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newssplashy · 6 years ago

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Tech: Here's where Google's first 21 employees are now (GOOG, GOOGL)

Out of Google's first 21 employees, only six still work for the search giant. Among them: Susan Wojcicki, Urs Hölzle, Sergey Brin, and Larry Page. The rest have moved on to angel investing, philanthropy, and for many, lives of luxury.

Only six of Google's earliest employees still work at the internet giant — and that includes founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Some early Google employees have gone on to become entrepreneurs, while others are now angel investors, and a lucky few have gone on to become top executives at other tech companies. A few are happily retired.

In 2015, a Quora user compiled a list of all the original Googlers and where there careers have taken them. Only six of the original 21 are still at the company, which reorganized to become Alphabet almost three years ago.

Here is what's become of the first 21 employees since launching their careers at Google.

Jillian D'Onfro and Alyson Shontell contributed to previous versions of this article.

21. Marissa Mayer joined Google as a software engineer, then became CEO of Yahoo.

Employed by Google: June 1999 to July 2012

Most recent position at Google: VP of local, maps, and location services

Current company/position: Mayer served as CEO of Yahoo from July 2012 until June 2017, leaving the company after the completion of Yahoo's sale to Verizon. These days, Mayer is keeping a low profile, although she recently said she's started working on her next tech venture and has rented out Google's old office, the place she started her career in 1999.

20. Kendra DiGirolamo joined Google as an ad sales coordinator and left three years before the company went public. Now she's at Driscoll's.

Employed by Google: June 1999 to May 2001

Most recent position at Google: Advertising sales coordinator

Current company/position: DiGirolamo currently works as a senior business systems analyst at Driscoll's, a family-owned berry farming company.

19. Larry Schwimmer was an early software engineer at Google. He introduced Snippets, a productivity system, to help Google manage employees during the company's explosive growth period. He also drove the launch of Google Moon, a Google Earth-like service that shows satellite photos of the moon.

Employed by Google: 1999 to at least 2005 (unknown)

Most recent position at Google: Software engineer

Current company/position: Unknown.

18. Jim Reese was an engineer at Google. He was once knocked out by a 200-pound metal beam in a data center that Google was leasing.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2005

Most recent position at Google: Chief operations engineer (and "Head Neurosurgeon" — he was a physician before coming to Google, and jokes on his LinkedIn that he performed frontal lobotomies at the search giant on Thursday mornings only).

Current company/position: Reese currently serves as a board member for Spark Program — a career exploration program for middle schoolers — as well as an advisory board member of Harvard Medical School's Department of Biomedical Informatics.

17. Gerald Aigner was brought in to manage Google's supply costs. Now, he's in London working as an "internet professional."

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2006

Most recent position at Google: Aigner was a member of Google's senior staff, according to his LinkedIn page. Specifically, he was in charge of the data center and internet/leased line negotiations, hardware design and purchasing, hardware and network monitoring, and performance optimizations. Aigner also founded Google's Zurich office in 2004.

Current company/position: Aigner lists himself on his LinkedIn profile as an "independent internet professional" based in London. He is also listed as an adviser for Maxeler Technologies, a London-based computer support company for which he is "exploring renewable energy and wireless technologies."

16. Susan Wojcicki is still at Google. She became the CEO of YouTube in 2014.

Employed by Google: April 1999 to present

Wojcicki was Google's 16th employee, and she followed Google's ninth employee, Salar Kamangar, as YouTube's CEO. In 1998, before Wojcicki even started working for the company, she and her husband rented out their garage and several rooms to the fledgling Google team for $1,700 a month.

Current position at Google: CEO of YouTube since early 2014. Before that, she was SVP of products and commerce, then SVP of YouTube.

15. Joan Braddi runs product partnerships for Google.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

Braddi is Google's vice president of product partnerships and serves on the board of the biochemistry startup Profusa.

Current position at Google: Braddi previously served as vice president of search services at Google; now she's vice president of product partnerships.

