GigaOm ran a quick report on the top tech companies is the US based on the average salaries they gave their engineers/developers and Google came out on top. I wonder which tech companies in the Philippines would be on the top 10 if we had the same salary information.
Based on the numerous feedback I get from regular folks in the IT circle, here are my top guesses:
- A lot of old classmates/schoolmates I heard that were employed to HP fresh from college says they have great salary packages. One fresh grad even got a car loan on his first year.
- While very few developers could get into Oracle Philippines because of the vertical industry they are in, people say they have very nice compensation package to retain their top employees.
- Canon Philippines has a ton of engineers and developers here in Manila working some stuff related to cameras, printers and the lot. While the pay is not really very high, developers get a chance to go on special projects in Japan ranging from several months to a couple of years. That’s the time when get the “pay bonus”.
- IBM Philippines was once considered as the top company to work for and has been competitive salaries and a very mobile workplace environment.
- Very little is known about Lakeside Technologies but when they put out an ad before looking for web developers, the starting salaries they were offering were very much higher than industry figures. I also had several former officemates and friends who used to work there and they confirmed the handsome pay. However, one commented that is “if you still want to have a personal life“. So okay, they pay you good and work you real hard.
- Trend Micro, Inc. has a number of top notch antivirus engineers working at their offices in Libis. An old classmate tells me the pay is good but the hours are really bad.
- HeadStrong Philippines. I used to work there before for several months so I have a fair idea of their compensation structure. However, friends that have recently worked there tells me the pay is good and the benefits are great (though not as great as it was 8 years ago). They have a fleet of private cars which will bring employees home if you work overtime (past 10PM).
- Novare Technologies. I know a number of top notch engineers/developers (geeks) are working there so the pay must be really good.
- Smart Communications has been very popular among employees for their extended month bonus. Last December 2006, employees were given up to 21-month bonus. Standard is only 13 months. That’s 8 months more.
Yahoo has just formally opened their office in the Philippines and since they are on GigaOm’s Top 10, they might also be the same here.
There are several other smaller companies that have very attractive compensation packages but I thought they might not be able to scale that once they grow much bigger. If you have some idea which tech companies I should include here, please do leave a comment. The ones I have here aren’t based on hard data so I might have listed some of them wrong too (which brings me, we should do an IT salary survey of sorts here).
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So what’s the industry standard for web developers/engineers ?
Thanks !
According to ZDNet Asia, it’s between $7,438 to $23,721 a year for the Philippines.
sa ACS meron ba kayo idea kung magkano?
how about sa mga SAP-related na work?
Can you also check the top
electronics manufacturing company here in the phil
despite in economic crisis
@kill3fill3r :
Do not ever mention about SAP, you are not from squatter, are you?
That is really nice to hear, except, I have a question, aren’t these IT companies you mention especially the AmericaNS are scams? Employees got employed there because they’re getting married? Or sons of and doughters of poticians? and also If I am not mistaken, most of the buildings they are occupaying especcially the brand new ones came from the fertilizer scams and other related scams? The Anti-glo channles her superbly grafted achievement through these svamming companies? I hope I am not wrong…And oh pls dont commercialze every road in the country in the name of GOD!
@yuga
I really thought HP had one of the best salaries out there well in fact not now. Chevron has way better salaries than HP. And about bonuses, IMHO, other companies give better compensation on that part as well.
@antisap
all of your statements are either gibberish or just plain wrong.
That was sad to hear
, I dont get those benefits on the company Im working. But the good thing is Im a pioneer here, so if our company survives this crisis, we can be managers of our own department. 
But I hope our salary will get high this year.
But that will give me the idea where to apply if my salary wont change. Good to see that here.
where do u work madzman23? Any other companies that offer high compensation? How about Lawson or Misys?
@Anti-SAP
are you sure that you’re just anti-SAP? seems like your anti-everything
on topic: I heard SPL and Logica gives really good packages
I’ve been working at IBM for a few years now. The starting salary’s very good, but the pay increase is a quite slow. Your bread and butter is really your commission. The money is in sales & techsales.
