Google & Microsoft Program Manager
Anyone here go from Software Development/Engineering into Program Management at Google or Microsoft? How was it and how is the interview process for a Program Manager outside of the Company? Is there a coding portion or are the interview questions more inline with project delivery style questions and how to set up meeting invites ; -)? Do you feel that Program Managers are treated inferior to Engineers, are they given too much power to steer projects, or is the balance just right? On my end I am currently a Senior Software Developer, who previous did a lot of Capital Project Delivery as an Engineer before going back to school for Computer Science. There are a few open roles at GOOG/MSFT that I am interested in and am wondering if there is anyone that can connect or refer me to the right person trying to fill those roles? Total Comp: Not Enough ; ) #google #programmanager #programmanageratgoogle #referral #microsoft
Engineer turned PM here. Ever heard of the term “strategy” , business trade off,etc? How you are treated would depend on the skills you bring to the table. I have worked with some of the great organisations as an engineer and then transitioned to PM and I have no regrets. It’s true that entry level engineers at times have that notion of superiority over PMs as they are doing “technical” work but that doesn’t define the role. At the end of the day it’s your career and your decision to make where you want to go. Not sure why Satya and Sundar took this route if this was such a bad role.
Yea my take on it is a good PM can be a force multiplier and a bad one can just be like a kid on a road trip asking are we there yet.
Dm for referral if needed
In any world, converting from an SWE to a PM is not viable as the assumption here is the skills are transferrable and the major casual effect of mismanaging. A true PM understand the concept of Project, Program, Process and Policy management which a SWE has not idea on how to PM manage but tech companies seem to think this is a plausible step forward when things are going well. This is the same diff between a leader and a manager. A leader understands how and what to do when things go south while a manager is assigned and flourishes during non-volatile times but chocks during volitive times due to the lack of experience. Wake Up!
A good PM would know how to build a product strategy and covert that into a product roadmap and then specific deliverables via SCRUM/Agile workflow methodology. I doubt any SWE transitioning into the PM field knows how to do that and the assumption is that it's an easy transition to make [good luck]. This is possible but not the best way to get the best benefit for the org/company due to the lack of knowledge, but it happens all the time.
How to setup meeting invites 😅😅😅