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A Day in the Life of Google’s IT Residents
September 25, 2013
Ever wondered what it's like to provide IT support to one of the world's largest tech companies? Read on for a look into a day in the lives of two of Google’s
Information Technology Residents
, Jesus Lugo and Lisa Mauck. These IT ninjas have been trotting the globe to provide Googlers with exceptional IT support.
Hi there! My name is Jesus Lugo and I was born in Ciudad Ojeda, Venezuela, and moved to the US when I was 10 years old. I joined the Marine Corp after high school and received my associate’s degree from Miami Dade College and my bachelor’s degree from Florida International University after finishing my active duty service. Before joining the IT Residency Program, I worked as a remote services technician and as a customer engineer. At Google, I spend most days working at a Techstop in Mountain View, CA, where Googlers go for technical assistance. We're committed to solving any issue that comes our way - troubleshooting laptops, phones, desktops - and getting Googlers back to work as quickly as possible. I recently traveled to Dublin, Ireland, for my three-month IT rotation. Check out a day in my life while on assignment abroad:
Here I am, at the Techstop in Google’s Dublin office. I’m working on a project to customize a mini computer for Googlers to badge-in to Techstops, which reduces setup time and the cost of the hardware. These units are also slightly bigger than a deck of cards, have wifi, and can be run from a battery, so they can be mounted anywhere. It’s cool to work on a project that has an impact on my team’s workload and physical space.
Dublin has hosted a number of IT Residents over the past few years. They held a welcome event when I arrived, which included a walking tour of this historic city.
Each Techstop is different. This one in Dublin has a variety of “amenities” that make it unique - from its psychedelic decor to its impressive collection of Lego creations, including Pac Man, Zelda's Link, and a set of Imperial Star Destroyers. The layout also allows for all the techs to face each other to further promote collaboration.
While on rotation in Dublin, I was afforded the opportunity to travel to other offices in Europe to provide remote support. I got to visit Prague, the Czech Republic, and Wroclaw, Poland. Touring the Prague Castle was a definite highlight!
Check out this rest and relaxation room in Google’s Prague office. These spots can be found at nearly all Google offices and are loaded with books, video game consoles, arcades, and musical instruments. Most of the Googlers in this office can play an instrument seen here. They even have their own band!
Engineering at Google takes many forms. Here, I’m engineering a stand for a hoola hoop in preparation for our challenge in the Engineering Crawl Event. The event consists of mini challenges created by the different engineering teams in Dublin, like: trace-routing your way across the world; achieving the highest score in Donkey Kong; making the best tinfoil hat; building the tallest tower out of toothpicks and blue tack; and our very own Helicopter Lego Obstacle Course!
This small cache of plastic weapons is often used as a team-building activity. We split all participants into color-coded teams and break into an all-out war. After the battle is over, we usually clean up the dart mess over pizza or barbecue and refreshments.
**
Hey students! My name is Lisa Mauck and I‘m from a small town in Michigan where there’s exactly one stop light. Relocating to Ann Arbor for the IT Residency Program was a big culture shock (in a good way!). Prior to Google, I received my bachelor’s degree from the ITT Technical Institute, and worked for a small software company as an IT technician/project coordinator. Working at Google has been an amazing experience! I’ve had the opportunity to travel to Sydney, Australia, for three weeks to work with Google’s IT team there. By far, the best perk at Google is the great people that I get to work with - from my colleagues in Sydney to those in Ann Arbor, Mountain View, and NYC. We all share a passion for working with the latest technologies and helping our end users. I hope that you enjoy some snapshots of my adventures - domestic and abroad!
That’s me! I’m at my desk in Ann Arbor, working with the team to support Googlers worldwide. I typically start my day by updating any open tickets and keeping an eye out for urgent requests. Then I check in on which role I’m assigned to that day: chats, tickets, phone, quality assurance, or projects. I love the variability of the role - it keeps things exciting!
We like to test our flying abilities when we aren’t busy
having a nerf fight
assisting users! You get kudos on our team if you can keep the helicopter from crash landing.
Meet some more members of the IT Residency team in Ann Arbor! We typically spend our lunches together, which makes us feel like a family. Once a week, we also attend a CCNA class together that my team in Ann Arbor started. We’re hoping to become CCNA certified.
The Google patio is pretty iconic. I tend to come out here a lot when I’m doing project-based work. Currently, I’m “dogfooding” Google’s different remote tools by comparing how they work across platforms. I then document my findings and communicate them to the appropriate teams.
Outside of providing exceptional service to Googlers, the team also arranges what we call “Jedi talks.” A few times a month, we schedule a talk led by an IT Resident about a subject that they’re knowledgeable in. Similarly, other teams deliver monthly tech talks to our team. I try to take advantage of a lot of these opportunities at Google for peer learning.
Check out this view from the office that I’m working at in Sydney, Australia, overlooking the harbour. Team members here take turns rotating weekly into the Techstop to handle in-person support issues. We also benefit from sitting close by the Google+ software engineers and the gTech team, who help us work through more escalated cases.
The view from inside isn’t so bad either! At the Google Sydney office, they bring the sea life to you! Okay, back to work - the tickets in my queue need some attention, too! :)
If you’re also a techie at heart, who loves to play, tinker, break and fix, then consider applying for Google’s Information Technology Residency Program! Check out
this video
to learn more about the role. Seniors with at least one year of IT support experience are encouraged to apply at:
google.com/jobs/students/ITRP
.
Posted by Natalie Van Kleef, Tech Student Engagement team
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