Job Title : English Lecturer
Job Description : Teach diploma and degree students business and academic English
Years spent in company : 1 year 8 months + previously 1 year as part-timer
Company : Private college
Industry : Education
Tenure : Permanent
Employment Level : Junior
Experience before joining : 0 years (tertiary level); 3 years (lower levels)
Highest paper qualification/ education background : Was doing Master's, salary paid based on degree qualification
Basic salary : around RM4000, with extra pay if teach more classes or assigned extra work (marking papers, invigilation etc); will be paid extra RM400 = basic RM4400 upon completion of Master's degree
Location: Selangor

Benefits:
Flexi hours- work only 30 hours per week; can clock in and out anytime I like
31 days of leave per year
Season parking paid by company
Good medical benefits- can claim up to RM1400 per year
Got 3 months bonus & increment & promotion due to excellent KPI in 2016 (1st year of work)
Definitely no OT needed

With plenty of free time and flexibility, I get to do many other jobs as well, just to gain experience and earn extra income = total monthly income is RM6000-RM8000.

***

However, I'll be working in Singapore from November 2017 onwards; was headhunted by a talent acquisition specialist from a well-known 5-star hotel MNC. It's a corporate job based in office, so yeah, I'm moving from one industry (education) to another (hospitality), performing a new role that has nothing to do with teaching as I'm hired for my other skills.

My new company really likes me, coz I did well in the written test and stress/ case interviews. The management is willing to wait for me as I need to serve 2 months' notice. I am also the only new staff they're hiring, according to HR, though the position was open to the public (on their official website & Jobstreet etc)... AFTER I was hired. There was no competition & the whole process was fast and smooth--my work pass was approved in 5 hours.

Teaching is okay, but it's more suitable for people who prefer stability. My current boss and colleagues all feel sad that I'm leaving, so we're having a farewell lunch soon. I must thank my boss who convinced me to be a full-time lecturer, and my senior colleague who recommended me to boss. Yeah, I was recommended to join as a lecturer while I was working elsewhere. The two of them became the references for my new job, as requested by my new employer, and both gave their highest commendation.

I'm 28 this year and the 2nd youngest lecturer in college; was hired at the age of 25 (was the youngest back then). I like my current workplace and my job, & I'm not a job hopper, but well, since 2016 till today, I've been headhunted 15 times in 1.5 year. I have said no too many times to different offers from different companies, but this time, I said yes... coz MYR can't beat SGD, and my bf is there in Singapore, plus I love the hospitality & tourism industry. I'll get to enjoy staff discounts on room rates and other benefits & facilities at company's 5-star hotels worldwide; would really love to travel more & work in a dynamic industry.


Extra sharing:

Job Title : Full Stack Developer
Years spent in company : 0
Company : Fintech
Industry : Fintech
Tenure : Permanent
Employment Level : Fresh Grad
Experience before joining : 0 year
Highest paper qualification/ education background : Degree
Salary : SGD 2650
Age: 22
Location: Singapore

Is this salary consider average? Is it the local SG ppl is having higher fresh grad salary?

Job Title : actuary
Years spent in company : 6-7
Industry : life insurance
Experience before joining : 0
Highest paper qualification/ education background: almost qualified as a certified actuary
salary : RM 16.5k
Location: KL

Been in this company for a little too long I think, thinking of moving soon. I'm aiming for 20k, feels like I'm being a bit underpaid in my current company. But it's hard to tell what's the benchmark is really...

, I assume you are getting well paid in Singapore with all the qualities, much sought after personality and soft/hard skills ?

Pay wise, with currency conversion, it's definitely more than what I earn here. If on a 1:1 basis (earn RM6000-8000/mth = earn SGD 6000-8000), of course not yet, because I'm changing industry and performing a new role.

However, with the soft skills and knowledge I have, my pay is that of junior exec although I have no experience at all working in the corporate & the hospitality industry. I'm happy enough that my new pay can cover both expenses in Singapore and Malaysia, with a surplus of a few thousand MYR a month.

