how to land a job at a top tech company

How to Land a Job at a Top Tech Company

Gayle Laakmann McDowellAuthor of The Google Resume

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• Engineer at Google, Microsoft and Apple– Top 1% of interviewers at Google– Member of Google Hiring committee

• Founder / CEO of CareerCup.com• MBA from Wharton, BSE / MSE in CS• Author of The

Google Resume

My Background

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Tech Culture (The Good)

• Perks galore!• Casual, fun culture• Innovation driven• Smart coworkers• Always driven to build

the “Next Big Thing.”

But…Google Zurich

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Tech Culture (The Not So Good)

• Innovation DrivenEngineers can be favored, since they’re the

ones who actually build the product

• Smart coworkersSome arroganceOver-emphasis of raw intelligenceAnd, yes, lots of geeks

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But… firms differ

• Very engineering focused• Flat hierarchy hard to move up• Lack of strong management

• Wants immediate results• Retail, not tech thin margins• Lack of consistent culture

across groups

• More “businessy”• Slower, more bureaucracy• More risk averse

Apple• “Fanboy” culture• Highly secretive – even internally• Do skills transfer?

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Landing a Job in “4 Easy Steps”

1. Develop the right experience.

2. Build a kick-ass resume.

3. Get someone to actually notice you.

4. Do a great interview.

Developing the Right Experience

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What do tech companies look for?

• Intelligence– GPA, School, etc.

• Field Expertise– Finance, marketing, etc.

• Ability to “make an impact”– Leading projects– Specific accomplishments

• Passion for Tech• Showing Initiative

Many of the same things

as other companies

very, very nice to have

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Becoming a “Techie”

• CS / Engineering Major• Keep up-to-date with tech– Read TechCrunch, CNET, and other

tech blogs

• Explore– Website / Blog / Twitter– Explore Amazon S3 & other tools

• Dive in– Learn to code (HTML, JavaScript, etc.)– Launch a tech start-up

Be more than “just another

MBA”

See: codecademy.com

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Showing Initiative

• Found a company– iPhone app, etc.

• Create a new club, running team, etc.

• Launch initiative within existing group– Annual charity auction for club?– Mentoring program?

Leading is good; creating is better.

The more specific and tangible the accomplishment,

the better

Building a Kick-Ass Resume

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“Glanced at,” not read.15 – 30 seconds

1. Pull resume out of giant stack2. Spot-check: company names,

positions, projects, schools3. Skim bullets to see if you’ve

made an impact

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4. Go to next resume & whine about how many more you have left

How We Review Resumes

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Building a Resume (Anywhere)

• One page only• Real resume template– Multiple columns, use MS Word tables, etc.

• Accomplishment-oriented– Quantify!

• Universally meaningful– Limit industry technology

• Short 1 – 2 line bullets– Paragraphs will not be read– On every bullet, ask yourself, who cares?

Sample resumes available at www.TheGoogleResume.com

http://www.thegoogleresume.com/

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How is tech “special”?

• Less rigid culture more freedom to demonstrate strengths

• “Projects” or “Additional Experience”?– Teaching experience?– “Side projects” / start-ups– Informal consulting roles

• Technical Experience?– MS Office does not count.– List programming languages (if any)

• What did you not include?

Getting a Recruiter to Notice You

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How to Land an Interview

• On-Campus Recruiting• Online Applications• Additional strategies:– Build an online presence– Get a personal referral– Expanding your network

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Build an Online Presence: Why?

• Makes you a “person,” not a just a name• (Hopefully) demonstrates writing skills• Demonstrates passion for technology• Offers additional context to experience– Screenshots of your start-up?– Online demos?

• Makes you accessible to recruiters– Recruiters DO search online for candidates

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Build an Online Presence: How

• Twitter– Stick to a topic (more or less)– Join the conversation! Don’t just post links.

• Blog / Webpage– Professional (preferably technology), not

personal– Post (HTML) resume, so that recruiters

can find you– Provide link on resume

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Getting a Personal Referral

• Use your friends of friends• Alumni database• Build a relationship with an employee– Comment on blogs, twitter, etc.

• Reach out to recruiters directly– LinkedIn– Recruiter’s email addresses are very

accessible. Search: recruiter *@amazon.com

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Expand Your Network

Most people get jobs not from their friends, but from their friends of friends.

• More than just LinkedIn:– MeetUp.com, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

• Think long-term:– Give, Don’t Take– Be the Connector

Do a Great Interview

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Interview Research

• Questions for Your Interviews• Company Strategy / Future• Product & Industry• Passion / Excitement

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Questions for Your Interviewer

• Prepare 10 questions to ask company• Type 1: Stuff You Want to Know– Ex: “What’s the typical promotion /

advancement path?”

• Type 2: Qs that Show Your Knowledge– Ex: “Google used approach X, while others

used Y. Why? It seems Y was better because…”

• Type 3: Qs that Show Your Passion– Ex: “I love learning the technical details of a

project. How can marketers do that?”

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Company Strategy / Future

• Challenges:– What are their biggest challenges? How would you

solve them?

• Success:– Why is this company successful (or not)?

• Competition:– Who are their competitors? Who is better in which

areas?

• Predictions: – What do you predict will happen to this company in 1

year, 5 years, and 10 years?

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Know the Products & Industry

• Know two company products• Know two industry products• Understand:– How does it make money? What is its

strategy? How does it struggle?– What’s happened with it recently?– How would you improve the product?

Avoid the superfamous

products.

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Passion / Excitement

• Find something that excites you!– Crowdsourcing? Cloud infrastructure?

