Journey in reverse: How Q Team Engineer Martyn Wong went from being a full-timer to joining the Associate Programme

The affable Q Team Engineer Martyn Wong, who recently graduated from HTX’s Associate Programme, likens his work to that of a superhero—here’s why.

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Martyn and his teammate, Akar. (Photo: Martyn Wong)
Like many Xponents in HTX’s Associate Programme, Martyn Wong first heard of the agency through word-of-mouth. But, unlike most of his peers, he actually joined HTX and worked as a full-timer for a year before entering the Associate Programme. So, what made Martyn decide to make the switch? We sat down with the engineer, who’s part of the Q Team, to find out more about his unconventional journey.

“I found out about HTX through a friend, Ming En, who was already working in the Q Team. At the time, I was still in the process of job hunting, but Ming En told me about the capable and caring bosses in the Q Team,” Martyn explains.

From a full-timer to an associate 

Because Martyn joined HTX in October 2020, when the pandemic was underway, he did not have much of a chance to interact directly with his colleagues. The majority of his work day was spent in front of a screen and meeting his team over video calls. 

In a way, it was this limitation that gave Martyn the impetus to apply for the Associate Programme even though he had already earned a full-time position at HTX. To paraphrase Martyn’s words, the Associate Programme would allow him to shake things up, deepen his learning, and allow him to collaborate with other departments.

As part of the Associate Programme, participants get to be mentored by some of the sharpest minds in their fields, as well as receive a plethora of training and overseas learning trips that will enrich their experience.
Imagine you're like a superhero engineer in a special team called Q Team. Your mission? To use cool technology to help the Home Team officers solve problems and do their jobs even better.
More than that, associates will also be a crucial part of cross-department projects and initiatives where they get to work with a variety of stakeholders in HTX and tackle issues that they otherwise would not be exposed to.

At the end of the 3-year Associate Programme, graduating Associates will present a greenfield project where the sky’s the limit.

Building meaningful products with the Q Team

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(Photo: Martyn Wong)

Martyn is part of Q1, a collective under the Q Team that primarily focuses on cybersecurity and intelligence tools. This can range from automation tools to using machine learning to classify cyber threats.

When asked about the Q Team, he likened their work to that of a superhero’s. “Imagine you're like a superhero engineer in a special team called Q Team. Your mission? To use cool technology to help the Home Team officers solve problems and do their jobs even better,” he said. 

“As a Q Team Engineer, I’m given a unique opportunity to creatively tackle and solve challenges faced by Home Team officers. We design and build meaningful products based on what our users need,” he continues. “Hence, we regularly engage with Home Team users to understand the issues they face, and how we can use technology to solve their problems and multiply their capabilities.” 

On top of being able to do meaningful work that contributes to society, members of the Q Team can also freely contribute ideas and learn from fellow colleagues. “What's super cool about being in Q Team is that you can be really creative. You can share your ideas, and your team loves it when you do,” Martyn said.

“Although we may be small and lean, we are a multi-disciplinary team. Everyone's an expert in something different, so there's always something new to discover and learn.”

We were curious to find out the specifics of his jobs in the Q Team, but Martyn stated that much of his work remains confidential. However, he did reveal that he had recently won an innovation award, and that the project came about because he had stumbled upon an interesting article about cybersecurity and flagged it up to his boss.

Favourite part of his job?

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Martyn and his team. (Photo: Martyn Wong)

It was abundantly clear that Martyn is passionate about his job and appreciative of his supportive colleagues and bosses. Thus, it was no challenge for him to name the favourite part of his job.

“My favourite part of the job is the freedom to use the skills that I have gained as an engineer to design and create solutions for Home Team users. This comes hand-in-hand with the guidance of my lead, as well as his trust in our abilities,” he said. “Seeing my solutions being used by the Home Team to help keep Singapore a little safer and secure is the most fulfilling part of my job.”

Speaking to Martyn, we would have never guessed that the enthusiastic engineer was an introvert. "Although I am introverted, I love having discussions on almost anything and everything under the sun. It can be things like the trolley problem or even things like ‘Would you rather eat only rice or noodles for the rest of your life,'" he explained.

Beyond that, Martyn expressed a love for solving puzzles, which ties in perfectly with his responsibilities in the Q Team, as well as video games. "I'm currently scrambling to find the time to finish a single run of Baldur’s Gate 3." 

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(Photo: Martyn Wong)

But life’s all about finding the right balance, which is why Martyn also devotes him to another of his hobbies: hiking. After all, it’s not good to sit around and stare at a screen all day, every day, is it?

The next steps for Martyn

What's next for Martyn? Well, he revealed that he recently applied for the Masters in Computing programme at the National University of Singapore, with specialisation in Artificial Intelligence. If successful, his tuition fees will be fully sponsored by HTX, as part of the agency's commitment to upskilling employees. Although he seemed sad about having to part with his team while seeking higher education, Martyn also expressed that he looked forward to contributing more when he's back. We'll be waiting!
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