for you in no time. Shall we go together?”
“Yes.”
A decent-looking, young, energetic, and polite man in his twenties.
Once he started guiding customers, the frequency of complaints directed at the staff dropped dramatically.
It was only natural that complaints decreased.
Because Kim Taeseok was on the front line, taking the heat for them.
And at some point, when employees were away from their desks, he started answering their phones for them.
“El Sung Electronics Service Center, Manager Kim Taeseok speaking. How may I help you?”
- My side-by-side refrigerator keeps making a humming noise. It's not constant, but it happens intermittently.
“Ah, could you please tell me the product name?”
After hearing the product name, Taeseok looked up the troubleshooting section for that model in the repair manual and answered.
“Ma'am, for that product, the motor and fan can make an operating noise during the cooling process. Based on that symptom alone, it seems to be normal. Is it perhaps louder than usual?”
- I'm not sure about that. So it's normal for now?
“Yes. Just in case, we can send a service technician to your home. When would be a good time for you?”
- Is it free?
“Yes. According to our policy, it's within the free A/S period, so as long as it's not an inconvenience for you, we will send a technician as soon as possible.”
- Thank you. Would tomorrow be possible?
“I will check with the technician in charge and have them call you back. Is your phone number 010-6531-XXXX?”
Taeseok took care of what he could on his own, without being told.
If a problem arose from his actions, they could reprimand him for acting on his own, but for things he didn't know, he didn't make his own judgments. Instead, he asked his colleagues and learned how to handle things one by one.
And that sight slowly began to change the Center Director's mind.
Taeseok knew.
People will help those who make an effort. It had only been a week, but his colleagues started acting friendly toward him.
“Taeseok! What are you doing tonight?”
“Nothing in particular.”
“Do you like billiards? We're going to play for dinner.”
“I do. I'll go if you'll have me.”
“Oh! We have enough people! 4-ball, what's your point count?”
“I play around 150.”
“Oh~ You must have played a lot for your age. Okay! Let's head out at 6:30 p.m.”
“Yes. Understood.”
The Director, who had disliked him at first, thought.
‘That kid has real character.’
‘He's different from that troublemaker who even shared the same name.’
A kid who became friendly with all my staff in just one week. So he called him over.
“Taeseok!”
“Yes, Director.”
“What were you doing before you joined the company?”
But the answer was unexpected.
“I worked at a construction site.”
He thought he was an elite, but that wasn't the case.
“Manual labor? What about school?”
“I didn't go to a university. I just got my bachelor's degree through the credit bank system.”
At his words, the Director nodded.
He hadn't gone far in school either.
Nevertheless, through constant effort, he had been able to reach his current position.
Of course, compared to the branch manager—who had less experience but was a university graduate—his rank was lower, and he answered to her. Still, he was in a leadership position, overseeing and managing the entire repair center.
With decades of experience, the Director, who had perfect control over the 4th floor, was also the only person there who had the branch manager's trust.
“Still, if you have a bachelor's degree, you should be a manager, not here in the repair center. Why did you come here?”
“I'd like to be a manager too, but it seems I haven't earned that recognition yet. I'll work hard until I'm acknowledged by the branch manager.”
“……”
A bitter expression.
Worry crossed the Director's face.
‘Is it because of his academic background? Or... because of that other guy?’
* * *
That evening.
The monthly meeting hosted by the branch manager.
Branch Manager Yoon Yeo-jeong, with 11 years of experience, gathered the sales team leaders and the Director of the repair center, and the meeting began, covering everything from an analysis of last week's sales to the difficulties each manager was facing.
“Team Leader 1, sales have dropped significantly compared to last week. What do you think the problem is?”
“I think it's because the CSATs aren't over yet. I expect smartphone sales will rise significantly once the exams are finished.”
“And Team Leader 2? Is it the same for you?”
“Yes. Sales were good through October because it was the peak wedding season, but since November is the off-season, home appliances aren't selling well. We will work harder.”
She sighed at the answers from the leaders of Team 1 and 2.
“Team Leader 3, your turn.”
“I apologize. I will work harder.”
It had only been five months since she was promoted to branch manager.
She struggled for the first month just to get a grasp of the situation, and in the second and third months, she had a headache because of a troublemaker.
Time passed, and just when she thought things were finally getting back to normal, November came and sales became the problem.
She continued.
“Everyone, it's a problem if you just keep making excuses. Sales are down 23% compared to the same period last month. I know it's the off-season, but I believe a drop this severe is a problem with the team leaders and the managers.”
The team leaders bowed their heads at her words.
Even though they had given their reasons, she seemed to have no intention of accepting them.
She continued.
“Team Leader 2?”
“Yes.”
“Send Manager Jeong Taesu for training again tomorrow.”
“He just went last week... You want to send him again? We'll be too short on managers on the second floor.”
“Will one day really cause a problem? If you're short-staffed, you should work the floor yourself, Team Leader! Or train him to sell better. Isn't that just common sense?”
“I understand what you mean. I'll send Manager Jeong Taesu for training.”
As Team Leader 2, who knew her temper, bowed his head, the branch manager called on another team leader.
“Team Leader 3?”
At that, the quick-witted Team Leader 3 gave her the answer she wanted before she even had to ask.
“Manager Kang Hyeontae, sales training tomorrow. I'll have him in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province, by 10 a.m.”
“Good. Do that.”
After giving orders to all the team leaders, she looked at the Director.
The only one older than her.
The branch manager spoke carefully to the man in his mid-fifties.
“Director, you're always working so hard. Are there any problems?”
“No.”
“How is that kid? Is he staying out of trouble?”
“Ah, Manager Kim Taeseok has been doing very well since he joined us.”
“Is that so? That's unexpected.”
A clear-cut evaluation.
But Branch Manager Yoon Yeo-jeong still didn't acknowledge him.
After a moment of thought, the Director spoke to her.
“Branch Manager.”
“Yes. Go ahead.”
“They say the second floor is short on managers. How about letting him work there for this week? I know my eye for people can't compare to yours, Branch Manager, with all your experience in sales, but I just have a feeling that young man will do well. We have enough people and some flexibility in our center, so I feel it's right to send him to the job he was originally assigned. I wanted to humbly make that suggestion. What do you think?”
The Director's words.
She would have ignored anyone else, but his words, coming from someone older, gave her pause.
Although he was her subordinate, the repair center operated in a somewhat independent position.
Because it was his suggestion, the branch manager accepted it.
“I think differently, but if you're saying so, Director, you must have your reasons. Team Leader 2!”
“Yes, Branch Manager!”
“Interview Manager Kim Taeseok and put him to work. And monitor him closely and report back.”
“Yes. Understood.”
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