• Learn the details so you can discuss it– What’s the history of this field?– Where do you think it’s going?– Who are the leading companies?– How does this company relate to it?

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Common Interview Questions

1. Behavioral Questions

2. Estimation Questions

3. Product Design Questions

4. Business Questions

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Behavioral QuestionsTell me about a time when you

had to influence a team.

Tell me about a time when you faced a hostile attitude from a coworker.

Tell me about something you accomplished in an unexpected way.

Behavioral Questions 1

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Great Responses to Behavioral Qs

• Answer the question you were asked

• Make you look awesome

• Show strong communication skills


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Behavioral Qs: Preparation


Download grid at www.thegoogleresume.com

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Behavioral Qs: Responding

• Be specific – not arrogant “I did all the hard work for the team” “I created a strategy to …, which enabled the company to …”

• Be concise and structured– Nugget First– S.A.R.: Situation, Action, Result


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Behavioral Qs: Nugget First

• Lead with your “thesis” / nugget– Grabs the listener’s attention– Gives them context for where you’re going.

A: I’m most proud of the work I did on revamping our call-in support system, which ended up saving about $3 million per year. Previously, the company was…

Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of?


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Behavioral Qs: S.A.R.

ituationctionesult

SAR

What was the issue?

What did you do about it?

What was the impact?


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2

Estimation Questions

Estimation Questions

How many tennis balls can fit in an SUV?

How much money does Gmail make from ads every year?

How much do New Yorkers spend on electricity each year?

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Estimation Qs: Why?

• Evaluates:– Math skills– Logic skills / problem solving / intelligence– Ability to deal ambiguity

• “It’s the journey, not the destination”

2Estimation Questions

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Estimation Qs: How to Approach

1. Ask questions to resolve ambiguity– Don’t make assumptions (yet)

2. Outline / Structure Your Approach3. Break down the components– Assume numbers when necessary– State assumptions explicitly– Round numbers to make your math easier

4. Sanity Check– Do your numbers make sense?


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Estimation Qs: Example



Step 1: Ambiguous Information• Just in the US? Or Worldwide?• Side and top ads?• Past year? Or average over gmail

history?• Gmail only? Or include Google Apps?

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Step 2: Outline Your Approach1. Estimate # of Gmail users2. Estimate annual clicks

a. Top clicksb. Side clicks

3. Estimate $ per clicka. Top clicksb. Side clicks

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Step 3: Break down componentsEstimate # of Gmail users in the US

1. Assume 300 million people in the US. – Exclude 0 - 12 years old and 65 - 75 years old – ~ 200 million

2. Assume 80% of people use email– But 50% only use their work email acct

3. Assume 80% use a “major” email provider– Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, etc.

4. Assume Gmail has 50% of the <35 market, but 20% of the >35 market

… and so on …

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Step 4: Validate Numbers• Suppose you get US rev. = $5 billion.• No, because…– Google’s annual revenue is ~$30 billion– $16 / US citizen (not just gmail users)

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3

Product Design Questions


How would you design an calculator for the blind?

Design an elevator for a building.

Pick a Google product. How would you improve it?

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• Evaluates:– Communication– Ability to understand the user– Creativity– Business instincts / skills

3Product Design Questions

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Product Design Qs: Approach

1. Ask questions to resolve ambiguity2. Understand the user– Who is your target user?– What are their problems?– Know your market!

3. Structure the problem


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Product Design Qs: ExampleHow would you design a calculator for the blind?

Step 1: Ask Questions• Adults? Children? Professionals?• Where are they using it?– School, work, etc


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Step 2: Understand the User• What’s important to a blind child?– Keeping up with the rest of the class– Not feeling “different”– Efficient input / output

• What about teachers, parents, classmates, etc?


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Step 3: Structure1. Make a list of essential features– Which functions do you support?– Input/output for blind?– Input/output for non-blind?

2. Design each component– Remember the needs of the

users!


Be creative – but

structured.

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3

Business Questions


How would you introduce YouTube to Turkey?

How would you calculate the price of an Amazon Prime membership?

How would you determine which of two business ideas to pursue?

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4

Business Questions

• Heavy overlap with Product Design• Where your MBA comes in handy• The Approach:– Ask questions– Outline a structure– Solve piece by piece

Business Questions

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Business QuestionsHow would you price Amazon Prime membership?

Step 1: Ask Questions• Who?– Just for US users? Or worldwide?

• “Features”– What does Amazon Prime offer?

• Price structure?– Single price point? Or promotions, tiered

pricing, etc.?

4Business Questions

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Step 2: Outline a Structure• Understand Priorities:– Short term vs. long term? Barriers to entry for

competitors?

• Financial impact:– Short term– Long term

• Evaluate potential price structures– Single price point– Tiered pricing 4Business Questions

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Step 3: Solve Piece by PieceStep (b): Financial Impact• Short Term– Increase in purchases– Lost revenue from shipping fees

• Long Term– Improve customer loyalty– Enhanced barriers to entry 4Business Questions

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The Curve Ball Question

• Remember: Questions come down to:

• So:1. Ask questions2. Structure the problem3. Solve the pieces

• Don’t rush yourself!

when the question is something totally different…

structure communication+

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After Your Interview

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After Your Interview

• Follow-up with your recruiter – No response != rejection

• Thank you notes– Nice to do… but most people don’t

• Lots of randomness– So if you fail, get up and try again.

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More ResourcesThe Google Resume

How to Prepare for a Career and Land a Job at Apple, Microsoft, Google, or Any Top

Tech Company

Find Me AtBlog: technologywoman.comTwitter: @gayleEmail: [email protected]

how to land a job at a top tech company

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