And yes, our mobility program is excellent. They don’t really care if you work at Starbucks or your kitchen all day so long as you’re reachable by phone, instant messaging, and email… and of course, deliver great results.
oracle? spl? nah i don’t think so. they could give you let’s consider a good pay but that’s all (plus 13th mo. bonus) and nothing more. no increase no xmas bonuses no quarterly bonuses. although the name of the company sounds cool – internationally known but in the end of the day you’ll see yourself hungry.
you should put the names of companies like rcg, lawson, logica, acs, navitaire, eb2 who really are paying handsome compensation to their employees.
I think Misys and Sun Microsystems should be on the list for the Philippines, i have friends working on both companies. Their compensation and benefits are really great. as in great. hehe.
90% of the companies listed pay cheap.
rcg, lawson, spl, logica, acs, & emerson as listed in this thread pay way, way, way better.
IBM’s pay and package is insulting. I have so many colleagues that laughed off their offer.
hey yuga. me, no need to work. im “RICH”…
hahaha
Thanks for this. I’ve been wondering about this stuff for a while now so it’s nice to finally know. Keep the comments coming! I’d like to know more.
OT: Your blog really needs to have some of those social networking buttons. I always find myself looking for those whenever I read some article that I’d like to share.
I won’t talk about salary, but I’m sure my employer (which one? guess! haha) has the most interesting work among Abe’s list!
The company I’m working for has very good compensation package but we’re not an IT company hehe. I guess non IT companies pay a premium to attract good talent for their in house software dev needs.
ACS? Advance Contact Solution or Affiliated Computer Services
Rico,
I think you’re one of the lucky few. Most non-IT companies see their IT Dept as a cost center.
great!how i wish our company’s doing the same thing with their employees!nice post anyway!
do you think with the current economic crunch, is it still wise to be getting into these Philippine based companies with international ties? Or transfer to local SMEs? Just a thought…longevity or compensation?..
ali, no escape from globalization. The local SMEs probably sell to other MNCs, or to consumers who earn somehow from foreign remittances.
Used to work for one of the companies Abe mentioned: yup, they offer very competitive salaries. And it appears they’re resilient to the current crisis — they still have some of the best engineers on board, and business is doing great, from what I hear.
Hmmm… I’m not in the IT field. I’m in the finance field. Hopefully, you could also do an article for the best compensation package in the finance industry.
so even if these multinationals are cutting costs and also cutting their headcount those who remain and and get hired still receive great packages.
No comment.
Hey Yuga,
You may have missed Affiliated Computer Services.
ACS is a fortune 500 company and supports programming and other IT functions for the US government and other commercial clients.
Ever wondered why IT and desktop support employees from Dell and Teletech mass migrated to ACS?
People at ACN usually transfer to RCG and Lawson
Accenture
IBM is a good company brand, but inside it’s really not, and I heard from my friends that even IBM Solutions Delivery really is very bad, even the pay and the benefits. A lot of people are leaving them now.
@ ACS –
IBM Solutions Delivery is a subsidiary of IBM Philippines. Since ISD operates separately, their employees have different salary packages.
Accenture – Low starting but very high increase! Instant promotion after a year! Super high increase in salary! Superior Trainings and the company assist of almost all documents like passport, tax, payroll, etc.. has tie up with HSBC for instant credit card.. platinum maxicare card.. easy reimbursement.. so many benefits to tell..
also listed in top 50 global company that fresh graduate should work for.
naalala ko ung training.. sarap ng foods..hahaha
But currently slowing down because of the crisis.. hehe.. pero nakakabawi na..
negative side is… wala… wala pa ako maisip.. bago lang ako eh.. hehehe cguro after 2 years saka na ako magrereklamo..hehehehe…
wow, 21- month bonus for Smart Comm employess! smart is really generous
@Mel they’re salary is not really that big and working ambiance there is very highly political and as we all know it, they launch products that either didn’t go thru QA or half-baked products.
Azeus pays really good. High starting salary for fresh grads. They pay you high, but you really need to work hard for it.
I think Lawson Software Philippines should be on the list. it pays good and has the ever-great Tax-shielding power
Hmm interesting question, i would say the pay scale is relevant to location and is in line with cost of living. Destiny has a good reputation both as an employer and application service delivery company. they like most larger companies follow that basic rule of thumb.
Hi,
Who’s from EB2 international? have you heard about that company? any feedbacks?
Thanks. ÜÜÜ
i’m a lawson employee and i can tell you there is no such thing as the tax shield here.
i’m a lawson employee and i can tell you there is no such thing as the tax shield here. but the working environment is great and so are the people. pay is also very good. flexi-time pa!