14. Chris Skarakis led Google's business development until May 2005. He has since founded Blip.fm.

Employed by Google: May 1999 to May 2005

Most recent position at Google: Director of business development

Current Company/Position: Skarakis is the founder of Blip.fm, and also cofounded Fuzz Artists and served as its executive vice president. Skarakis serves on the board of directors for Friends of the Palo Alto Junior Museum and Little Kids Rock. He was formerly on the board of directors for the Kanye West Foundation, which shut down in 2011.

13. Rachael Chambers left her job at Netscape to join Google as an executive assistant in May 1999.

Employed by Google: May 1999 to October 2000

Most recent position at Google: Chambers was hired as an executive assistant, and left as an ad sales coordinator.

Current company/position: Chambers serves as a strategy and planning manager at Cisco. Prior to that, she was a program manager for Cisco on Cisco Customer Strategy and Success.

12. Steve Schimmel also did business development for Google and was the company's 13th employee.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2004

Most recent position at Google: Business development

Current Company/Position: Schimmel now does some angel investing. His startup investments include HireAthena, Crowdrise, Roozt, and Guide. He also sits on the board of Airspace Systems, a venture-backed startup that makes specialized drones.

11. Omid Kordestani worked at Google for nearly 16 years before leaving to join Twitter.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to August 2015

Most recent position at Google: Chief Business Officer and senior adviser

Current company/position: Kordestani left Google in October 2015 to join Twitter as executive chairman. He bought nearly $2 million worth of Twitter stock in 2016.

10. Salar Kamangar used to be CEO of YouTube.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

Kamangar served as CEO of YouTube until February 2014, when he stepped down, supposedly in favor of finding a new challenge at Google. Susan Wojcicki took his place.

Current position at Google: SVP of products for YouTube.

9. Georges Harik joined Google as a software engineer, and was one of three members on Google's initial engineering hiring committee.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2005

Most recent position at Google: Harik most recently served as product management director. Harik was one of Google's first 10 employees and was responsible for product and strategy around Gmail, Google Talk, Google Video, Picasa, and more. He was also behind AdSense and the AdWords Online system and was the director of Googlettes, a start-up incubator inside Google.

Current company/position: Harik is now a cofounder of messaging app imo.im, cofounder of hslabs, and an angel investor. He also previously served as an adviser to GV, Alphabet's venture capital arm.

8. Urs Hölzle has been at Google for almost 20 years.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

Current position at Google: Hölzle is SVP of technical infrastructure, which means he oversees the design, installation, and operation of Google's servers, networks, and data centers. Before he joined Google in 1999, Holzle was a computer science professor at the UC Santa Barbara.

7. Amit Patel was a top Google engineer and helped come up with Google's unofficial slogan, "Don't Be Evil."

Employed by Google: 1999 to unknown

Most recent position at Google: Though we couldn't find Patel's most recent title, Steven Levy's book "In The Plex" offers some interesting details about him. Patel was instrumental in highlighting the value of Google's search logs. He also asked Eric Schmidt if he could share his office, shortly after Schmidt had joined the company as CEO (Schmidt said yes because he thought it would be "un-Googley" to say no).

Current Company/Position: Unknown.

6. Harry Cheung was an original Google engineer.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to December 2004

Most recent position at Google: Cheung served as a software engineer at Google. His nickname used to be Harry "Spider-Man" Cheung because he was a "crawl" engineer, monitoring the progress of Google's "spiders" as they indexed the web.

Current company/position: These days, Cheung is an angel investor in startups including Caviar, Qwiki, Badgeville, and PrePay. He's also a founder at Roostify, a home-lending startup.

5. Ray Sidney was a software engineer at Google — he left 18 months before the IPO.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to March 2003 (he left about 18 months before the IPO, which made him quite wealthy).

Most recent position at Google: Software engineer

Current company/position: Sidney is the co-owner of The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain as well as Big George Ventures, a sustainable real-estate developer. He's also a triathlete and an amateur pilot, and he once donated $1 million to help launch a public bus service near Lake Tahoe, according to CNET.

