My First Job, Life is quite easy, 9-6 job but work on Saturday for 4 hour. not much Overtime working and etc but i also realized that the Audit is not what being learned from the Text book or ACCA Paper.
Therefore i join into a Mid-tier firm to seeks for the exposure of the job.

2nd Job. During that time at mid-tiers, my life was wake up 7-9am at the morning and reach office or Client Place by 8-10am in the morning.
But no matters when am i, i will be Office during the night time and rushing the job until 2-4am or even not sleeping and showering for 33 hours (1 or 2 times during that period with the Mid-tier). This kind of life style remained for around 1 year and 2 months before i quit due to Family Matters which i need to go back to my hometown and take care of my parent. At least 14 hour per day during weekend and weekday. I work around 420 hours per months (some day i might be sick, car accident or what then i rest more, but average hour per month is 420).

3rd Job. So the Next job, i was held greater responsibilities to take care of the Branch after i join the firm 3 months later, all those Admin job like light bulk rosak or anything happen, i will also need to take care. In the same time, i need to review Junior files, check the collection, look for new business opportunity to expand the Branch and etc. So that time is not as tough as the Mid-tier where all is related to work but i still work at least 12-14 hour per day but can rest during some of the weekend. Around 320 hour per months which should be trackable as i maintained my own timetable and submitted to my boss for Replacement leave which later on burn off due to resignation.

4th Job. Big 4, nothing much to say with that cause everyone know what is the working environment. Long hour working which is similar to to the 2nd job, but i do arrange my time for some entertainment this time, so is around 380 hour per month.

5th Job is contractual job at Commercial (Contract - 6months), most relax job ever but i felt stuck so later on switch back to the Current firms.

Currently, work around 250-280 hour per month. Hell a lot of Meeting with Client and Internal staff or Management.

My understanding is Work when you needed, so meaning to say that if you have a well time management for each of engagement, your could also enjoy the life outside of the work.

E.g. All Meeting being Scheduled and Task being assigned, closely following the due date. Manage your Boss, staff and Client closely. Instead of saying that "I will provide you as soon as possible", gave an Actual date (a Promised) and don't FFK on your Promise.

So, sometime i might work very late at Nigh due to i have promised something to my boss, client or even staff.
Some time, i might reply you in Lowyat during this office hour as most of my work is properly arranged, so when i go vacation or shopping for grocery, no 1 really call me.

But still, Business is Business, if your boss know you are FREE, they will give you more Jobs. At my level, i will argue related to the risk assessment. Less Time, High Risk, you ok to take then remember that you will sign on the report and i cant give you assurance (A lot of things do need time, People who know will know what i am talking about). Anything you signed that without properly supported, you will end up be the next Serba or 1MDB , so they will Reconsider.

I agree that if the boss see you free, they will just pile more on you and those that cant perform normally not much given to them zzz....

And ya I largely agree with what you mentioned about work life integration...

How do you stay so motivated through this amount of crazy hours worked for so long?? What do you tell yourself? Wouldnt it have been nice to stay at a life that is easy like your first job?

I think yes if you are able to convince others to hire you

Don't let the years be the benchmark for a change. Focus more on the skill and value you can bring to the table, which then translates to better job roles outside and better pay instead. Remember, it isn't about what you do but what are the results/impact you bring.

This question could be asked to Most of the Auditors, why work for so long hour?
For me, is the Exposure and Knowledge learned through out the task, there is always new Issue or Challenge you might faced during the Audit Work.
I learned quite a lot things through out the time when i am auditing my client, like Business perspective (Risk Management, how they overcome Covid-19 period and etc), Internal Control (Understand the Actual SOP of the Company, how the Company could improve by not increasing the cost and etc) and some interpersonal skills.

From my Personal views, it's always "How long you need to take to get your desirable salary range and get more work exposure through out the period" that really driven me.

My Believe is that "Your Worth based on the Competency and Capability", so as long as i am improving and my salary would reflect that. (Being the 10% Talent out of the staff pools which my boss always mentioned).
So 1st priority, is that learn those would be the value-added in your job and worry about the salary next.
But there are situation that, you think you worth more than that, then it's the time to let you superior know (Communication between both parties' expectation is important).