Hi guys… Do you know any company that offers good packages for PHP developers?
Another thing, is 13K good enough for a fresh grad starting salary?
My present company said that I will be on probation status for 2-3 months and then based on my performance, they will increase my salary… I hope they’re telling me the truth because I am really struggling financially…
PS… I am currently employed as a PHP developer.
it all depends on the experience you have, i have moved from one company to the other and have always asked for what I want and got it. my salary is tax-free, i get it in US dollars, i reimburse my gas allowances, i have a company provided phone and laptop, i travel abroad all the time, i have representation allowances, medical , dental benefits and bonuses on early completion of projects and a percentage of of project costs if I help close a project. I have been a conslutant since 1996, been a project manager, business analyst and applications consultant. and i dont work for oracle, HP, IBM and most definitely not accenture or lawson. nice isn’t it, I just retired and i am only 47 years old.
Why don’t we put the exact figure, wala naman nakakakilala sa inyo baka malaki sa inyo maliit sa akin, maliit sa inyo malaki sa akin. Deutsche Knowledge Services, 10 Year Senior Developer 86K, 13, 14th Month Pay, Performance Bonus.
Wow Michael, ok pala diyan sa DKS … Accenture, Team Lead 50K. 13th, 14th, Bonus. Liit pero Ok dito, nakakarating ako USA per diem.
Working at Virtify Philippines 4 years, salary is 83k
Lawson, starting salary 50K … after a year 55K. I have 6 years experience when I entered.
Telus – Change Management Analyst, 5 years experience when I joined, salary was 85K/month. That was 3 years ago, I am in Australia now.
Wow! Now I know where to apply. Some companies can’t even pay above 50K.
I just want to share this one, a close friend of mine who works as Unix Administrator for JP Morgan Makati, got 130K for his starting salary. He has 6 years experience.
Mine is 40K SSE Accenture 5yrs.
Sony Philippines, 45k Software Engineer.
3 yrs working experience
I’m in Singapore, 3800 SGD .NET … Baratan na din dito e, a friend of mine Java 4000 SGD.
Sa HP OK pa NOON. Not so good na ngayon kasi once a year lang ang increases binibigay. In my case, dahil naabutan ng global crisis, may salary cut na wala pang increase! I have been working with HP for more than 1 year, napromote na ako lahat lahat wala pa rin dagdag sahod ko… Dagdag trabaho lang. Malas mo pa lalo kung matsempo ka sa team lead at manager na walang kwenta. Kahit technical trainings hindi sila basta basta nagbibigay. I have been requesting for trainings almost a year now pero hanggang pangako lang sila…
I am very disappointed kasi mataas tingin ko sa HP. Once you got in, it sucks promise…
fresh grad ko when i got in hp, 25k offered salary. 2 yrs na ko and lookin for work na. san ba maganda lumipat. hehe
hey it hippo can you help me find a job..
this is my e-mail
Furies_07@yahoo.com
MISYS, fresh grad when I entered, 2 yrs na. Bagal promotion, still junior rpg developer. Compensation approaching 30k. Unlimited sick leave.
For 2 years experience, ano ba mga companies that will give better offer.
Verizon Business in alabang offers 40k for the entry level 80k for the seniors
kaka resign ko lang sa indra philippines formerly soluziona badtrip kasi naging kuripot
starting was 24k when i started(ganun pa din daw ngayon), been there almost 2 years pero walang increase ksi inabutan ng global crisis. To be promoted from Junior Consultant to Mid Level the minimum years to render is 5 so matagal ang growth.
I saw a Senior Consultant’s(12 years working there) payslip and it’s 80K.
The only good thing in Indra is the flexible benefits which amounts to 3 times your GMC
Macquarie pays about 25K starting, less than a year you’ll be above 30K. May profit sharing pa dw. Trainings in Australia etc.
- galing sa mga friends ko who works there.
Ok yang Macquarie ah. May mga positions kaya sila para RPG programmers?
For a 3 years experienced RPG programmer, how much ba ang reasonable offer na dapat matanggap mo from the IT companies?
RPG programmer ako ngayon 70k a month deployed sa pharmaceutical company in makati. Not sure if i will take a regular post in either MISYS or IBM dami kc requirement ngayon. I guess naka recover na sa recession kaya marami hiring ngayon
im working at Trend Micro and the working hours are not bad here, in fact, we have lots of free time to review or read than our actual work. Plus, our management and employees are all great!