4. Heather Cairns was an HR manager at Google.

Employed by Google: 1998 to 2005

Most recent position at Google: Cairns was an HR manager who hired Google's first 200 employees.

Current company/position: Cairns was previously an angel investor who provided funding for women-led companies that are pursuing social ventures. Her LinkedIn now lists her as the president of Coastal Streets, a small real-estate development company in Massachusetts.

3. Craig Silverstein was Larry Page and Sergey Brin's first hire.

Employed by Google: 1998 to 2012

Most recent position at Google: Silverstein worked on various projects, including mentoring engineers and serving as technology director. As Google's third employee, he helped actually build the search engine.

Current company/position: Silverstein now serves as dean of infrastructure at Khan Academy.

2. Sergey Brin is the cofounder of Google and serves as the president of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

Employed by Google: 1998 to present

Current position at Google: Besides any cofounder duties, Sergey Brin was overseeing Google X, the company's "moonshot factory," until Google's reorganization in August 2015. Now, Brin is president of Alphabet, Google's parent company.

1. Larry Page is the cofounder of Google and the CEO of Alphabet.

Employed by Google: 1998 to present

Current position at Google: Page helped found Google. After Google's reorganization, Page became CEO of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

source https://www.newssplashy.com/2018/06/tech-heres-where-googles-first-21_26.html

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newssplashy · 6 years ago

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Tech: Here's where Google's first 21 employees are now (GOOG, GOOGL)

Only six of Google's earliest employees still work at the internet giant — and that includes founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Here is what's become of the first 21 employees since launching their careers at Google.

Jillian D'Onfro and Alyson Shontell contributed to previous versions of this article.

21. Marissa Mayer joined Google as a software engineer, then became CEO of Yahoo.

Employed by Google: June 1999 to July 2012

Most recent position at Google: VP of local, maps, and location services

20. Kendra DiGirolamo joined Google as an ad sales coordinator and left three years before the company went public. Now she's at Driscoll's.

Employed by Google: June 1999 to May 2001

Most recent position at Google: Advertising sales coordinator

Current company/position: DiGirolamo currently works as a senior business systems analyst at Driscoll's, a family-owned berry farming company.

Employed by Google: 1999 to at least 2005 (unknown)

Most recent position at Google: Software engineer

Current company/position: Unknown.

18. Jim Reese was an engineer at Google. He was once knocked out by a 200-pound metal beam in a data center that Google was leasing.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2005

17. Gerald Aigner was brought in to manage Google's supply costs. Now, he's in London working as an "internet professional."

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2006

16. Susan Wojcicki is still at Google. She became the CEO of YouTube in 2014.

Employed by Google: April 1999 to present

Current position at Google: CEO of YouTube since early 2014. Before that, she was SVP of products and commerce, then SVP of YouTube.

15. Joan Braddi runs product partnerships for Google.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

Braddi is Google's vice president of product partnerships and serves on the board of the biochemistry startup Profusa.

Current position at Google: Braddi previously served as vice president of search services at Google; now she's vice president of product partnerships.

14. Chris Skarakis led Google's business development until May 2005. He has since founded Blip.fm.

Employed by Google: May 1999 to May 2005

Most recent position at Google: Director of business development

13. Rachael Chambers left her job at Netscape to join Google as an executive assistant in May 1999.

Employed by Google: May 1999 to October 2000

Most recent position at Google: Chambers was hired as an executive assistant, and left as an ad sales coordinator.

Current company/position: Chambers serves as a strategy and planning manager at Cisco. Prior to that, she was a program manager for Cisco on Cisco Customer Strategy and Success.

12. Steve Schimmel also did business development for Google and was the company's 13th employee.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2004

Most recent position at Google: Business development

11. Omid Kordestani worked at Google for nearly 16 years before leaving to join Twitter.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to August 2015

Most recent position at Google: Chief Business Officer and senior adviser

Current company/position: Kordestani left Google in October 2015 to join Twitter as executive chairman. He bought nearly $2 million worth of Twitter stock in 2016.

