Dear Serious /k,

Salam and hello to everyone. Please bear with me as this would be a wall of text from me.

I'm 38 years old with plus minus 12 years of experience in manufacturing industry (mostly automotive) but my salary is still below RM5k/month. Married with 2 kids (6 yo and 4 yo). My wife is fulltime housewife but she currently doing a dropship agent for muslimah apparel and she teach kids at our neighborhood "mengaji" Al Quran. Basically her income is around RM300-RM500 depends on her sale on that month.

I didnt have a degree but I have a diploma in mechanical engineering from local university.

I would breakdown my work experience below :-

1- Japanese MNC. Role as Technical Assistant 2009-2011. Starting salary RM1460, left after two years with last drawn salary around RM1700.

2- Korean MNC, 2012-2018. Role as QC Executive with starting salary RM2200 left 6 years with last drawn salary around RM2800. Married my wife while I'm still working at this Korean MNC.

3- Local Cinaman Company, 2018-2018. Role as QC Engineer with starting salary of RM3000 left before confirmation due to toxic management. My wife and I welcomed our first bon son while I am working at this company.

4- Singapore Cinaman Company, 2018-2019. Role as QA Engineer with starting salary of RM3200. Left as I received better offer nearby my hometown at Negeri Sembilan.

5- Japanese MNC, 2019-2022. Role as QA Engineer with starting salary around RM3500. Last drawn salary RM3800.Have to left my job here because I have to take care my late mother as she was seriously sick at that time. During this time I work as a Foodpanda Rider (Bekal) as I need the flexibility even the salary is not sufficient. I used most of my savings just to survive and sadly my mother passed away December 2022. My wife and I welcomed our daughter while I'm working here.

6- Local Cinaman Company, 2023-2023. Role as QC Executive with starting salary around RM4500. Left as i got a job offer nearby my home. I live in Seremban 2, this local cinaman company is at Kampung Pandan KL. Daily travel 140km with my bike from Seremban 2 to KL. Plus this was not a permanent just a contract job.

7- Japanese MNC 2023-2024. Role as Warranty Engineer with starting salary around RM4000. Left this company without my consent due to conflict with the management as I feel the KPI they set to me is impossible to achieve.

8- Local Cinaman Company. 2024-currently working here. Salary around RM4500. This is typical cinaman company that you literally have no work life balance (need to do remote job even after working hour). No other benefit.

Last week I received a job offer from Taiwan MNC with a basic slightly lower than my current company but with a much better package (allowance, epf contribution higher, medical etc etc). Basically I made up my mind and I accepted the job offer as previously they are Japanese MNC but the Taiwanese tycoon bought the majority of the share. Based on my observation they still implement Japanese working culture that I already familiar with.

I know most of you would suggest to learn new skills or maybe get a degree to so that I can demand the salary more with my experience. So I would like to ask serious /k which skills that is currently have the most demand in the market that I can learn and maybe use it so that it can be my side income. So far my wife and me, we didnt have any plan to get another kid plus we are getting old.

After working around 15 years, I am well verse in ISO 9001, IATF16949, 5 core tools of IATF and I have green belt in 6 sigma (which I didnt fully utilize all this while Im working).

Thank you for reading and thank you in advance for the suggestions.

This post has been edited by Akmall540: Nov 18 2024, 12:03 PM

Hello good man,

Have u ever thought of getting a HRD trainer cert?

https://hrdcorp.gov.my/hrd-trainer



I wish you all the best, and hopefully you will be getting better soon in every aspect.

You either learn something completely new, or specialize deeper into your field.

If you're unsure of what new skills to learn, it wouldn't be a bad idea to take a refresher to re-certify what you do know and go from there.

Hi, I didnt know annou this HRD trainer cert. I will take a good look of it later. thank you for the recommendation.

I'm not sure about learning something new as I'm now 38 years old. Reaching 40 in just 2 years and I feel that I'm way behind compared to my mates in schools and university. To learn something completely new would take sometime for me. Anyhow thank you for your reply.

Most welcome bro!

My cousin also got a mechanical engineering diploma from a local college.

But, his experience is pretty much focus around power plant since the beginning, he work with the technician from start and slowly climb to ladder, I think he's now commissioning engineer on contract basis with mainland company that setting up power plaint at Indonesia.

He used to work at the power plant at Lukut near to Seremban 2. Maybe you can consider the path way.

Wish you all the best!

p/s I am 40 yo also drawing RM5k salary only.

Gaji so many Ks still need to foodpanda?

I did try to apply for jobs that slightly different than my experience but sadly most of it requires degree and as you would have guessed I didnt even get the call for the interview.

I did it as i need the money. but now i am "on leave" from foodpanda until further notice. didnt do it for about 5 or 6 months now but my id is still active.

Sale , look at u ... U can't even sell yr self to get a better pay .

thank you for the encouragement!

I might not be able to advise properly, but throughout your 12 years of working experiences, I think you are unfairly treated in terms of your compensation and promotion.

First, in 2012-2018 they only gave you extra RM600 over 6 years, and in 2019-2022 only gave extra RM300 over 3 years. That is about RM100/year or 2.5-4% increment yearly. Didn't they promote you even when you've worked so long in the first company? Try to seek other jobs in cities like KL, Penang, Johor to demand better pay (possibly 20-30% increment).

You can also learn more about the art of negotiation and enhance your resume, showcase your certifications expertise to potential employers. With this, your yearly 1 on 1 review might land you promotions or better increments, and new job opportunities.

It's clear that you've had a challenging career journey, marked by frequent job changes and salary stagnation. While your experience in the manufacturing industry is substantial, factors like lack of a degree and frequent job switches might have hindered your career progression.

