Today, in questionable HR decisions:
Alibaba has apologized and pulled a job ad seeking a "programmer encouragement specialist." Requirements for the since-deleted position, as translated by Quartz, include an "adequately stunning" appearance and someone who might be an "open-minded lolita" like adult film star Sora Aoi or the South Korean actress Song Hye-kyo.
The person in the position would be responsible for encouraging and inspiring programmers and engineers to do their best work, including waking them up for early morning meetings, the posting read.
While the company promptly removed the ad, eagle-eyed readers grabbed a screenshot, which has reverberated around Twitter and the Chinese social media site Sina Weibo:
Screenshot for prosperity. This is inappropriate on so many levels. http://t.co/QruODf48rr http://pic.twitter.com/BtJf9eaAlj
— Chiu-Ki Chan (@chiuki) April 30, 2015
The e-commerce giant told Bloomberg the description intended to be humorous. It has since reposted an amended listing that removes references to Sora Aoi and encourages both male and female candidates to apply.
"We apologize to anyone offended by this ad,” a company representative told Bloomberg. “Alibaba is committed to providing equal opportunity and fair treatment to all employees on the basis of merit, without discrimination."
The company did not immediately respond to an inquiry from The Huffington Post.
Read the full, translated job posting at Quartz.
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