10. Salar Kamangar used to be CEO of YouTube.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

Kamangar served as CEO of YouTube until February 2014, when he stepped down, supposedly in favor of finding a new challenge at Google. Susan Wojcicki took his place.

Current position at Google: SVP of products for YouTube.

9. Georges Harik joined Google as a software engineer, and was one of three members on Google's initial engineering hiring committee.

Employed by Google: 1999 to 2005

Current company/position: Harik is now a cofounder of messaging app imo.im, cofounder of hslabs, and an angel investor. He also previously served as an adviser to GV, Alphabet's venture capital arm.

8. Urs Hölzle has been at Google for almost 20 years.

Employed by Google: 1999 to present

7. Amit Patel was a top Google engineer and helped come up with Google's unofficial slogan, "Don't Be Evil."

Employed by Google: 1999 to unknown

Current Company/Position: Unknown.

6. Harry Cheung was an original Google engineer.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to December 2004

Current company/position: These days, Cheung is an angel investor in startups including Caviar, Qwiki, Badgeville, and PrePay. He's also a founder at Roostify, a home-lending startup.

5. Ray Sidney was a software engineer at Google — he left 18 months before the IPO.

Employed by Google: January 1999 to March 2003 (he left about 18 months before the IPO, which made him quite wealthy).

Most recent position at Google: Software engineer

4. Heather Cairns was an HR manager at Google.

Employed by Google: 1998 to 2005

Most recent position at Google: Cairns was an HR manager who hired Google's first 200 employees.

3. Craig Silverstein was Larry Page and Sergey Brin's first hire.

Employed by Google: 1998 to 2012

Current company/position: Silverstein now serves as dean of infrastructure at Khan Academy.

2. Sergey Brin is the cofounder of Google and serves as the president of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

Employed by Google: 1998 to present

1. Larry Page is the cofounder of Google and the CEO of Alphabet.

Employed by Google: 1998 to present

Current position at Google: Page helped found Google. After Google's reorganization, Page became CEO of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

source https://www.newssplashy.com/2018/06/tech-heres-where-googles-first-21.html

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newssplashy · 7 years ago

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Strategy: 15 insider facts about working at Walt Disney World only cast members know

Walt Disney World cast members learn a few things you might not know about working in "the most magical place on Earth." Here's a look at some park secrets that you may not have heard about before.

• Walt Disney World employees are all referred to as "cast members."

• This includes everyone from the costumed character performers to the ride operators to the people working in retail.

• The park also reflects a show business-like environment by requiring cast members to stay "in character" while in the presence of guests.

Walt Disney World has a rep for being the "most magical place on Earth."

But what's it really like to be one of the people responsible for making the magic happen?

Walt Disney World employs 70,000 "cast members" — the term the company uses to refer to all employees. They all help to run a world-famous park that attracted a record 68 million visitors to Orlando in 2016, according to The Orlando Sentinel.

It's fair to say that these thousands of cast members come to learn a number of secrets about the park that the rest of us tourists might miss.

Business Insider spoke with a number of former Walt Disney World cast members, as well as authors who've written extensively about the park.

Here's what they had to say about the secrets of working at Walt Disney World:

You learn quickly that it's all about the guests

The guest experience is everything at Disney. That's drilled into you from day one.

Former Disney College Cast program attendee and "Devin Earns Her Ears: My Secret Walt Disney World Cast Member Diary" author Devin Melendy told Business Insider that, even though her job consisted of working in retail in Frontierland, she was encouraged not to stand behind the register whenever possible.

Instead, cast members are directed to spread some magic by passing out stickers, fast passes, birthday pins, and free bags and shirts.

