Introduction

In this post, I am going to share my experience of getting a job in a foreign land, Hong Kong(HK). I hail from India, and in that respect, HK is a foreign land for me. This post will walk you through every stage of my landing in an MNC in HK.

Before I start my narration, I would first like to thank the Hashnode community for organizing such an interesting writing event - Writeathon;#4articles4weeks. This will encourage many writers on this platform to share their stories and publish something interesting from their drafts. I am glad that such timed events are helpful for me to put my procrastination to an end and start working on my drafts. So, here I'm publishing something from my drafts.

Effect of lockdown on the job market and my job search

In Mar 2021, I traveled alone to HK from India to be with my husband who had already been working there for 6 months. My personal story of traveling to Hong Kong can be read here. Note: COVID alert ahead.

Phase - 1

Before moving to HK, I had already done research about various online job portals in HK like jobsDB, and CTjobs and registered myself as a new user. I had done all pre-requisites for maintaining the profile by filling in all information. The only thing which I didn't have with me, was an HK SIM card or HKID. So, I was doubtful at this stage about my CV being considered.

Phase - 2

During my quarantine at the hotel, I had all time to myself. I tried to search various job pages on FB, Telegram, Linkedin, etc. and joined there. I joined other forums like geoexpat to interact with people about job scenarios and requirements.

My Interview Experiences

After getting released from the quarantine, my everyday ritual was to spend some time in the job portals mentioned above and go through their requirements so as to get an idea about the skills in demand. Initially, I was not sure to go for tech because there were other skills (like creative writing, technical writing, teaching etc.) of mine which I wanted to explore then. So, I started filling applications for the positions requiring these skills. I didn't care about how many rejections I faced, I was just focused on not losing hope.

I received my first interview invitation 2 weeks after getting released from quarantine. My first interview was for a part-time non-technical position as a creative writer for the sales team. I didn't accept the offer as the office was very far and I felt that I could get a better offer than it. Then I appeared in the interview for the role of Python instructor for Grade-11 students at a private institute. This position was part-time and my salary was paid on an hourly basis.

Then I received an interview invitation from Lascar Electronics, HK for 15.06.2021. I still remember the date very clearly. I was expected to prepare for a coding test in C++ and I had 5 days of time to prepare. I brushed up on the basics through some of the C++ tutorial videos on Youtube and went through frequently asked interview questions. I did some research about the company from its website.

Round - 1

On the day of the interview, I reached the company's office thirty minutes before the expected time as I didn't want to mess anything up on D-day. I was given a piece of paper with questions related to C++ such as find the output, definitions like friend function, oops concepts, access specifiers, inline and abstract function, etc. On another page, there was a coding question related to some design that I had to attempt in VSCode on the examiner's laptop. I tried to give my best and left the rest of the things to the almighty.

Round - 2

It was a non-technical round with the Engineering Team Lead and Project Manager of the Engineering Team. This round was basically about getting to know each other, the employer, and the applicant. The Manager gave me an idea about the company, its cultures, its clients, customers, stakeholders, etc, and also asked me many HR questions to check if I was the right candidate.

After these two rounds got over, I was asked to wait for the result. Approximately 30 minutes later, the Engineering Team Lead appeared in the presentation hall where I was asked to wait for the result, congratulated me, and informed me that further proceeding would be carried out by the Project Manager of the Engineering Team. After further discussion about my status of VISA, I was offered the position of Software Developer.

About the company

A brief history of Lascar Electronics

It's an MNC with offices in HK, the UK, the USA, and a warehouse in China. It started on 1977 in a garage, Essex, England. It aimed at designing and manufacturing different panel meters, digital displays, and complementary power supplies. With the growth in its sale, it moved its office from Essex to the current location, Whiteparish England where lies its current Headquarter. In 1997, it opened its offices in Savannah, Georgia, and relocated its facilities to Eerie, Pennsylvania where its office lies presently. In 2010, the company expanded its office for the departments of manufacturing and procurements in Kwun Tong, HK. In 2015, a dedicated global distribution center was opened in Salisbury, England where its parts are shipped to customers and distributors across the globe.