Potential Avenues for Skill Enhancement and Income Generation

Given your experience and the current market demand, consider the following areas for skill enhancement and potential income generation:

Quality Assurance and Management:

- Certification: Pursue certifications like Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or Certified Quality Auditor (CQA) to enhance your credibility.

- Consulting: Leverage your experience to offer consulting services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on quality management systems and improvement initiatives.

- Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma:
a) Advanced Certification: Aim for Black Belt or Master Black Belt certifications to deepen your knowledge and skills.
b) Training and Coaching: Share your expertise by conducting training workshops or coaching sessions on Lean Six Sigma methodologies.

- Project Management:
a) Certification: Obtain a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification to validate your skills.
b) Freelance Project Management: Take on freelance project management roles, especially in the manufacturing or automotive industry.

- Digital Skills:
Data Analysis: Learn data analysis tools like Power BI or Python to extract insights from manufacturing data.
Automation: Explore automation tools like RPA (Robotic Process Automation) to streamline tasks and increase efficiency.

Additional Tips for Career Advancement

Networking: Build strong professional relationships with people in your industry. Attend industry conferences, webinars, and join professional organizations.
Continuous Learning: Stay updated with the latest trends and technologies in manufacturing.
Financial Planning: Create a robust financial plan to secure your future and your family's well-being.
Mental Health: Prioritize your mental health. Seek support if needed, and practice stress management techniques.

Remember, your career path is not linear. It's important to be patient, persistent, and adaptable. By focusing on skill development, networking, and strategic career planning, you can overcome challenges and achieve your financial goals.

Based on ur salary increment and frequent job change. Seems u have problem building rapport with ur superiors and colleagues? If i were u i will focus hard on japanese/mandarin and be proficient at it. Not just beginner level. My main criteria for mid level management is always communication, i dont need nerd that have zero social skill creating a lot of speed bump in work flow. Usually those nerd don't understand "what is right thing to do may not be what your boss want"

Thank you for your reply. I am not sure if i were treated unfairly in terms of compensation or promotion as in manufacturing industry it is normal to have increment around 3-5% per year. i got no chance to taste any promotion due to limited opportunity. Maybe it caused by me too due to the fact that I'm just an average Joe, not your best employee of the year type.

Thank you for the suggestion and input.

To say that i have problem building rapport with my superiors or colleagues is not accurate. from my list, only twice i resigned due to management issue. Unfortunately these contribute to the fact that I changed my job too frequent. Basically I tried to stay at least for two years in the company that I joined but somehow this is not happening.

Will try to look into learning new language. Maybe japanese would be nice.

My dude. Here is some of my unsolicited advise. Do take with a generous pinch of salt.

From your summary, i deduce that your main background is in QA/QC. i myself did my internship 16 years ago in similar role, and i quickly decided it wasnt for me (my background is in electronic engineering). Since then i have quickly branch out into better and highly sought after roles, but only after first meddling around in other industries for 6+yrs.

As a tech guy, u may be more inclined to work with physical "things". Try to switch to work with people or processes, thats where the demand mostly is. Things get obsolete quick and very hard to catch up. People and processes stay roughly the same for many decades just minor update every few years or so. Use those free time to build rapport and get to know "real" people (people with actual connections, that can help u progress in your career). My recent few jobs were intro by connections, and very significant jump in pay.

These are what brings u the money. People and how to bullshit around them.

Edit: im just 1 year older than u. =)

This post has been edited by tabikaeru: Nov 18 2024, 02:15 PM

You are restricted by the academic qualification. Like it or not, you need to remove this restriction. The only way is to complete your degree(upgrade from diploma). Go take the degree part time during weekend ( use the money from your EPF). It is hard, it will be time consuming but that is the only way to remove this restriction.

If you did not remove this restriction, forever you will be trapped at individual contributor level. No established organization will give you the opportunity to move to managerial position to lead ppl/ team. Even if they allows you to lead, your capability will be in question all the time. Market is ruthless, do not expect it to be kind.

This post has been edited by nihility: Nov 18 2024, 03:30 PM

He's not restrictred by academic qualification, with 15 years of experience no one really looks at academic from 15 years ago.

He's restricted by his very short and unfocused tenure at each company.

Starting from 2018-2024, he already have six jobs and keep taking on roles that offered a slightly higher salary but not accountability (understandably), but now is stuck being viewed as overpaid for an exec, but not experienced or exposure for a more senior role.

He was a QC Executive in 2012, and he took a QC Executive job in 2023.

He needs to focus a bit more on what he wants as a career and double down on that.

You want to believe in the fairy tales opportunity from 30 ~ 40 years ago, please go ahead. I have seen ppl with diploma being stuck at the individual contributor role for the rest of their life even if their experience of 20~30 years.

Give ppl the hard truth so that they can take remedial act now not the fake hope.

This post has been edited by nihility: Nov 18 2024, 03:46 PM

I do hiring for a workforce of over 30k headcount across ASEAN, but yes do tell me what is your experience based on that 5 people you see.

Secondly, individual contributor has their own leveling as well, so using education as the only reason one can't move up the value chain isn't acceptable.

Thirdly, if you see a candidate who keeps joining and leaving jobs in a year or less vs a candidate who has 15 years experience but no degree, you want to tell the hiring manager to pick the first candidate?

Experience, skillset, intelligence etc can only get you so far if you do not have the opportunity..

Sometimes all you need is opportunity, and you can create this opportunity by expanding your network aka circle of friends..

This is from my own experience. No matter how well praised you are in the whole company, how well you performed, if your boss doesn't want to raise your salary or promote you then you are basically fucked.

Beginning from 40 years old, it is time to use both your experience and network to make money..

This post has been edited by david5343: Nov 18 2024, 04:10 PM