Explaining your tech job this CNY

Chinese New Year is just around the corner, and we know what this means for many Singaporeans: pineapple tart bingeing, new clothes, and, of course, awkward conversations with people you see once a year.

我做电脑 (I work with computers). PHOTO: GovTech

Even with this year’s Covid restrictions on house visits and mingling, you’ll be on the receiving end of “what work are you doing now” quite a few times. And if you’re a techie, you probably have struggled with how to describe your job, before settling for a lame “我做电脑”(I do computer stuff).

We feel your pain. So here’s a list of the most common tech jobs and explanations of what they entail that are simple enough for folks who are more familiar with titles like doctors, lawyers, and accountants. And because CNY also typically involves interacting with relatives who are more comfortable in Mandarin, we’ve thrown in helpful Chinese translations too! If you can’t read Mandarin, you can show this article to your relatives or send it to the huge family group chat!

To top it off, we’ll be using a metaphor for a place that Singaporeans all love – the shopping mall.

User experience (UX) designer

Say you’re building a shopping mall. You’ll need an architect to give the building an overall look and feel, lay the stores out coherently, and ensure the corridors and escalators optimise human traffic.

If you’re building a website or an app instead, the UX designer fulfills the same role in giving your site a pleasing, consistent look and ensuring that menus and navigation buttons are easy to find and placed in logical areas of the screen. For example, a UX designer for an e-commerce site will plan out the navigation from adding items to cart to payment, ensuring that the process through a few different pages is smooth.

用户体验设计师 Yònghù tǐyàn shèjìshī

假设你正在建造购物中心，那你需要一名建筑师来为这座建筑设计整体外观和营造感觉，规划商店布局，并确保走道和自动扶梯的人流移动顺畅。 若你制作的是网站或应用程序，那么用户体验设计师就扮演着类似的角色，那就是让网站看起来既美观又一致，并确保菜单和导航按钮容易找到，而且都在屏幕上的合适位置。例如，电子商务网站的用户体验设计师会规划从添加物品进购物车到付款的导航，以确保用户能够顺利地浏览各个页面。

Software engineer

An architect designs a shopping mall while an engineer builds it. Similarly, a UX designer is the architect of a website, while a software engineer builds it. And just like there are different kinds of engineers, there are different software engineers too.

Broadly speaking, there are those who build the things you see and the things you don’t. The team in charge of a building’s facade and landscaping is different from the people who put in the plumbing and electrical wiring.

Frontend software engineers build the website’s elements that you interact with, assembling the photos, videos, graphics, and text into one pleasing package. Backend software engineers ensure that information flows smoothly so the website can load quickly on your device. They also build systems to store data, like user information, properly.

软件工程师 Ruǎnjiàn gōngchéngshī

建筑师负责设计购物中心，工程师则负责建造。同样的，用户体验设计师就是网站的建筑师，而软件工程师则负责建立网站。就像工程师可分为多种不同的类型一样，软件工程师也有许多分类。 一般而言，有些软件工程师负责建造你看得到的事物，有些工程师负责的部分是你看不到的，就像负责建筑物外墙和景观的团队与铺设管道和电线的人员不同是一样的道理。

前端软件工程师通过将照片、视频、图形和文本组合成一个美观的配套，制作成网站中的各种互动元素。后端软件工程师则确保信息流动顺畅，这样网站才能在你的设备上快速加载。 后端软件工程师也负责建立系统来储存用户信息等数据。

Cybersecurity specialist

Let’s say your shopping mall sells expensive luxury goods. You’ll want someone in charge of security to ensure that it’s difficult for burglars to break in. You’ll need a comprehensive system of security alarms and security cameras, as well as strong vaults and locks. Now that your mall is digital, you’ll need a cybersecurity specialist against hackers, the digital version of a burglar. The cybersecurity specialist puts in defences and monitoring systems to prevent hackers from breaking in and stealing valuable information, such as customers’ credit card details and personal information.

网络安全专家 Wǎngluò ānquán zhuānjiā

假设你的购物中心售卖昂贵的奢侈品，那你需要保安专家来防止盗贼闯入，还需要全面的警报和监控摄像机系统，以及坚固的保险库和锁具。 现在你经营的是一座数码化的购物中心。你需要网络安全专家来对付黑客，也就是数码版本的盗贼。这名网络安全专家使用各种防卫和监视系统，来防止黑客闯入和窃取有价值的信息，例如客户的信用卡资料和个人信息。

Product Manager

A shopping mall’s manager combines the needs of customers with the business objectives of the mall. If the business wants to attract younger shoppers, the manager will have to come up with a shortlist of brands that are appealing to young people and get them to set up shop in the mall. Perhaps some redecoration is needed as well to refresh the mall and give it a more modern vibe. The manager has to pull everyone together to deliver on this goal.

A product manager also combines the needs of customers with the business objectives of the website. If the website wants to attract younger shoppers, the manager will have to plan new webpages for new brands that appeal to the young and put in motion a refresh of the website’s interface. He or she needs to rally product designers and software engineers to turn this goal into reality.

产品经理 Chǎnpǐn jīnglǐ

购物中心的经理会将顾客的需求与购物中心的业务目标结合在一起。如果企业想要吸引年轻购物者，那么经理就会提出一份年轻人心仪品牌的名单，并让这些品牌在购物中心内开设商店。购物中心也许需要重新装饰，来为购物中心营造现代化的氛围。经理必须集合所有人的力量来实现这个目标。

产品经理也一样会将顾客的需求与网站的业务目标结合在一起。如果网站想吸引年轻购物者，那么产品经理就必须为那些吸引年轻人的新品牌规划新网页并更新网站界面。产品经理需要召集产品设计师和软件工程师来实现这个目标。

Data analyst

A shopping mall has a team to monitor which stores are the most popular, and if a change in lighting and music caused shoppers to spend more. They’ll also check on which walkways and escalators get more human traffic.

Data analysts carry out these functions for a website, monitoring which webpages are the most popular, which colours and layouts caused users to click more, and which navigation buttons get more usage. Data analysts can even build a system to recommend additional items that are related to what online shoppers want to buy. For example, a shopper who is buying a computer will get recommended a portable keyboard and mouse.

数据分析师 Shùjù fēnxīshī

购物中心有一支团队，他们负责留意哪些商店最受顾客欢迎，或是变化灯光和音乐是否能让购物者提高消费。他们还会注意哪些走道和自动扶梯的人流量比较高。

数据分析师为网站扮演类似的角色。他们观察哪些网页最受欢迎，哪些颜色和布局能提高用户的点击次数，哪些按钮的使用率更高。数据分析师甚至可以建立推荐系统，来根据网上购物者想买的商品推荐其他相关商品。例如，向电脑购买者推荐键盘和滑鼠。

No more tongue-tied awkwardness

If you celebrate Chinese New Year, may our article help your festive season be one of confident interactions with relatives. Who knows, your new-found smoothness with the aunties and uncles may even lead to a fatter hong bao. You’re welcome.

And if all else fails, just say: “我和阿里巴巴的马云是同行！”(I’m in the same industry as Alibaba’s Jack Ma!)