When the German company opened its new wafer fab in Kulim back in 2005, I was one of the 2nd batches of ~300 pioneers. All of them are coming from various companies in Penang and Kulim areas, except me coming from the defunct fab in Richmond, VA. Interestingly, majority of them were from the existing fab, just 2 lots away. Many years later, when another German company opened another fab in Kulim, majority of them moved to the new fab.
OJT to Germany and Austria was the platform for me to get to know not only a Malaysian team but also EU counterparts.
Where am I going with this post? Contrary to the popular belief that the new fab will create x number of jobs, it’s not entirely true. In Semiconductors, we tend to recycle the pool of the same people, just like Malaysian and American politics. As a result, no matter what company you’re working in, the culture is almost the same. The actual job created in that particular fab will be a lot less. However, it may create vacancies elsewhere.
Then, what is the benefit of jumping from one company to another? It’s mainly about money. Every jump, one could potentially receive an increment of as high as 30%. New fab may offer more depending on your experience and expertise. Not to mention, many got promoted to the next job grade as well. Some companies offer a much better perks over the other.
How about the opportunity for fresh graduates? They are rarely hired by neither the new nor the existing fabs. Typically, fresh graduates have to start with graduate program (comes with various names), offered once a year. They will go thru a 9-12 months training program and at the same time the program serves as a long interview. They will be absorbed as soon as there is a vacancy and pass the interview.
Questions and comments about semiconductor industry in Malaysia are welcome in the comment section.
#semiconductors I #jobseekers I #freshgraduates
Director Innovation Infrastructure & Services, global bei Henkel
2wAlready looking forward to the next cohort to join! This is such a great program and to call it inno IMPACT program, is absolutely the right name for it. The colleagues joining us via the program are making impact in our innovation community. It´s always inspiring to discuss and work together with them from individual SBU projects via organizing our Innovation Shining Star award to gaining new perspectives in "simple" coffee chats. So, already curious to see who is joining us next :).