Everyone would wish to have easy life but easy life might come with slower career progression, low paid, repeatable daily task and etc.

I can see you are quite driven... Pls keep in touch to share your life stories on how to push forward

Job Title : IT Business Consultant
Job Desciption : IT solution provider, requirement gathering, Business Analysis, Project management and problem solving
Age : 29
Years spent in company : 0.6years
Company : Malaysia
Industry : Insurance
Tenure : Perm
Employment Level : Senior
Experience before joining (years) : 6
Highest paper qualification/ education background : Degree
Location : KL
Average Working Hours Per Week (incl lunch hours): 9

Monetary Payout
Basic Salary + Fixed Allowance : RM10000
Contractual Bonus (months): 1mths
Performance, Variable Bonus & Commissions (months) : 3-6mths

Work Flexibility (where relevant) :
Work From Home Availability: Base on request
Annual Leaves: 22 days
Flexi Working Hours : No

Benefits (where relevant) :
Health Benefits : Basic Medical
Transport Benefits : -
Mobile / Internet / Gadget Benefits : -
Other Benefits : -

Future Prospects (personal outlook) :
Current salary against peers in industry : Average
Growth prospects : There's still room to grow, the longer i stay in the same field for domain will be gaining value for my own. Could be better on quick and better solution, management of stakeholders
Where I will go from here : Will still prefer to stick on my role, but willing to learn more in order to be promoted as Lead. My goal are to lead multiple product

I also work in similar role in Penang. For direct comparison with yours, when i was at around 6.5 year of experience, my annual pay was around 100k-105k (base salary + fixed bonus/allowance + variable profit bonus). So i would say yours is pretty comparable.

Fast forward 4 years later, my current annual pay is between 150k-170k (the 20k is on profit-related bonuses). I did move to a new job 2 years ago in 2020 though, that helped a lot in bumping up my pay.

Job Title : Development Engineer
Job Desciption : Machine Automation using PC based
Age :29
Years spent in company : 3 years 1 month
Company : Local Like MNC
Industry : Machine Manufacturer
Tenure : Permanent
Employment Level : Junior
Experience before joining (years) : 3 years as an Industrial Engineer, 1 Year as Mobile Apps Development,1 Year as Equipment Engineer

Highest paper qualification/ education background : Degree
Location : Penang
Average Working Hours Per Week (incl lunch hours): 50

Monetary Payout
Basic Salary + Fixed Allowance : RM 4000
Contractual Bonus (months): 1 mths
Performance, Variable Bonus & Commissions (months) : 0.5 mths

Work Flexibility (where relevant) : Flexi Hours
Annual Leaves: 15 days
Flexi Working Hours : Yes

Benefits (where relevant) : Samsung Program
Health Benefits : Medical and Optical (RM1000)
Transport Benefits :-
Mobile / Internet / Gadget Benefits :-
Other Benefits :-

Future Prospects (personal outlook) :Not that good
Current salary against peers in industry : Underpaid
Growth prospects : Yes, but it will take too long at my age. If put in effort, it can go far, but business is not that good.
Where I will go from here : I might find something which will be diffrent from this, but it will still be software.

Remark: I might need to seek guidance from the people around and thoughts on it.

This post has been edited by zackdy: Aug 6 2022, 09:45 PM

No, i’m still in technical role. My title is staff engineer, which is typically used for a level above senior. It’s pretty common for design engineers to reach the ‘staff’ level after 8-10 years of experience. But different companies have different pay range for junior/senior/staff for sure.

