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I visited my father’s workplace today. He works as a manager for a company that specializes in freight forwarding. His company’s job is to arrange the best route for transportation of goods. They provide their services for inland, ocean, and occasionally air transportation.

Today, I mainly focused on jobs from the financial department of the company. Firstly, I learnt how to operate their extremely complicated computer system, where one can check on a variety of specific details on a particular shipment. Then, I was given a long list of shipments and was instructed to confirm whether the client had paid or not using the information provided by the computer system. My final job was then to the nearby bank and deposit monthly company earnings at the end of the day. I was also given the opportunity to interview several workers at the office about their job. Throughout the process, I gained insight on the work environments, schedules, and duties of the employees. 

1. What is one new thing you learned in this experience or one thing that surprised you?

I was astonished by how complex the company’s computer system was. It was so difficult to understand its functions I spent over a third of my day learning how to operate it. 

1. What are one to three skills you would need to develop to be equipped for this job?

• Problem-solving skills: There are a plethora of problems that may arise during the transportation of goods. From shortages of containers to unexpected delays, managing freight forwarding operations requires one to be able to solve issues quickly and effectively.
• Communication skills: In order to organize the safest, most-cost effective, and efficient transportation route, employees must have strong communication skills to make arrangements with the client, carrier(s), partner(s), etc. 

1. What did you hear, see, smell, and feel in the work environment on Nov. 2nd?

When I entered the workplace, I was immediately hit with the potent smell of paper, which directly correlates with what I see: several shelves filled with a myriad of files, ordered neatly by date. The employees were sitting at their personal desks, which are individually separated by a panel system. The rooms are dead silent, besides the consistent clacking of keyboards and occasional telephone calls. At lunch, all the workers gather together in the meeting room, where they eat and socialize. 

1. What about the environment would motivate you to wake up every day to attend work?

The office’s pantry and fridge is stocked with mouth-watering snacks.

1. What would discourage you from waking up every day to attend work?

The strenuous, long, and focused work hours with very minimal breaks.