Vantaggi
Maple Tree has many strong points that are mostly superior to working in other private centers in Hong Kong. MT's strongest point is the trust and support that the entire team, especially the owners Ms. Chan and Mr. Donny, give their employees. There is a level of respect and trust the owners give that is usually non-existent in Hong Kong culture between employer and employee. I have had a few mishaps occur in class that weren't really my fault, and the owners and managers (as well as the rest of the team) had my back the whole way. It was very commendable and something I haven't seen too often in Asia during the last 6 or 7 years of teaching in 3 different countries. Another great thing is that Maple Tree has 100% of the materials you need to use in class. If you're a good English teacher/tutor, you won't need to prepare anything for the classes, unless it's a high-level or specialized class. Markers, stickers, and other tools are all given plentifully once you're in the class. Additionally, the students are generally very well behaved and intelligent. Since it's a private center, the students and parents of the students want to be there moreso than the students at public schools (in general). Great place to work! Great employer and company! Great team! Highly recommended!
Svantaggi
I would say that the 2 things I would want to see changed is to standardize the 2 "off" days as Sunday and Monday, company-wide. Since we definitely have to work Saturdays when working in the private center, there is no way around that - so they should allow all employees to have the same day off (Sun + Mon). Another thing I think Maple Tree should do to set itself a part from the rest is to set the maximum teaching hours to 30-32 instead of 36. It can be quite hard to finish all of the required grading/marking/writing with the few hours that you get off during a week. Most centers are 36 hours teaching, and for Maple Tree to be better than the rest, it should lower the hours a bit, especially since Public Teachers teach about 24 hours a week maximum.