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My Summer @ Google: A unique challenge opens the doors for one Tokyo intern
September 19, 2012
Introduction: Today we're featuring Yamato Kaneko, an intern from our Tokyo office who was given a unique task at the beginning of his internship. Read on to discover what he learned through the process.
The team I've been working on this summer is the Google Technical Services (gTech) team. I was specifically in charge of managing and supporting Google Shopping partners (e-commerce businesses) and Google Books partners (authors and publishers). While I’ve learned a lot from the projects with Shopping and Books team, today I’d like to share my awesome lunch-time-side-project at Google Japan.
When I showed up for my first week, I needed to set up objectives and key results, which we call OKRs, for my internship. Besides the participation in ongoing projects of Google products, my mentor and I added one more OKR: Set up one-on-one meetings with 20 Googlers in 8 weeks and get to know what they do at Google and what they have done before Google.
First, I started talking to Googlers in my team. Although I’ve met them at regular team meetings, we didn’t really have a chance to talk. The one-on-one meetings worked out really well as an icebreaker, and the communication went much more smoothly after the chat.
As I got to know Googlers around my desk, I started reaching out to Googlers in different teams, including Business Development, Marketing, Partner Solutions, Product Management, Software Engineering and so on. Each of these functions manages different products from Search, Maps, Books, Shopping, Ads, to YouTube. Asking hundreds of questions to various teams, I got to know how this company works with different functions and people with various skills and experiences.
It was amazing to see how diverse career paths they have taken before coming to Google. I met a Strategic Partner Development Manager who joined Google Books team from the publishing industry, and a Product Manager who was a consultant at McKinsey. One Googler was a photographer traveling around the battlefields in the Middle East. Another Googler studied films and media in college and joined YouTube to work with creators.
Another thing impressed me was that none of Googlers I contacted declined my meeting requests. Here at Google, there is a term called “Googleyness.” Googley people are creative, passionate about their work, and communicate openly. They are willing to roll up their sleeves to help others and get things done. Everyone of the 22 Googlers I’ve met was truly Googley and helped me to exceed the expectations of this project.
I think the success of this project is also partly because of the Google cafeteria, which allows me to make a meeting into a lunch. Without this great perk that encourages interactions between Googlers, it may not have been possible to set up as many meetings as I have. Coffee breaks at micro-kitchens and events like TGIF were also very helpful to make a casual chat with Googlers I met for the first time. Larry and Sergey must have known what was needed for effective communication, and that’s why they invested in the food facilities.
I spent my summer interacting and learning from more Googlers than I ever imagined. I think I'm ready for the next stage in my career where I can start building my own unique story.
Posted by Yamato Kaneko, Intern, Google Japan
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