Google’s engineering culture

The podcast explores Google's unique engineering culture, contrasting it with other tech giants. It highlights Google's custom-built tech stack, born from early needs for global scale and automation, leading to innovations like the SRE role and Borg orchestration. The discussion covers Google's perks, compensation, and on-call policies, portraying a unique environment, while also acknowledging the "tech island" effect and promotion-driven development. The podcast also addresses Google's open-source contributions, internal mobility, and the shift in culture due to layoffs and changing business priorities. Ultimately, it examines Google's success, its unique approach to engineering, and the trade-offs inherent in its scale and structure.

Outlines

Part 1: Scale, Revenue, and Global Presence

Part 2: Internal Infrastructure and Tooling

Part 3: Compensation, Roles, and Career Path

Part 4: Performance Management and Promotion

Part 5: Culture, Innovation, and Communication

Part 6: Business Strategy and Market Position

Part 7: Evolution, Challenges, and Final Advice

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The Pragmatic Engineer

Part 1: Scale, Revenue, and Global Presence

Unveiling Google's Engineering Culture: Tech Stack, Roles, and Evolution

Google's Massive Scale: Employee Count, User Base, and Global Presence

Google's Engineering Hubs, Hiring Practices, and Revenue Model

Part 2: Internal Infrastructure and Tooling

Google's Profitability, Engineering Culture, and Pioneering Data Tools

Statsig's Data Tools and Google's Custom Infrastructure: Borg, Kubernetes, and SRE

Google's Data Centers, SRE Approach, and Unique Hiring Practices

Google's Custom Networking, File System, and Database Solutions

Google's Data Backups, Speed Obsession, and Linear as a Project Management Tool

Google's Custom Systems: Piper, Critique, CodeSearch, Bugganyzer, and Taskflow

Google as a Tech Island: Custom Infrastructure, Onboarding Challenges, and Migrations

Part 3: Compensation, Roles, and Career Path

Google's Perks: Offices, Micro Kitchens, Decor, and Compensation Packages

Google's On-Call System, SRE Organization, and Unique Roles

Google's Engineering Levels, Tech Lead Managers, and PhD Hiring

Part 4: Performance Management and Promotion

Google's Performance Reviews: GRAD System, Feedback, and Strategic Considerations

Google's Performance Scores, Impact Metrics, and Calibration Meetings

Google's Mentorship Programs, Readability, and Code Review Process

Google's Promotion Committee, Promotion-Driven Development, and Killed by Google

Part 5: Culture, Innovation, and Communication

Google's Culture of Creativity, Innovation, and Engineering-Driven Approach

Google's Googliness, Teamwork, and Understanding Software Teams

Google's OKRs: Objectives, Key Results, and Communication

Google's Open Communication, TGIF Meetings, and Organizational Structure

Google's Unique Aspects: Re-Googlers, Googliness, and Customer Focus

Part 6: Business Strategy and Market Position

Google Cloud's Challenges and Google's Internal Infrastructure

Google's Trade-Offs, Internal Mobility, and Singleton Concept

Google's Non-Stop Rewrites, Open Source Contributions, and Kubernetes

Part 7: Evolution, Challenges, and Final Advice

Google's Culture Shift, Transparency, and Competition

Google's Prioritization of Profits and the Importance of Understanding the Business

Google's Power, Design, and the Changing Landscape

Who Fits at Google, Pedigree, and Networking

Google's Team Matching, Interview Process, and Final Thoughts

Google’s engineering culture

The Pragmatic Engineer

Part 1: Scale, Revenue, and Global Presence

00:00Unveiling Google's Engineering Culture: Tech Stack, Roles, and Evolution

Unveiling Google's Engineering Culture: Tech Stack, Roles, and Evolution

00:50Google's Massive Scale: Employee Count, User Base, and Global Presence

Google's Massive Scale: Employee Count, User Base, and Global Presence

05:36Google's Engineering Hubs, Hiring Practices, and Revenue Model

Google's Engineering Hubs, Hiring Practices, and Revenue Model

Part 2: Internal Infrastructure and Tooling

10:10Google's Profitability, Engineering Culture, and Pioneering Data Tools

Google's Profitability, Engineering Culture, and Pioneering Data Tools

15:21Statsig's Data Tools and Google's Custom Infrastructure: Borg, Kubernetes, and SRE

