I never said I deserve 12 Million. That's why I asked if my expectations were realistic or not and I wanted to know what skill set I need to have. Whoever is commenting thank you very much. Whoever downvoting, I would really appreciate it if you write your thoughts as well. I just want some insights from you guys.
Salaries in IT
- Thread starter gaconvn
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@gaconvn I am a Sr. PM and an IC so this is a FWIW. I do have an idea about budgets though.
8m is not bad here considering your experience level. 12m seems certainly doable and you don't need to be in a major tech company, however, you likely do need to be in an established foreign company. A friend was making 12m to 17m over the course of several years as an IC but he was considered a reasonably senior IC. If you start managing, you can make more to much more (again this is in a foreign company).
8m is not bad here considering your experience level. 12m seems certainly doable and you don't need to be in a major tech company, however, you likely do need to be in an established foreign company. A friend was making 12m to 17m over the course of several years as an IC but he was considered a reasonably senior IC. If you start managing, you can make more to much more (again this is in a foreign company).
@twm Well my company is a MNC. It pays well. Some people get more than me in the same position. At my previous job I was heavily underpaid so 8 million is the highest I got after promotion here. The only problem is promotion here is strongly tied to the years of service you've given to the company.
@twm Thanks for your suggestions. Yes I'm not underpaid by any means. I was underpaid before I joined this company, otherwise I could've got a better package. I just want some advice from you. As PM you may see a lot of developers like us closely. What are the skills you think are must have? It can be soft skills as well. I know it's not a straight forward answer just want to know if you have something in mind.
@gaconvn I understand your situation, how you feel and why, because I have experienced it myself.
While I have not worked in Japan, I don't expect things to be fundamentally different from what I saw happening and what I learned while progressing my career in Europe, the US and Asia Pacific.
You are doing two things right already: 1) you are ambitious, 2) you ask for advice.
Ambition is essential, especially given the fast pace of technological development and organizational change. One may have to do a lot just to stand still nowadays.
Asking for advice is always a good way to figure out more quickly and more precisely what needs to be done.
I would say that it would be useful for you to understand what really drives you - i.e. what is(are) your ultimate objective(s). Is the goal just to earn as much money as possible? Or perhaps you are trying to determine which type of job would be most suitable and more enjoyable for you?
I get the impression that at this stage you just want more money
which is fine, of course, given that you are young and still at the beginning of your career.
Generally how much you are paid depends on how valuable you are perceived to be by your employer.
If you can do something another person cannot do, or you can do more then someone else or do it better than them, you will be more valuable than that person.
The good news is that you seem to have already answered your own question
Career advancement (which typically results in more money too) requires further developing your knowledge, gaining more experience and demonstrating your ability to deliver what your current employer or another prospective employer needs. So look for opportunities to do that (more knowledge, more experience). But don't push yourself too hard. It takes time and you have to accept that.
In practice, it means that it may not be next year but you can get to earning 12 millions, or even more!
While I have not worked in Japan, I don't expect things to be fundamentally different from what I saw happening and what I learned while progressing my career in Europe, the US and Asia Pacific.
You are doing two things right already: 1) you are ambitious, 2) you ask for advice.
Ambition is essential, especially given the fast pace of technological development and organizational change. One may have to do a lot just to stand still nowadays.
Asking for advice is always a good way to figure out more quickly and more precisely what needs to be done.
I would say that it would be useful for you to understand what really drives you - i.e. what is(are) your ultimate objective(s). Is the goal just to earn as much money as possible? Or perhaps you are trying to determine which type of job would be most suitable and more enjoyable for you?
I get the impression that at this stage you just want more money
which is fine, of course, given that you are young and still at the beginning of your career.Generally how much you are paid depends on how valuable you are perceived to be by your employer.
If you can do something another person cannot do, or you can do more then someone else or do it better than them, you will be more valuable than that person.
The good news is that you seem to have already answered your own question
Career advancement (which typically results in more money too) requires further developing your knowledge, gaining more experience and demonstrating your ability to deliver what your current employer or another prospective employer needs. So look for opportunities to do that (more knowledge, more experience). But don't push yourself too hard. It takes time and you have to accept that.
In practice, it means that it may not be next year but you can get to earning 12 millions, or even more!
@taikoo Do you know me? 
You perfectly got what I wanted to express. Money is a great motivator because I'm in great need right now, but I'm also very enthusiastic to learn. I love to be the smartest person or be among the smartest people in the room. And I truly believe this is the age to build myself for the rest of my life. Thank you very much for your assuring words. Happy learning!
You perfectly got what I wanted to express. Money is a great motivator because I'm in great need right now, but I'm also very enthusiastic to learn. I love to be the smartest person or be among the smartest people in the room. And I truly believe this is the age to build myself for the rest of my life. Thank you very much for your assuring words. Happy learning!followinghim681
New member
@followinghim681 Thanks for your comment. If I stay in the same company and perform like the previous year I'll get close to 9m I suppose. But after seeing all the comments I've surely understood the reality.
followinghim681
New member
@followinghim681 Yeah that's a dilemma I have. I've been in toxic companies and I know the level of frustrations. Sometimes I have to work longer hours here as well but it benefits us with lots of other flexibility that we have. I'll surely keep in mind the work life balance before switching.
@gaconvn I don't know why you're getting downvoted. It's perfectly reasonable to have a goal to earn an extra ¥4M in a year. Here's the trick: generate 10x the value with the work that you do. Software developers have an unfair advantage since the marginal cost to serve your next customer is close to zero. If you can accurately show that the work you're doing will generate an extra ¥120M of incremental revenue per year for your employer, they would be stupid to not pay you ¥12M. Many engineers don't understand what marginal cost and incremental revenue are, even though it's more profitable to learn that stuff than leetcode.
