Jobs overseas tempt U.S. high-tech workers

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by Dan Blacharski

(IDG) -- The best high-tech jobs are not limited to Silicon Valley. For IT people who want to work outside the United States, there are plenty of opportunities. Jason Gordon, account executive at high-tech public relations firm Text 100 International, is now working in Hong Kong. "It's fairly easy to get a job, actually," he said. "Technology is probably twelve months behind the US, so people's experience in the US is very valuable for Asian companies. That experience is worth a lot here."

In Europe, the top countries for IT jobs are the UK, Germany, and France; in Asia, the biggest opportunities are in Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Singapore, where English is the primary business language. That's not to say there are no opportunities in other countries. Poland, for example, is moving nicely into capitalism, and a trip to the Poznan Trade Fair and an armload of resumes may net you a position in Warsaw's hottest tech start-up.

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Where to find them

The most obvious place to start is the job boards. Out of about 150,000 jobs listed on Dice.com, 1,400 are outside the United States. "Finding a recruiter who deals with multinational corporations is the first step," said Larry Gonzales, a recruiter from Strategic Alliances. "And the next step that I always encourage people to do is to look at company Websites for jobs that are available overseas."

Gordon found his Hong Kong job simply by being outspoken about his desire to work outside the US. He made his desires known when he interviewed. Although he started out in the company's Seattle office, "when the opportunity came up, everyone knew it was something I wanted to do, and Text 100 wanted me to do it."

Gordon also recommends checking the online versions of local newspapers, such as the South China Morning Post (see the Resources section below for links to this and other sites), which list job opportunities. But beyond the job listings, you'll want to read the international papers just to get a feel for the business atmosphere, see what companies are in the news, and decide which companies to target.

You don't have to get on a plane and fly to Tokyo to look for a job there -- not right away, at least. There are abundant online resources that will let you start your search from the convenience of your home. If you want to work in Japan, check out WorkinJapan.com. Career Mosaic's international gateway has job opportunities in several global locations. Are you a software engineer who wants to work in Romania? EuroJobs has a listing for you.

Why overseas?

You may be tempted to get a job in Macedonia to get as far away from your ex-wife as possible, but, as Gonzales pointed out, "it's always about career advancement." Like most Americans working outside the country, Gordon sees adding an overseas assignment to his resume as a career-maker. "It's a way for me to round off my experience," he said.

Gonzales said that Americans working overseas tend to see their posts as short-term moves meant to advance their careers. Hewlett-Packard's Peter O'Neil, who relocated from the company's German facility to Cupertino, Calif., agrees, although he notes that Europeans working in the US are divided. "Some want to stay, and others say, 'I'm enjoying the adventure but I want to go back some day.'"

Global market changes employment outlook

Only a few years ago, it was argued that working overseas was frivolous, and could even stall your career. The global marketplace, driven by Internet technology and e-commerce, has changed all that. The average US high-tech firm sells 40 to 50 percent of its product outside of North America. Most successful IT firms will devote at least some resources to understanding international markets.

Kenneth Reed, President of TKO International, a division of Hall Kinion, a global recruiting firm targeting the Asian/Pacific market, says that the debate over whether an overseas assignment advances or stalls a career continues even to this day, although the globalization of the IT industry bodes well for professionals wanting to work overseas. Reed cited the semiconductor industry as an example. "The designs are made here in the Valley, but the chips are manufactured in Taiwan, they're assembled in Southeast Asia, and they're OEM'd to Japanese consumer electronics giants. There is no way that one country can dominate that." Although any multinational will certainly draw as heavily as possible from the pool of talented locals, Reed says that there is always benefit in hiring a company insider who is already familiar with the operation. Often, these insiders will come from the United States, especially when the company's headquarters are located there.

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