By Eunie Jeong

Automated response: Thank you for calling. To contact our staff about previous purchases, please press 1 (#Beep). You are our treasured customer; we will get back to you shortly.

(30 minutes later) Staff: Hello?

Angry customer: Hello. I ordered an item, but I found out that it has —

Staff: Sorry, that is for department 1; I will redirect you.

Automated response: Thank you for calling. To contact our staff about previous purchases, please press 1 (#Beep). 

Evidently, a telecommunications engineer is needed to improve the customer's experience of this call. Most people have had such unfortunate experiences. So would you consider a career in benefiting the greater good by lessening the number of frustrated people on phone calls?

The primary role of a Telecommunications applications engineer is to design and improve the software. They perform needed evaluations with clients to understand the unique goals of each project and then implement them after careful assessment. In Hong Kong, their average salary is HKD 38,000 per month. 

The RCHK Truth interviewed Mr. Eldon Ko, an applications engineer at Redwood Technologies, a UK Cloud Telecommunications Company. This company is involved with organisations ranging from the NHS to Panasonic. 

What do you do?

Apart from the more general role of applications engineer, a telecommunications applications engineer will work with telecommunication software and do the coding of what goes on the “front end”, or the user interface and the “back end”, the database. In my case, I code the company’s workflow-based software, and from the point where the customer decides to use an app, I generate a script, and through testing, make sure all the action cells work as they should. You are often creating and evaluating user-friendly software for the customers, who don’t always have the technical knowledge you do. I generate a workflow in phone calls, allowing customer service users to follow a sequence. But obviously, these apps are only a part of a wide array of products, which telecommunications engineers offer. 

Who are your customers and how do you liaise with them to give the desired product?

We get requests from various customers, who include the NHS and Panasonic. Our product managers collect feedback from customers and instruct revision of the software. As a team, applications engineers will decide whether the feedback is valuable to take on and the details of how this can be executed. For example, if a customer wants a banking feature, you could add this to the app. Other customers want to add simple numerical calculations, where they input a number and get a result. 

What skills are particularly needed to become an applications engineer?

Contrary to what you may think, the good thing about becoming an applications engineer is that you don’t necessarily need to have a high level of technical knowledge or programming. Most companies are flexible about your prior knowledge, and you can learn as you go. Thus, the capacity for independent learning is essential, especially as everyone is busy and the tasks change. When you apply, your ability to create logic workflow is more important than programming skills. But admittedly, it is advantageous to have the skills and mindset necessary for the job. Most people come from STEM fields, and people do want people with experience in programming and those who know the job, especially for higher positions.

Long term prospects for telecommunications engineers?

If you get to a senior role, it can be more front based, such as communicating with clients. It also includes more leadership roles in managing your team. The ideal engineer will thoroughly learn the IT skills sets, such as programming languages, so that later you have the choice to branch out in your field. The skill sets you develop do not have to necessarily apply only to the telecommunications industry, but can also apply to web designing, etc. With IT becoming more widely used in various aspects of our lives, the job prospect is very bright. For example, in the UK, there is an increasing shortage.

Some challenges about this job? 

Being a telecommunications engineer, or any technology-related job, is fast-paced to a degree. You usually have to follow the new versions and features of the language and syntax of coding. We do have some difficult deadlines, and you have to work overtime. While you may sometimes hear horror stories regarding the work demand, the reality is that these deadlines do not affect your work-life balance drastically. 

What would you say to RCHK students?

You need a capacity to be at least interested in technology. If you are interested, you need to do internships. At least get to know how the job works, and usually, companies are more than happy to allow you to do this over the summer. In looking at university curricula, you need to find the best place to absorb this knowledge. Nowadays people don’t change career paths as much, and though applications engineers have more flexibility, a good starting direction is important, as with any other career path.