If I continue to work as a teacher in SG, with 6 years experience, my pay would be SGD5000-7000 a month. But like I said, I prefer to step out of comfort zone and try something new and challenging, which looks random but is actually guided by my long-term career plan:

1st career (age 23-28) in the education industry-- outstanding (with proven track record & recognised by the top management).
2nd career (age 28 till mid-30s) in the hospitality industry -- will be outstanding as well
Both careers will pave the way to my 3rd career in corporate training (mid-30s onwards) & entrepreneurship.

***

Again, something extra to share:



This post has been edited by Ralna: Oct 14 2017, 08:21 PM

Are u saying that the MNC is paying you 'fresh grad' scale despite the fact that you have excellent transferrable skill sets etc?

Seems odd to me that you are uninterested to 'climb the ladder', and commenting on the instability of job security due to high post one is having thou... I thought the general career aspiration is to stay focus on what you do, rather to be a jack of all trade but master of none, work towards your job promotion, and improve your financial capacity..

Anyway, seems like you are pretty convinced with your own explanation, so i shall atop here.

This post has been edited by justified: Oct 15 2017, 01:41 AM

Not fresh grad (0 years of exp), considered junior exec (1-2 years of exp).

Yes, it's odd, coz we're taught from young to study hard, graduate, work to the top & retire. That's how most people are trapped in the rat race, coz we follow the definition of success that is taught by our parents, the media and the society, without asking ourselves whether it's what we really want. Hence, a lot of people have Monday blues, hate their jobs, job hop a lot, work like a robot, etc.

The corporate lattice model was first introduced in 2010. My career moves are linked to a preceding concept called mass career customisation (introduced in 2006). There are books on these two concepts, which are explained in detail with examples.

Anyway, here are some articles for people to read and think:
Why Climbing the Corporate Ladder Is No Longer The Ultimate Goal
Why You Should Consider A Horizontal Career Move
The Benefits of Horizontal Career Growth vs Verticial Career Growth
Ladder vs Lattice: Why Horizontal Career Moves Can Help You Climb Higher, Faster

Another interesting read is this:
Identifying Your Job Niche with Blue Ocean Strategy

From the article, "A blue ocean strategy is simply positioning yourself so uniquely that you don’t have any competition. In other words, you separate yourself from the crowd by offering a different type of value to the hiring manager."

Like I shared earlier, I'm the only one getting hired. The job ad was posted after I was hired. I didn't need to compete with any job seekers. On the 5th day after the job was posted, there were about 30+ applicants. 30 days later, 100+ applicants. For lecturing job, there were about 300- 700 applicants. Imagine skipping all that competition and frustration, and get hired directly within a month.

Anyway, thanks for reading and replying. I'm just sharing a new way of looking at things for people to reevaluate their career & life.

This post has been edited by Ralna: Oct 15 2017, 03:30 AM

Hi guys , im wondering skills that have high demand currently and 2-3 years in future in IT/programmer field ?

Try SAS if you want something long lasting

A 28 year old junior exec with 1-2 years experienced with horizontal skills to work under a team lead / manager that is probably also around the same age and paid 6-8k while the superior also ears around the same pay. Unless companies dont view salary hierarchy, wouldn't your salary cause an issue to the payroll for unfairness / unbalance? Of course it depends on the industry the company is in

My manager is in her 40s, while my supervisor is in her 30s. I'm younger than them with lower position, and of course, lower pay than theirs. & I'm not paid SGD6k-8k for my new job (read carefully) in a different industry.

That figure is only possible if I use my 6 years of teaching experience and continue to work as a senior exec, or apply for mid-managerial non-academic positions in education industry.

nice post

This post has been edited by moonlove99: Oct 15 2017, 03:14 PM

Cloud, big data, mobile apps

Indeed what you have shared here does inspired few of us, or it was only me. I am also not interested in climbing corporate ladder despite all the traditional teaching passed on by our seniors (teachers, lecturers, parents, elders), but I am forced to as of now as I am very money oriented at this moment. I do hope to have some side business or some income that I can do during my free time so that I can be financially independent instead of relying on one source income.