Mike Fox, author of "The Hidden Secrets & Stories of Walt Disney World," "Disneyland Details: The Magical Hidden Secrets & Story Elements of Disneyland," and "Disneyland In-Depth" and founder of the site Disney-Secrets.com, told Business Insider that a "deep commitment to the guest experience" is "instilled within the company.

"So it always impresses me, especially at the cast member level, the training that goes into helping these folks to provide that superior experience and to see it out on stage and see it executed," he said.

Name tags are an absolute must — even if you're using an alias

Melendy said it's considered "bad show" for a cast members to not wear a name tag. But if you lose your tag, no worries. There's a whole stockpile of gender neutral names like Chris, Sam, and Pat to choose from.

"I lost my first name tag, so I was Chris from New York for two weeks while I waited for my new one," Melendy told Business Insider.

"It's a major deal if you don't have one," Chantelle Judd, a former cast member who worked in Frontierland, told Business Insider. "If this happens — it's easy to forget sometimes — you have to make sure you can borrow one — costuming has spares."

If you want to play a Disney character, you'd better be good at charades

Melendy said she auditioned to become a costumed character but ultimately didn't make the cut. She said that these performers must go through loads of auditions and costume fittings in order to land the role.

People who are good at improvising have a leg up. During the process, you're asked to pantomime activities, like making a sandwich and washing a dog.

"You were supposed to make these gestures big and dramatic, because if you're in a costume you have to parlay what you're saying without saying anything," she said.

You've got to be careful about how you point

In some cultures, pointing your finger is considered quite rude.

"They do tell you that, if you're giving directions, to point with two fingers or your whole hand extended out as if you're gonna shake someone's hand," Melendy said.

If the guests can see you, you're technically 'onstage'

The terms "onstage" and "backstage" don't just apply to performers at Walt Disney World.

"Even just being in the stores, they called that onstage," Melendy said. "If you're in the computer room or back office, that's backstage."

And all cast members, from the person dressed as Mickey Mouse to the person working the register at one of the park's gift shops, must stay "in character" onstage.

"That would mean that your costume is correct, your name tag is on, and your pin lanyard is on — we would trade pins with guests," she said. "They very much stressed that this is an experience. It's not your experience, it's the guest's experience. You have to provide the best show that you can. It's stepping into a role."

Fox said that, for cast members, talking about your personal life and arguing is not an option. Anything that will "break the spell" of the Disney experience, so to speak, is out.

"When you're talking to Cinderella, and say, 'Hey, let me take a picture of you on my iPhone,' and she says, 'What is an iPhone?' — she's playing a role and her job is to maintain that role, to maintain that entertainment, maintain that story," Fox said.

He said that passageways to Disney's "backstage" are often marked with a broad yellow line.

"What those lines mean is that, if you were a cast member, anytime you step past that line, you are visible to the guests and you must be onstage," he said.

You get to see the park totally deserted on a regular basis

Cast members don't just pack up and head out for the day when all the guests depart. Melendy said her shift would typically end an hour or two after the park closed.

That meant getting a glimpse of a deserted Walt Disney World.

"It's kind of spooky because you're just so used to seeing it full," Melendy said. "Most of the time they keep the music on, so it's not completely creepy."

You can't just run around the park

Cast members can't just take a walk around the park when they're working.

This policy may have stemmed from something Walt Disney himself saw in Disneyland. Reportedly, the founder noticed a Frontierland cowboy taking a stroll through Tomorrowland.

"For Walt, it was all about the story," Fox said. "To see a cowboy from Frontierland in Tomorrowland, it just ruins the story."

As a result, cast members use hidden tunnels beneath the park to get around

While some reports indicate that there's a whole underground, cast-members-only tangle of passageways beneath Walt Disney World, the reality is a little less mysterious.

The underground "utilidors" serve to allow cast members to move about the Magic Kingdom and Epcot unseen. According to Fox, Disneyland also features a smaller system of utilidors. The ones constructed in Walt Disney World were built at ground level, to avoid the area's high water table. The whole park is actually built around 14 feet above ground level.