Accenture, Asst Mngr 10 years, 76K, 13th and 14th month. Is that high or low?
Current position does not require you to be technical anymore but I did start out with Cobol, DB2, JCL.
working at HP now. It really sucks.. nakakaawa yung mga kasama ko.. yung iba kong officemates gang ngaun walang increase dahil sa global crisis.. mag2years na walang increase mga employees then kapag napromote wala ring increase.. not worth it yung pagod na binibigay mo.. pangit pa benefits… haaaiiizzz.. sa mga gustong magapply sa HP think twice po muna bago kayo kumagat.. baka mapaso lang kayo..
saan ba pwede mag apply ang isang gaya kong newly grad IT. 1 year experience ako sa safeway as information security analyst. ganda ng title pero liit ng sweldo. 19K may increase na 1k depende sa performance pa yun. badtrip!
tapos yung boss ko nag hire ng engot. ako pa mag train? tapos mas malaki pa sahod sakin,kaya umalis ako, saan ba maganda lumipat. company na offers good opportunity for the less experienced IT like me..any suggestions?
me bond ba sa lawson? magkano kaya rate pag 2 years cobol and 1.5 years sap-abap? im currently working at accenture.
Alam ko sa izone tech mataas magpasweldo pero mabilis ang turnover. Mabilis mag hire, mabilis din magtanggal. Yung mga managers at agents namin halos lahat tanggal na kaya kawawa naman yung mga bagong papasok tuloy. Pero if you are looking for a short term job, pwede na dito.
Bakit sbi nia 30k daw staring sa HP? totoo ba to?
Anyone from Globe Telecom? I heard malaki daw salary. any range?
HP sucked! Im currently working here..sweldo sucked! Lahat, pati boss mo…epal..inggitero sa kung ano ka..imagine, manager mo, walang masters, ikaw meron, from UP kapa ha…duh..what type of promotion??? palakasan system
salary depends on department and experience..
ako 2 years experience newly grad pako ha…kaso rate sakin pang new grad lang duh…
yung flex sched? ang con dun, on call ka sa lahat ng oras, kahit ata natutulog ka, gigisingin ka….
Accenture 3 yrs pero 2 yrs lang relevant exp (nilagay kc ako sa proj na walang kwenta for 1 yr) JAVA SSE 34K…buti pala d ko nitanggap yung sa hp hehehe….still looking for work….any suggestions??
I’m working for Misys. 3yrs exp. My salary is only 40k. I don’t recommend working here because pay rise is very slow. Career growth is only for 1yr and you will learn nothing after that anymore.
I’m working for Misys.
JAVA – Associate Software Engineer
2.3 years of experience
Salary is 25.8K
Globe starting salary for their IT pool is 30K, kaso laki din ng tax 30% tapos patayan sa work. Two of my friends work there.
Anyone here who would recommend working for their current company? I would be graduating this November and I don’t like my first company to turn into a disaster. So far the companies I’m interested to apply on are:
1. Azeus
2. Emerson
3. IBM
4. Lawson
5. Logica
6. Risk Metrics
7. Novare
8. Oracle
9. Safeway
10. Verizon
11. Macquarie
Any comments or advise? Thanks in advance!
just signed a job offer at ibm. gosh!!! sucks big time!!!
@Just signed
why does it sucks? Do you signed a contract with ISD or IBS?
seachange at soluziona ok din sa new hire.. 25 though mababa pag nagincrease sa seachange, dont know sa SZ. some of my friends work there.
I’m posting for my friend who works at Misys.
Benefits-wise, A-ok! Salary-wise, the package seems good at first but you should note that salary is based on the ratings given by the TL’s and other demigods. One should also be wary of the fact that Misys has two classifications of their hires: CPG and those they absorbed from contractors. The “absorbed” hires are often disadvantaged, especially when it comes to raise in their salaries. Career-wise, promotion is slow. My friend has been working for two years now and has been constantly rated as a “strong” performer. Still, no promotion. Worse, the salary is less than those who were merely rated as “successful” performers.
