Hello, I will write in a nutshell what I have been working on and it will be very awesome if you could help me figure out if I fit the criteria and how best to proceed.
I moved to China about eight years ago, studied at a university and worked in two Chinese companies, my total work experience is about three years.
The first company develops software for energy power plants, in which I worked for about a year and implemented systems for proprietary software.
The second company that I’m still working for for about two years is related to insurance, and I was improving one of their main module related to low-level networking part, as well as developing a system for collecting analytics in their application.
I also have github contributions, my repositories have over 200 stars in total. And I also have a fairly popular blog related to my main activity and technology.
I have 4 references that were signed by my colleagues and acquaintances, two of which are from the companies where I worked, and the other two who used my open source work. All of them have C-level positions in their companies (Senior and similar).
My salary was/is above or near GBP4,500.
I also have annual reports from these companies, one of which mentions the product I’m working on.
What do you think, is such evidence sufficient? It would be great if you could share your opinion on it.
I think you will have a good chance based on your provided information, except for the doubt I have about the companies you have worked with, which may not look like a “digital technology sector” as much.
The first company may not be eligible as you were outsourced, and you developed software for the others. If the second company is in a digit tech sector. You will also need to demonstrate that you are in a Technical role, which will make your 2 optional criteria easier to achieve. I assume that you are going after the “contributed to the advancement of the sector” and “made a significant contribution” criteria then.
Quoting from Tech Nation guide:
Single definition of “Digital technology sector” and “product-led”:
The “digital technology sector” or “product-led digital technology companies” are defined as businesses that provide a proprietary digital technical service/product/platform/hardware as their primary revenue source. The creation of software, processing/storage of data, or the creation/application of technical computing hardware is often a central aspect of their business model.
[This excludes general consultancies, outsourcing and technology-related consultancy groups focused on process/service delivery or solutions/systems architecture. Such firms do not meet the guidelines, particularly those primarily serving large corporate or multinational corporate (MNC) customers.
Work at specific agencies may be considered if the agencies are extremely focused on product innovation in a specific industry and are well-recognized for their contributions to that industry.]
Thank you for your reply! I just want to clarify one point to make it clearer.
In the first company, software products were developed universally for many companies and it was not a consulting or outsourcing work. Although the detailed product specification in which I was involved under the NDA and energy related companies specifically separately requested access to the software product details, so this can be a bit confusing.
Additionally: since you are going to apply for “exceptional promise” route, you may show at least 1 company within the past 5 years with the criteria you meet. It is enough. You don’t need both of the companies you worked for to be eligible.