介绍:
LW: Would you like a temple job? Wu You, what exactly is going on here? It seems that temples are stepping up their recruitment game, they’re trying to get online, they’re trying to create a market presence, they’re trying to reach all different audiences, they’re trying to diversify, they’re trying to get more information across, what exactly is happening here?
WY: This is about a temple sending out an employment notice. In China, the Lingyin Temple in Zhejiang Province has recently released a job recruitment notice. They are looking for an official WeChat account operator, which is a Twitter-like Chinese social media.
LW: What they are actually trying to do is, they’re trying to increase their digital presence.
NL: Yes, it seems that the Buddhist temple has got its own official WeChat account, or they would like to have their own official WeChat account, presumably to reach out to more people, to visitors, I think it’s quite a big tourist attraction, as well as just being a temple. They’re looking for someone to be their official WeChat account operator, to create a bit of a brand identity.
LW: It feels so strange, using all these terms “social media”, “brand identity”, “new media”, we’re talking about a temple! We’re talking about a place where people go and be religious and go and worship.
NL: Well, it says that the ideal candidate will be good at editing, photography and video production, so it sounds like it’s a pretty hefty task to promote this temple. They’re looking to create more of an image for themselves.
WY: Yes it is, and also, it has triggered hot debate online, and some online comments are like this: “Do people who are employed need to cut their hair?”
LW: Referring to the monks, there?
WY: Yes, and they do have this kind of concern, but actually they don’t need to, because the temple is simply hiring someone who should be a new media specialist. And also someone else said “Is there WiFi? Can I use the internet?” Of course you can!
NL: You are the WeChat operator.
WY: This is a WeChat operator! And also, someone else, named @Wang Bu Liu Xing Wang Fei Yan, says “I need a link to post my resume!” But actually, now the temple’s HR staff says that recently the job has been filled, so the job opening on this official account was deleted.
NL: It does sound like it was a very popular position, it created a lot of response.
WY: And also there has been some explanation from the temple’s side, because the abbot from the Lingyin Temple says that working inside the temple, in cultural communications, is beneficial to people’s temperament, and people who work there will become “calm and patient”.
NL: Wow, so a job that’s good for you.
LW: I’m looking at a different one, the Donghua Temple, which is in Guangdong Province. It became a hit online after an advertisement for recruiting new media talents also received more than a million clicks and 4,000 applications worldwide.
WY: Wow!
LW: So that’s quite interesting, and apparently the thing that made it stand out, the advert for it, was actually very well done, it had music, cartoons, it was humorous, and all these things. So they’re a bit savvy there too, the old Buddhist temples, in terms of presenting themselves as a viable employer.
NL: Well it does seem that they are considered to be a viable employer. As you said previously, Wu You, it seems that people consider it to be a calm environment where maybe it wouldn’t be like a stressful office job in a city, and people seem to think that it would be a better choice to go and do something like this rather than a city job.
WY: I think that if you’re simply talking about whether these people are very fit for the job, I think they can simply care about the environment and the salary, but if they can achieve something I think maybe later on they need to really be loving it. If, later on, they believed in Buddhism, I think they can better carry on and pass on the culture and the traditions, as this PR person or WeChat account operator specialist. I think the most important thing is whether you really love this career or you simply take it as a job position.