I thought the blog is asking for the best, not for the worst…
this is for the sake naren sa subject naten na top companies based on salaries 
siguro maigi na magpost tayo ng kung anu yung positive side ng company kesa sa negative
besides, confidential information paren yung mga pinopost naten… so just be cautious kasi kawawa naman aspirants na gusto magapply sa mga company na binabanggit naten.. suggestion lang
IMHO, i don’t think i need to hear about positive feedback about a company since with all the marketing, advertisements and what not, you already have a picture of what they have to offer.
the important thing (for me) is to know everything about a company, good or bad, so that i can make a sound decision when it comes to my career.
so…anyone got an idea where the best place to work at for a java practitioner with 3 yrs specializing in spring?=)
sa accenture tae talaga. wala increase pati ung IPB hindi nakuha. sobrang pangit talaga. ang baba na ng sahod dami pa expectations sayo. tapos ang masama pa naging 45 hours per week na ang work sobrang under pay talaga dito nakakabadtrip talaga. Naghahanap na nga ako ng malilipatan. ma pulitika rin dito sa accenture, lalo na pag natapat ka sa team lead mong Tae ang ugali.
Ung mga ibang ni lay off nila sa ACCENTURE pinapabalik nila. Advise ko lang wag nakayo bumalik. Ung mga empleyado nila pinapaasa nila na bumubuti na ung ekonomiya kaya baka makabawi daw kasi walang increase this year. ASUS. eh plunging parin ang US market tapos makakabawi this year>?
Ung ibang project dito nakuha ng IBM. Ang pangit pa kasi nagtitipid sila. wala na ung mga kape na libre. Mas pinapaboran nila ung mga BPO dito kasi sa BPO may increase this year sa solutions (IT) wala. kakainis.
ang sahod ng starting dito 16K lang tapos wala na ung after a year ma propromote kana. wala na un. may kakilala akong 2.5years na sta dito 20K palang sahod nya kasi wala na promotion. meron akong kakilala 18K lang sahod eh 1 year and 6 months na sya. kawawa talaga.
Eto pa masama. may mga projects dito sa accenture na nagtitipid kaya day shift mga solutions ung gagamit ng office space tapos pag night shift mga bpo na ang gagamit kaya wala na flexi time dito required ka nang pumasok kasi mamaya baka maabutan ka ng BPO shift. Kasi nga 45 hours a week na. kahit 45 hours a week na work mo ang madadagdag lang sa sahod mo every month is almost mga 500 pesos lang. sobrang lugi talaga. Biro mo 9 hours ka per day so times 20 days = 180 hours per month. pero ang babayaran lang nila dun nay five hours na OT so mga 500 lang ang makukuha mo or mga around 500 to 800 lang. in fact dati 8 hours lang per day times 20 = 160 hours lang per month. Biro mo nalugi ka ng 15 hours na walang bayad (180 – 160)
HAYS Bad trip talga.
I almost accepted the senior software engineer position at accenture last 2008. Good thing I did not kc if I did baka nakasama ako sa na layoff. Medyo maliit nga sweldo sa kanila compare mo naman 50k + 30% tax vs 70k + 2% tax (consultant kc ako kaya liit tax)
Nice bro! Bakit 2% lang tax mo? Paki enlighten me naman po para magawan ko din ng paraan taxation ko =)
2% tax as a consultant? I’m not in the IT industry, but that’s highly unlikely, since as a professional consultant you are taxed 30% just like lawyers, doctors and the likes, unless of course you are not declaring your income to BIR as a consultant, so i guess that 2% tas is possible..
@ unggoy: hahaha! im from accenture too (solutions)… same sentiments…
don’t forget that they also took out the refreshments and we got no A/C after 6 pm…hahahaha…sux
ohmrz – saan ka nagwowowrk anung company name imsg mo po ako delarosa.kristine@gmail.com, sabi mo kasi rpg programmer ka.
d-godfather, the Tax for IT consultant is 10%. The 2% is the witheld tax. The remaining 8% is supposed to be paid when filling the ITR. Syempre there are ways to further reduce it by subtracting expenses such as Fuel,insurance,training, donations, fixtures and repairs etc. I my case I hired an accountant to do that for me. So ang liit na lang babayaran na tax.
This is one of the reasons marami consultant kc malaki tax ng regular.
Sa mga Java Programmers na naghahanap ng trabaho, try nyo sa UST Global. Sa Makati lang yun. Pakyawan yun tanggapan. Mataas salary offer.