First, let's talk about workload
In a project, the hardware engineer is at the node position, connecting software (BSP or system group), procurement, industrial design, structure, safety regulations, and some hardware internal positions such as layout, radio frequency, test, production, pilot test, process, etc.; if If there are FPGAs and DSPs in the project, it is natural to plug in these groups, and directly compete with bosses such as the CEO or CTO of the giant company, but the status is not at the partner level.
Often become a switch for more than 3-20 people, and become a de facto natural project manager or product manager, knowing everything and coordinating everything.
Take the software and hardware debugging of the most important job as an example: it is often necessary to target 1 to 3 or even 8 to 10 or 20 software engineers, but usually it is equivalent to the software engineer with the highest salary in the best case, and most of the reality is Far from it.
Second, talk about the sense of professional accomplishment
There are fewer and fewer companies that do entities, with more investment and limited returns. From the perspective of businessmen and capital, the input-output ratio is low and the relative risk is relatively high. We often regard ourselves as perfectionist and idealistic artists, what an artist is, exploration, creation, freedom and infinite possibilities.
Engineers are a decent, respected position, and a pioneer in transforming the world, but now they are really reduced to skilled labor slaves, not to mention the low salary, and the high housing prices in the main positions in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hangzhou make buying a house a luxury. 996, 007 with an unfriendly workplace atmosphere, working slaves, there is no room for resistance, not to mention the watershed of 35 years old, the employment environment is too bad.
Many companies engage in stupid KPI assessments in which the form is far greater than the effect, which is troublesome and impatient. It seems that creative work is regarded as a piecework worker, and the brains are eaten by zombies.
A profession neither gives learning time nor open authorization, and the salary is not much better. Personal income does not grow linearly or exponentially or positively with skills.
It is obvious that the responsibility is huge, but the professional status and the right to speak are not paid much attention to. It is not easy to become a partner. You often have to fight against the crowd and insist on your own opinion. The core of fact, so hardware engineers have become a rare species.
Think again about the equipment, materials and other assets used in the work are usually recorded in your name, no mistakes can be made, no trial and error is allowed. The company's assembly line undertakes the longest links and the most cycles. You can't stop without breathing, and you have to sum up and learn to improve your skills at the same time. Doing mass production is even more responsible. If you don't do it, you can destroy the company in pieces. It's almost like a company. natural boss.
Third, talk about salary
We often feel that we are similar to Moses or Jesus, who came to save or lead as natural organizers, but in fact, in the eyes of others, they do not correspond at all, as if they are Don Quixote.
In my opinion, it is relatively reasonable for a hardware engineer to have a salary that is 3 to 5 times that of a software engineer, and they must be given partner-like authority and psychological stability. However, the truth is that many companies in China are just gangsters, earning money by crooked methods, technology is not important, it's just a facade.
The recognition of hardware engineers in China is relatively poor, and many hardware engineers have switched to software. In addition to the low salary, hardware engineers bear more pressure. After mass production, the loss due to design hidden dangers is irreversible.
Even if there are 100 bugs in the software, it is enough to keep updating. If there is one bug in the hardware, it will be over. It will be infinitely magnified and irreversible. This is the essential difference.
In addition, software engineers, unless they are architects, generally only need to be proficient in 1-3 languages. Hardware engineers need to master a wide range of knowledge and skills. The requirements of products in different fields and industries are very different, and they have to deal with industrial design. , You must know how to select and purchase materials (expired materials, fake products, will kill you), and do various certification and rigorous experiments (it will drive people crazy).
It is necessary to continuously reduce costs, increase battery life, be familiar with production, write process documents (consuming a lot of time), optimize various non-quantifiable indicators in the design stage, various hidden interferences, unreasonable wiring, etc. Sometimes it takes a long time to repair a board when you encounter a problem, and it takes even more time when you encounter a problem that is not easy to reproduce.
The chip iterates rapidly, and you have to constantly absorb, trial and error, and adjust the company's strategy. You may do 1-2 mass production out of 10 projects, which is already good.
Smelling rosin every day, increasing the thickness of glasses, this is the home of hardware engineers.
Hardware engineer is a down-to-earth profession. He needs you to continuously hone and accumulate. Industry will prosper the country. I think this career will return to its due value.
Finally, I end with quoting a colleague. Your value is not determined by your workload, but by your irreplaceability. Busyness does not necessarily mean high efficiency, and high efficiency does not necessarily mean high salary. Good luck!
Source: The Daily Life of an RF Engineer