"The utiladors provide utility," Fox said. "They're an excellent business tools. It's nothing that Disney's trying to hide from people, it's just a very efficient tool for maintaining the story."

Fox said that cast members sometimes cycle or take small carts to navigate the underground passages, which also include large pipes through which trash is moved.

Melendy said that cast members can break from character once they're in the utilidors and out of sight.

"You see different character performers with their wigs off, but their costumes on," she said. "You see a mix of all the people from around the park."

She didn't spend much time in the passageways, however, as she worked in Frontierland and it proved to be a bit of a walk.

Cast members also get access to hidden cafeterias, changing rooms, and even a salon

Along with the tunnels, cast members have access to underground cafeterias, dressing rooms, and even a salon called Kingdom Kutters.

"Some cast members also have access to a trailer or a room in a building in the backstage area," Susan Veness, author of "The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World" series, told Business Insider.

She and her husband Simon once got a firsthand glimpse of a trailer when they visited a former performer at Epcot's American Music Machine attraction for an interview.

"It was fairly basic, with tables and chairs they could use during meals, and a little sitting area, plus a few small rooms, including a room with mirrors where they could do their makeup and hair," she said.

There are a number of other hidden spots around the park

Even beyond the hidden tunnels, there's more to Disney World than meets the eye. According to Veness, VIP lounges dot the park — especially in Epcot.

"Some of them are open to guests who work at the company that sponsors the attraction they're attached to, some of them are open to Make-A-Wish kids and their families, some welcome certain card holders, such as the Disney Visa card, and some of them are used for media events or private functions," she said.

Veness and her husband have visited several of the lounges, including one in the old Wonders of Life attraction. She said that Spaceship Earth, Test Track, Mission: Space, and the American Adventure all have hidden lounges, although some may have closed. There's even a private safari camp in Disney's Animal Kingdom.

According to Veness, taking a behind-the-scenes tour is a good option for anyone who's dying to get a backstage look at the park.

If you get a gig at Disney World, you'll start noticing things that others don't

When it comes to all things Disney, cast members often become experts over the years. That means knowing all about some of the park's subtle Easter eggs.

"Many of them, especially the long-time cast members, have an encyclopedic knowledge of their attraction's details," Veness said. "Many cast members know at least one or two hidden details, but some go above and beyond."

"When you look at the parks, look at the little details, those make a huge difference, too," Fox said.

Veness said she's even met Disney cast members at the American Adventure in Epcot who spent years researching the details of the attraction.

So if you end up striking up a conversation with a cast member, make sure to ask about any cool hidden details in the park.

It's not all fun and games at the most magical place on earth

One former cast member who operated rides like The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and The Mad Tea Party said that the role wasn't all fun and games.

"A lot of people thought I played all day and didn't actually do anything, but I can tell you that's definitely not the case," the cast member told Business Insider. "While it's great to have fun while working, there was certainly a lot of hard work involved."

"Working at Disney isn't magical all the time," Meghan O'Neill, a former Disney cast member who worked in Future World in Epcot, told Business Insider. "You work long hours in all types of weather dealing with guests who have high expectations."

The parks take clean-up seriously

"There are bins meticulously placed all around the parks to limit the amount of rubbish people leave behind," Judd said.

She said that in addition to this tactic, the custodial team works so diligently that it's hard to find any discarded garbage around the massive park.

Cast members often work long shifts

Operating hours at Walt Disney World "vary by season and from park to park," according to the resort's website.

Regardless, cast members regularly put in a ton of hours every workday.

"A lot of people who I talk to can't believe you could start as early as 4:00 a.m. and finish as late as 3:00 a.m.," Judd said.

Cast members don't get bombarded with free fast passes when they're off the clock

O'Neill added that it was a misconception that cast members get perks like unlimited fast passes when they're off the clock.

"When we are not working, we're just regular guests," she said.

Are you a current or former Disney cast member with a story to share? Email [email protected].

source https://www.newssplashy.com/2018/05/strategy-15-insider-facts-about-working.html

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