Just wondering, was your CGPA or your college grades good during your studies? I am actually interested in being a lecturer as well but I have fears on moving to another industry as I have made similar decision (retail industry marketing to water industry marketing), sadly it did not work out well. Not sure if is my boss punya issue or if is me. I am again being offered an opportunity to join construction industry as marketing again, however I am quite feared that I might be repeating steps that I do not wish to go through.

Any kind advice you could give me in terms of joining lecturer force or moving from an industry to another? Many thanks.

The blue ocean strategy interests me but it only happens in an ideal world. At least not in Malaysia and I’m sure not in many countries as well. It’s a very childish thinking. Realistically no one is irreplaceable or unique. Even the ceo can be replace. Unless you are working for yourself and create a unique business. Otherwise companies only hire position they need and they are all very general such as hr finance engineer etc.

Thanks for you compliment. That's the purpose of writing useful posts-- to share and inspire, if possible.

My CGPA was 3.6+ for degree, and 3.5+ for Master's. I'd say it's above average/ balanced coz I joined many extra-curricular activities & worked part-time while studying.

What do you major in? To be a lecturer, you need a Master's. That's the minimum requirement to teach diploma and degree courses, and also to meet MQA's requirements.

About moving from an industry to another, well, you need to know what career type you are. I'd suggest you to do John Holland's RIASEC career test here. You can find out your personality+career type, and the career options for your type, plus the potential earnings etc. That should give you some insights and time to think what's best for you, including developing your hobby/interest as side career.

This post has been edited by Ralna: Oct 17 2017, 12:42 AM

Agree.

However, you can always make yourself more difficult to replace so that your company will think twice before kicking you out (due to downsizing or office politics etc), and even if the company kicks you out, you will have no fear coz there's a new job waiting for you-- the competitor is more than happy to hire you, or you are smart enough to start your own.

Yes, you can replace the CEO, but it may come with a heavy price. A very good example of this is the case of Steve Jobs. Some bit of Apple history here:



The blue ocean strategy doesn't totally eliminate competition, but it can significantly reduce the amount of blood shed while fighting for $$$ and opportunities in the real world. Another example is AirAsia, if you want a local one. Yes, you can have another low cost airline to replace AirAsia, but is it easy to do so? How much time will it take? How much will it cost?

Another 2 local examples are Mydin and Mr DIY.

Mydin started as a small wooden kedai runcit in Kelantan by a poor Malay family, but decades later, it's now called MYDIN Mohamed Holdings Berhad with an annual turnover of about RM3 billion. Mr DIY started its business in 2005, and now, 12 years later, 300 stores and explanding to Brunei and Thailand. Its annual revenue is RM 1 billion+.

The same strategy can apply to your career and at workforce. You can make yourself unique (highly specialised at work; award-winning; consistently high KPI; proven track record with rich experience) that it's hard to replace you. Only dumb companies will throw away elite staff to hire those substandard ones (unless there are really some serious issues). There are some employees that companies need to protect (known as "core employees") coz they are the cash cows. Companies can't just simply fire/dismiss/retrench them without milking them first, and even if companies do, they need to make sure the new cows can produce the same quality and amount of milk as the old cows do.

Lastly, what do AirAsia, Mydin and Mr DIY have in common? Low cost, high value.

That's what consumers love... and employers love too.
This is called value innovation in the blue ocean strategy.

This post has been edited by Ralna: Oct 17 2017, 12:58 AM

Yes low cost 😂

If I’m company boss I will value these kind of workers too

What type of application developer are you? is it java?

U forgot to quote the 10m businesses which have low cost high value but failed too. Anyway here is share salary thread.

Discusion for sth like this shud be in another thread.