@toni123 I get your point. I have a friend in one start-up who's kind of using this trick. But my company is very big and well structured. HR has more power than anyone. My manager is very happy with me and tried to negotiate with HR for 9m but seems like they'll hire a new one with a higher salary but won't increase mine because it doesn't fit their framework. I also don't know why I'm getting downvoated. Only thing I asked is opinions and suggestions. Thank you for your comment.
anonymous_iran
New member
@gaconvn 1 year is a short term goal, aim for a higher and longer goal. Next year is not realistic at all unless you change company.
I suggest to build up your LinkedIn profile. Make company HR look for you, and not the otherway around. You will need to build connections and gain more experience.
In the mean time, create sone impactful projects in you company. Being smart doesn't help if you are doing somerhing for your manager. Do something for the company.
I suggest to build up your LinkedIn profile. Make company HR look for you, and not the otherway around. You will need to build connections and gain more experience.
In the mean time, create sone impactful projects in you company. Being smart doesn't help if you are doing somerhing for your manager. Do something for the company.
@anonymous_iran Thanks for your comment. I'm already brainstorming on one idea that can serve the whole company not our team only. And yes Linked in is another thing I need to work on. My LinkedIn profile is obviously not worthy of 12m!
@gaconvn Hi OP, I've read your post and the majority of the comments but I am still lacking some context. Can you please clarify the following?
For one, you keep iterating what you DON'T know, but what do you know? What is your skillset? What is your tech stack?
Another point, are you looking for a new job, or are you aiming to get a 50% raise at your current job? These are two very different goals. The answer you will get depends on this point heavily.
Lastly, you mentioned that you have 5 years of experience (doesn't matter where) -- how wide is the area of applications you cover? Are you specialized in a niche area, or do you cover a large range of potential applications that you can handle?
To give you a preliminary answer, I don't think you can expect a 50% raise at your current job within one year. You can expect such a raise only if you change companies. Whether you get such a raise or not depends highly on whether you use an agency or not -- companies need to pay 30-40% of the yearly salary of the candidate as a fee to the agency, so most companies will take this point into account during the hiring process; higher salary means higher fee, which can cause them to drop you. How much you will get paid depends on how much value you can generate. If you are a generic software engineer with 5 years of experience, I don't see any real reason to pay you 12 million a year, the market is saturated with many more experienced devs with lower salary expectations; on the other hand, if you provide specialized skills, something that only you can do, then you have leverage. As someone else mentioned, it is easier to get to that range of salaries in foreign companies, which also removes the language issue.
Source: I'm the CTO at an AI startup in Tokyo. I participate actively in hiring and salary negotiation.
For one, you keep iterating what you DON'T know, but what do you know? What is your skillset? What is your tech stack?
Another point, are you looking for a new job, or are you aiming to get a 50% raise at your current job? These are two very different goals. The answer you will get depends on this point heavily.
Lastly, you mentioned that you have 5 years of experience (doesn't matter where) -- how wide is the area of applications you cover? Are you specialized in a niche area, or do you cover a large range of potential applications that you can handle?
To give you a preliminary answer, I don't think you can expect a 50% raise at your current job within one year. You can expect such a raise only if you change companies. Whether you get such a raise or not depends highly on whether you use an agency or not -- companies need to pay 30-40% of the yearly salary of the candidate as a fee to the agency, so most companies will take this point into account during the hiring process; higher salary means higher fee, which can cause them to drop you. How much you will get paid depends on how much value you can generate. If you are a generic software engineer with 5 years of experience, I don't see any real reason to pay you 12 million a year, the market is saturated with many more experienced devs with lower salary expectations; on the other hand, if you provide specialized skills, something that only you can do, then you have leverage. As someone else mentioned, it is easier to get to that range of salaries in foreign companies, which also removes the language issue.
Source: I'm the CTO at an AI startup in Tokyo. I participate actively in hiring and salary negotiation.
@ghahghans 1.
I'm a web developer and mostly work on the backend.
Language proficiency: Java, Go, JavaScript
Frameworks: Spring (primary) , NodeJs and React library
Database: SQL and Non SQL (document db)
I'm also experienced with Micro services and cloud native apps along with docker and kubernetes.
2.
I'm not aiming for 50% raise at my current job because it's impossible given the structure our HR has.
3.
First half of my career I've done a wide range of work but the later part is more focused in certain areas and tech stack.
If I consider tech skills only I don't have any magic skills that no one has though how good someone is in certain skill is a different topic. The leverage I have is, my current sector is a specialized one. It gives me a chance to be hired in similar companies.
Thank you very much for going through all the comments. I really appreciate your questions and your insightful comment.
I'm a web developer and mostly work on the backend.
Language proficiency: Java, Go, JavaScript
Frameworks: Spring (primary) , NodeJs and React library
Database: SQL and Non SQL (document db)
I'm also experienced with Micro services and cloud native apps along with docker and kubernetes.
2.
I'm not aiming for 50% raise at my current job because it's impossible given the structure our HR has.
3.
First half of my career I've done a wide range of work but the later part is more focused in certain areas and tech stack.
If I consider tech skills only I don't have any magic skills that no one has though how good someone is in certain skill is a different topic. The leverage I have is, my current sector is a specialized one. It gives me a chance to be hired in similar companies.
Thank you very much for going through all the comments. I really appreciate your questions and your insightful comment.
heyitsthatguy1247
New member
@heyitsthatguy1247 If you don't mind, how many years of experience do you have and what kind of expertise do you have ?