Today, the company operates from four direct global sites in US, UK, and HK by supplying products directly to the customers through its network of over 100 global distributors and resellers. This video narrates the birth and evolution of Lascar Electronics.

Working Experience as Software Developer

My first day in the office

I joined Lascar Electronics, HK on 21.06.2021. The office was situated on the 8th floor of China Aerospace center, Hoi Bun Road 143, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, HK. My office's time was 9 am to 6 pm. The sea which surrounds the office on one side adds to its mesmerizing beauty of it. After completing all formalities like document verification, and knowing about Terms and Conditions, I was assigned a PC to work on. The Project Manager took me to everyone's desk to introduce me. I loved my setup consisting of a comfortable chair, proper lighting, and a spacious desk. I received a personalized company email ID and a start-up training note from my Team Lead which focused on basis of C++ and Qt, which is a framework of C++. I was on probation period for 6 months during which I was expected to get a good grasp of the concepts of C++, Qt, and QML (a little bit of Python, SQL, and JS) to be able to work on PPACE Design Studio Projects.

As a custom, the lunch was sponsored by the office and I was taken to a decent Italien Restaurant by my Team Lead. I enjoyed Risotto with salad and coffee. I got a chance to know her and her experiences of settling and working in HK.

As the office hour approached its end, one of the colleagues distributed 'Egg Tart'- a traditional sweet dish of HK from desk to desk. I tested something like that for the first time. It was egg pudding over a thin crust. Later, I got to know that it was his last working day in the office. So, as a custom, the departing member has to distribute some treat to every colleague in the office.

What I learned professionally

I worked in Lascar Electronics for about a year from June 2021 to April 2022. I learned a lot in this span. My learnings are as follows:

• I worked on UI/UX of Projects of the device like dataloggers, temperature sensors
• I added features to PanelPilotACE Design Studio as well as removed bugs from it as requested by clients
• I got a chance to work on different projects and with different Clients across the globe - a)Arrow Smith and Grant Refrigeration-Australia(Blood Fidge) b)Mould Pro(FlowSense),PPA Design Studio c)Filtertechnik-UK(Particle Pal Device Utility), d)HKCH(Lascar Monitor)
• I worked on Qt framework of C++ and QML.
• I created device software which was used to upgrade the version in PC(Windows) via VMWare
• I upgraded the device version with the available device software
• I created executable (.exe) files of the software for the PC
• I created an installer using installShield2014
• I learned to do Code Signing
• I got familiar with Version control; product version(PPA Design Studio- software version) , device software version, firmware version
• I contributed to the development notes.
• I got a chance to work remotely with other teams in the UK, US

My personal takeaways from the company

• I loved the way I was introduced to other colleagues individually on my first day.

• My introduction was published in the monthly newsletter, LasChat.

• I participated in Quizzes published in the monthly newsletter,LasChat, won twice, and received 500HKD as a reward.

• I received benefits like bonuses, health insurance, etc.

• I was taken on a warehouse visit.

• There used to be special arrangements of food by the manager during special occasions like Pre-Christmas Eve, New Year Eve, Lunar New Year, etc.

• I liked the professionalism of my colleagues and loved the work culture.

• I prepared monthly reports which were sent to the UK team and set targets for the next month.

Final Note

Every first experience holds a special place in someone's heart, likewise my experience of working in Lascar Electronics, HK would be always etched in my memory for various reasons mentioned above. I learned a lot from my colleagues and was impressed by their professionalism. It was difficult for me to bid goodbye to Lascar Electronics but I will always be grateful to this company for providing me opportunities to learn and grow not just as a professional but as an individual.

P.S : Sharing with you a video about my experiences of working in Lascar Electronics in brief. Do check this out and let me know about your views.