Google

Google is one of the biggest talent pools in the world of IT and software development, spearheading multiple fields at once. With Google on your resume, future employers will assume you picked up industry-leading standards and skillsets.

Employee Development

What makes Google unique in the landscape is their approach to leadership and employee development. Most big companies employ HR managers who try to foster the best conditions for their workers using resources they’re given, but Google’s management choses to take that one step further:

Leadership and skill growth are both treated as research questions. Google regularly carries out large scale surveys, analyzing performance data, and interviewing employees, while daring to challenge what most companies consider trivial:

• Is management important?
• How can a leader be truly effective?
• Under what conditions to teams do their best work?

Their research has led to some truly unique policies at Google. For example:

1. 20% Side-Project Time – Google has long promoted the norm that employees should spend a fifth of their work hours working on projects they believe will benefit the company. Though not a formal policy and not evenly used in every Google location, it is aimed at fostering creativity and letting workers feel self-actualized by providing space for their own passion projects.
2. Googler-to-Googler (g2g) Learning – Employees at Google can volunteer to teach courses or provide one-on-one coaching to other Googlers. This project simultaneously allows experienced workers to develop their leadership skills by taking learners under their wing, and enables the learners to become more immersed in the company’s projects, obtaining valuable knowledge from leading experts.
3. Research-backed Leadership Development – Google’s Project Oxygen is a long-running research project focused on what makes effective leaders and how they are created. This ongoing project has led to the formulation of Google’s eight behaviors of effective managers, now updated to ten. Google says effective managers not only increase team productivity but also let team members feel more valued and improves commitment to the company and the team.

Google As an Immense Ecosystem of Talent

The sheer size of Google is one of its biggest strengths, and the reason even ex-Googlers get clout from recruiters.

Few companies allow their employees to interact with experts in so many fields. Devs at Google work on systems that supports AI, cloud, ads, search, video, and more. Google emphasizes the importance of breaking down silos and letting departments interact with each other in order to cross-fertilize and learn each others’ fields.

A major example of this is Xoogler, a community of current and past Google employees who continue to interact, support each others’ projects, and share knowledge.

Recruiters are aware of this, and a Google candidate is often assumed to have a more well-rounded tech background than those who have worked at small or developing companies.

Yes. Google offers internships, student roles, and entry-level jobs. These are competitive, but with a good portfolio and a well-tailored CV and cover letter, they’re not impossible to get.

An early-career job at google can have a significant impact on your career growth. In tech, there is a constant risk of stagnation – not being able to keep up with new work methods and being left behind. At google, you will receive an introduction the spearhead of any field you choose.

Yes, but not impossible. Google receives an enormous volume of applications for every opening, and its interview process is known for rigorous technical and behavioral assessments. A strong, tailored resume and portfolio meaningfully improve your odds, especially for entry-level and internship roles. We can help with tightening up your resume using our advanced Platform.

Project Oxygen is Google's internal, data-driven research initiative into what makes managers effective. It began by identifying eight key behaviors of high-performing managers and has since been updated to ten, based on continued analysis of employee surveys and performance data.