Statsig's Data Tools and Google's Custom Infrastructure: Borg, Kubernetes, and SRE

20:23Google's Data Centers, SRE Approach, and Unique Hiring Practices

Google's Data Centers, SRE Approach, and Unique Hiring Practices

25:26Google's Custom Networking, File System, and Database Solutions

Google's Custom Networking, File System, and Database Solutions

30:35Google's Data Backups, Speed Obsession, and Linear as a Project Management Tool

Google's Data Backups, Speed Obsession, and Linear as a Project Management Tool

34:30Google's Custom Systems: Piper, Critique, CodeSearch, Bugganyzer, and Taskflow

Google's Custom Systems: Piper, Critique, CodeSearch, Bugganyzer, and Taskflow

40:02Google as a Tech Island: Custom Infrastructure, Onboarding Challenges, and Migrations

Google as a Tech Island: Custom Infrastructure, Onboarding Challenges, and Migrations

Part 3: Compensation, Roles, and Career Path

45:00Google's Perks: Offices, Micro Kitchens, Decor, and Compensation Packages

Google's Perks: Offices, Micro Kitchens, Decor, and Compensation Packages

51:53Google's On-Call System, SRE Organization, and Unique Roles

Google's On-Call System, SRE Organization, and Unique Roles

57:38Google's Engineering Levels, Tech Lead Managers, and PhD Hiring

Google's Engineering Levels, Tech Lead Managers, and PhD Hiring

Part 4: Performance Management and Promotion

1:02:30Google's Performance Reviews: GRAD System, Feedback, and Strategic Considerations

Google's Performance Reviews: GRAD System, Feedback, and Strategic Considerations

1:07:33Google's Performance Scores, Impact Metrics, and Calibration Meetings

Google's Performance Scores, Impact Metrics, and Calibration Meetings

1:11:28Google's Mentorship Programs, Readability, and Code Review Process

Google's Mentorship Programs, Readability, and Code Review Process

1:15:51Google's Promotion Committee, Promotion-Driven Development, and Killed by Google

Google's Promotion Committee, Promotion-Driven Development, and Killed by Google

Part 5: Culture, Innovation, and Communication

1:22:22Google's Culture of Creativity, Innovation, and Engineering-Driven Approach

Google's Culture of Creativity, Innovation, and Engineering-Driven Approach

1:27:04Google's Googliness, Teamwork, and Understanding Software Teams

Google's Googliness, Teamwork, and Understanding Software Teams

1:31:21Google's OKRs: Objectives, Key Results, and Communication

Google's OKRs: Objectives, Key Results, and Communication

1:37:40Google's Open Communication, TGIF Meetings, and Organizational Structure

Google's Open Communication, TGIF Meetings, and Organizational Structure

1:44:43Google's Unique Aspects: Re-Googlers, Googliness, and Customer Focus

Google's Unique Aspects: Re-Googlers, Googliness, and Customer Focus

Part 6: Business Strategy and Market Position

1:52:27Google Cloud's Challenges and Google's Internal Infrastructure

Google Cloud's Challenges and Google's Internal Infrastructure

2:00:21Google's Trade-Offs, Internal Mobility, and Singleton Concept

Google's Trade-Offs, Internal Mobility, and Singleton Concept

2:07:09Google's Non-Stop Rewrites, Open Source Contributions, and Kubernetes

Google's Non-Stop Rewrites, Open Source Contributions, and Kubernetes

Part 7: Evolution, Challenges, and Final Advice

2:14:46Google's Culture Shift, Transparency, and Competition

Google's Culture Shift, Transparency, and Competition

2:20:22Google's Prioritization of Profits and the Importance of Understanding the Business

Google's Prioritization of Profits and the Importance of Understanding the Business

2:26:42Google's Power, Design, and the Changing Landscape

Google's Power, Design, and the Changing Landscape

2:31:21Who Fits at Google, Pedigree, and Networking

Who Fits at Google, Pedigree, and Networking

2:38:04Google's Team Matching, Interview Process, and Final Thoughts

Google's Team Matching, Interview Process, and Final Thoughts