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).
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.
Twitter: madzman23
says:
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.
Twitter: mobiusmike
says:
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
Twitter: littlewolf
says:
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.
Twitter: mparazgmail.com
says:
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
Twitter: mparazgmail.com
says:
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?..
Twitter: mparazgmail.com
says:
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.
Twitter: millionaireacts
says:
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.