Uhh, fucking up a tattoo sounds like a costly and permanent mistake.

From this link it seems more than just someone willing to adapt and improve their skill set. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/tattoos-on-dark-skin#color-tattoos

Lol it's a bit implausible, but it was also literally his first week on the job and more importantly his first job out of college. The character is like early to mid 20's and doesn't know better. He's also in an incredibly toxic environment where his coworkers screwed him over. What is different about the main character in "The Recruit" is he's actually smart and starts to think for himself.