What's wrong with Filipino Engrs?

Guest

Last night, I was talking to a CEO of a big semicon subcontractor. He was saying that he finds Filipinos to be good engineers, even better than Malaysians, Singaporeans, and even Koreans. However, he added that what confuses him is why Filipinos who are good individually do not succeed collectively.

What is wrong with us? I'm sure somebody will blame crab mentality but I don't find it as a sufficient explanation. Let's confine the discussion with semicon engrs because it is also applicable to the whole country as well.

Nationalist-kuno

Guest

Our leaders have always been obssessed with power. They use everybody under them as mere pawns to achieve what they want.

Many local semicon managers (including GMs) have become like them already. Of course, they will try to look friendly. But try pointing out something that needs improvement in them, and they will begrudge it. Your career is ruined once they know that you are bold enough to express your ideas to them. They are insecure, so they will try to stomp out your career while they can. However, they like people who say 'yes' to them all the time.

This is why the people succeeding in this country are NOT the good engineers. It is the ass-kissers - the sipsips!!! There are exceptions, of course, but look around you and see how many of these incompetent sipsips have overtaken the honest-to-goodness competent engineers.

This is a country of politicians, not a country of technical leaders. That is why we're at the bottom of everyone else in the region!!!

Truth Sayer

Guest

it's not correct (and not appropriate) to say that Phil. engineers are better than others. yes, they may be good in problem solving or improving things. but pinoy engineers are weak in developing own products. or even just imitating products of others. we are not even close to Taiwanese who became an electronics superpower because they all tried to make their own products even if they just copied them at first. i think we should do the same.

juan

Guest

I tend to disagree. Here in Korea where I work (inside Hynix Semiconductors in Icheon), we Filipinos have a reputation for being ingenious and creative in our approaches. Even my top managers acknowledge this.

I asked the same question to my boss once, and he said by nature he finds our kind to be resourceful and imaginative, but tends to give way to selling the idea to those with money, and he cannot blame us, because he knows the lack of monetary resources on our side. Ever heard of a Filipino inventor who made a success in our country without money? Nope. Ever heard of a Filipino inventor who made a success in our country with money? Yep. Ever heard of a Filipino inventor who made a success in other countries? Yes, because they were heavily funded. One example he told me was: just look at Intel. Do you know how many Filipino design engineers are working there?

Gabs

Guest

natumbok mo. they are heavily funded. samantalang tayo, hanggang senate at congress lamang ang funds for tech.

bakit nga ba? dahil, may pagka tanga talaga ang mga utak ng karamihan sa atin kahit magaling sila technically... take for example.

sa dami nating good engineers tingan mo kung ilan sa kanila ang bomoto para kay Eddie Villanueva????

Ganyan po tayo. Kaya wala tayong asenso. di tayo maruning tumingin at mag add ng 1+1.

Eddie Villanueva for president? its like saying ohms law is I = IxI. Stupid isnt it.

Not to mention Marcoses, Estradas, Sottos, revillas, and all these clowns were not only voted by the masses but other good engineers as well.

That's why we never develop as a people.

nalilito na ba kayo?

Guest

Culture remains to be the problem. And I think politics do have a lot to say here. I remember somebody telling me how Mr.Palengke himself snobbed the ASEMEP and SEIPI in their proposals to address the China threat to our local tech jobs. No wonder he's called Mr. Palengke.

We should just not voice this out, as engineers we need to dosomething. Dapat siguro ASEMEP and SEIPI get at least a small grip of political control. The best way is to get a seat in congress via the Party List in the next congressional elections. They will definitely get my vote, and I will even volunteer to campaign for them.

OK yon di ba? Then our voice goes beyond this forum.

Guest

actually, i don't even see what asemep and seipi want our government to do. any specifics? baka naman they're just using dti as an excuse pero in reality talagang we can't do anything about the awakening of china as a sleeping giant. knowing mar, he is supportive of the semicon industry. i've seen him work with semicon projects before.

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2026 2:07 pm Post subject:

At least nobody mentioned crab mentality as the culprit. How about looking at the engineering academe for a solution? I read an article discussing how we are being educated and trained to be self reliant when in fact there is synergy born in numbers. Have we become too individualistic resulting to fragmented progress of Filipino engrs? Sometimes it makes me think that an MBA degree rather than an MS or PhD will lead to a real progress.

Guest

I agree. We need more MBA's who really engage in business and build huge enterprises in the long run. But the biggest bang often come from PhD's who think like MBA's. This is what made Silicon Valley a reality. This is also what India is trying to do. Sadly, the PhD's we get here are, well, just that, PhD's who just stay within the academe. Not that there's something wrong with that. I just feel some of them can broaden their horizons and get out of the sandbox to give us a local version of Intel - founded, established, and made into a giant by PhD's who think like MBA's.

Aguiluz

Guest

Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2026 2:55 pm Post subject:

Ang mga Pilipino magagaling yan..... Wag nga lang kakaingitan ng KAPWA PILIPINO..... Karamihan kasi sa mga naninira sa mga PILIPINO eh mga kapwa nila PILIPINO.... Bakita kamo....

Pag dito ka sa PILIPINAS nagtrabaho, unang pipigil sa pag asenso mo eh BOSS MO.... ano nga ba ung nationality ng BOSS MO.... Ah PILIPINO.... Tapos, minsan kahit alam na nga kasamahan mo ung problema mo, hindi ka nya tutulungan, kasi daw baka maunahan mo sya sa promotion pag nasagot mo ung problema..... Ano ung nationality ng kasamahan mo.... Ah PILIPINO ulet.... Ngayon.... Sino ang sumisira sa PILIPINO..... KAPWA PILIPINO..... Mga Utak Monamon..... Lintek na mga Utak alimango na yan...... Twisted Evil

Guest

In my opinion, pinoys are one of the best engineers, if not the best. Aside from the Philippines, I have worked in countries like Taiwan, Singapore and now here in Europe, and comparing the skill and experience that pinoys have with other nationalities, I know we are much better. The only thing Juan de la Cruz lacks are the opportunities to really show off his knowledge. Another would be the support he could have gotten from the goverment or private sector to be trained in technologies that are "state of the art". European countries and even some contries in Asia like Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, India and Taiwan, are sending a lot of their young professionals abroad for trainings, Masters degrees and even PhD's. There are some companies in the Philippines doing this but I think we need more.

I also agree with one of the comments made that our main enemy is our "Kapwa Filipino". We should learn to be happy when one of our countrymen becomes successful in his career, not pull him down and make stories that do not even have the slightest truth in it. It is so sad to say, that even abroad, pinoys have the tendency to criticize (in a bad way) his "kapwa pinoy", and some have always made it a day to day business to make "chismis", siguro nakuha nila ito kakapanood ng showbiz talk shows. If only we learn to support each other, I think the success of one pinoy engineer abroad or at home is a benifit to every filipino engineer. Just imagine, if a filipino was able to design the lunar rover (so the americans could drive around the moon), I dont think it would be impossible not to send a pinoy to space someday. And with feats like this and our goverment cleaning up their acts back home, wouldn't we be a race that other races would envy again someday? Wink

Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2026 11:43 pm Post subject:

i could only say one thing " I N G G I T"... just that feeling and one could pull a good engineer down.... add the "NANINIWALA, NAIINGGIT AT TAKOT MASAPAWAN" boss also and you're dead!

Guest

Filipino engineers yes are talented and creative they excel individually, but collectively, I agree, they sometime collapsed maybe because affected by politics.