Category: workplace
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How to lift up your laid-off friends
Not sure how to write to someone who’s been laid off? Here are some ideas!
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Facebook’s Horizon Workrooms: don’t believe the anti-hype
Everyone’s hella snarking about the FB Horizons Workrooms project (collaborative work in virtual reality) but mark (ha!) my words… 99% of them haven’t tried it. 95% of them didn’t bother actually RTFA (“Who is gonna pay thousands of dollars per person for this??!?” [it costs $299]) Nearly everyone will be “WOW! This is revolutionary!” when…
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How employment at prominent tech firms stymies open communication
Let me first get the disclaimers out of the way: I have worked at Google since March, 2006. I do not speak on behalf of Google in this blog, nor do my views necessarily dovetail with those of other Googlers; I’ve historically held more of a public-facing role than most Googlers, so I have heightened…
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Insane transparency — Seeing or even setting what your colleagues earn
At Google, we have pretty radical transparency, at least in Engineering where I sit. With few exceptions, we can all see what every colleague is working on (via the Project Database or “PDB”), what they’ve recently accomplished (via weekly self-composed “Snippets”), and even what their core contributions have been to the company (their Google resume). …
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Zap ridiculous disclaimers, reform CEO pay in one fell swoop
Stupid disclaimers. You know ‘em, and you probably either ignore them or laugh at them. Slightly enhanced samples that are either spoken at 420 words a minute or that take up a bazillion lines of tiny tiny text on the back of ads in news magazines. “Warning: Stunt driver on stunt track in stunt car. …
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Getting hired by Google
I recently noticed that a fellow Googler posted some thoughtful tips about interviewing at Google, and — now that I’m a bit more comfortable blogging about Work — I figured I’d contribute to the conversation a bit by offering my own, unofficial tips. Note the unofficial part. I work in Search Quality; aside from occasionally…
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How much would YOU pay not to be obligated to tip?
I’ve had it with tipping. The more traveling I do—for business or pleasure—the more I despise the uncertainty, the uncomfortableness, the need to have petty cash on hand. When will someone—an influential someone—say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?! Tip too little, and you risk imperiling the quality of service you receive in the future from that person……
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How I blew off Google… and more pre-Google career tidbits
Happy Googleversary!As I was getting ready to board the Google Shuttle home recently, a colleague (who started at Google on the same day I did) poked me and jokingly wished me a “Happy Googleversary!” Right then it hit me that, yeah, I had been at Google for a full year. Wow! Also in the last few weeks, coincidentally…
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Being under the microscope
I’ve been at Google about four months, and it’s been a hell of a great ride so far. I really need to write more about this later, but in a nutshell… my colleagues rock, the flexible and trusting environment is awesome, and I’m very excited about what I’m working on. However, I do have to…
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A blunt note to HR folks and interviewers
I wrote this quite a while ago, both to vent my frustrations and also to sincerely urge HR folks and interviewers to improve their practices. I’ve had pleasurable experiences with most of the companies I’ve interviewed with in the past, but there has still often been quite a bit of room for improvement. Also, I…