Job Title : Senior exec
Job Description : Boring processing job
Age : 30
Years spent in company : 6 years++
Industry : Banking (GSC)
Tenure : Permanent
Experience before joining: -
Highest paper qualification/ education background : BSc science
Location : KL
Average Working Hours Per Week (incl lunch hours): 8, but during peak season can go up to 12 hours per day

Monetary Payout
Basic Salary + Fixed Allowance : 4565 + ot (if any)
Monthly Allowance: 300
Performance, Variable Bonus & Commissions (months) : yearly bonus 1 month

Benefits (where relevant)
Health Benefits : standard medical, vision, dental
Transport Benefits : Parking pass paid by company
Flexi Working Hours : Hybrid working
Leave: 38 days

Remarks: My second year in this role. Before this i was in call center at the same company for 5 years, moved to the other department (promoted). Coming from call center, the new role is much better as i dont have to deal with customer. Mostly doing processing job. Since we're supporting the UK office, work start at 4pm everyday, no traffic jam so that's a good thing. kinda underpaid for someone at my age

pay has nothing to do with age.

Job Title : Company Secretary
Age : 35
Years spent in company : 5
Industry : Financial Institution (FI)
Tenure : Permanent
Experience before joining: 13 years in public listed companies and FIs
Qualifications: Diploma only but have PC and Co Sec license issued by SSM
Current salary: Around 15K

This view is outdated today. The consensus among many HR practitioners today is on whether a candidate is “desirable” and “ambitious” to meet the minimum performance criteria set by the hiring departments or companies.

Those with more job transitions suggest that the candidate is desirable in the market, is keeping abreast with current developments and demonstrates ambition. The ability to learn fast despite the short timeframe is also highly desirable. All of the qualities above are typically found among high performers.

Furthermore, networking can also be done outside of your workplace and can include industry-linked events, roadshows, award ceremonies, webinars and any thought leadership events. These can be done in parallel with your current role and could lead to more realistic opportunities. Companies, in general, prefer external hires and would usually seek out referrals first from their staff.

There are 2 types of hiring that happen in Malaysia. One is a manpower plug, where a candidate is hired to perform a role with not much of any prospect. These hirings tend to prefer loyal candidates but with lesser emphasis on growth. On the flip side is the performance-based hires. These typically hire from a pool of talented individuals that are highly sought after in the industry for the skills that they possess or the experience unmatched by other candidates. Candidates for the latter also tend to job hop more often when you compared to the candidate pool from the previous category. As they are more desirable, they received far more job offers and have the option to pivot whenever an opportunity aligns to their career objectives

This post has been edited by maidenless: Aug 13 2022, 09:18 AM

So true. And more importantly - as a candidate, you just need to ensure there is significant "progression" (w.r.t. scope and responsibilities) and be consistent (same function or industry) and you're good. If I see a CV, every 1-2 years hop, and the subsequent job is always better than the last one, I will see that person as a strong performer, that he/she is wanted in the job market and he/she knows how to secure good opportunities. But I'm sure there are people who hop and remain 'analyst' level after 10 years - then that's 100% red flag for sure.

To the previous poster that says "job hopping = no loyalty", I really loathe this kind of mindset. This isn't a freaking romantic monogamous relationship, for pete's sake. Why do employees have to bear the burden of being seen as having 'no loyalty towards the company' and be punished, whereas it is totally acceptable for corporates to make positions redundant the second you're seen as irrelevant? It's really time for employees and employers to be on equal grounds and employers need to retire archaic hiring practices and start valuing the employees so they don't need to "hop" just to get what they deserve on the market.

What's the SGD salary range of a software engineer with 3 years of experience?

Job Title : Regional IT Infra Manager
Job Description : Cloud Modernization
Age : 38
Years spent in company : 1 months
Company : Insurance
Industry : financial services
Tenure : Perm
Employment Level : mid senior
Experience before joining (years) : 14 yrs
Highest paper qualification/ education background : Bachelor Degree in IT
Location : KL
Average Working Hours Per Week (incl lunch hours): 40hrs

Monetary Payout
Basic Salary : RM25k
Performance, Variable Bonus & Commissions (months) : ~2 , more once confirmed

Work Flexibility (where relevant) :
Work From Home Availability: wfh since day 1
Annual Leaves: 21 days
Flexi Working Hours : Yes

My previous job as Cloud Manager pays me 18k, since the new role has more responsibilities I asked for at least 30% bump in salary

How many staff under you?