Sundar Pichai, who is the CEO of Alphabet and its subsidiary Google, recently appeared on “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations" where he revealed what the company looks for in an entry-level job seeker. Pichai, who joined Google in 2004 as a product manager and rose through the ranks to become its CEO, revealed a three-word answer on what he looks for in candidates aspiring to join the tech giant.
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In the interview recorded in New York, American businessman Rubenstein asks, “If somebody wants to get a job, somebody is watching this and says I want to work at Google. What are you looking for?"
He continues by suggesting, “High IQs, high work quotient," while noting that the company is known for its “very complicated inner interview process".
“What’s the best way to get a job here for an entry-level person?" he asks again.
Sundar Pichai on entry-level jobs in Google
Pichai says that it depends on a case-to-case basis. “If you’re in engineering, we are looking for really good programmers, people who understand computer science well and you know, can be dynamically willing to learn and grow, apply themselves into new situations and do well," Pichai explains.
He asserts, “But we are really looking for ‘superstar software engineers’."
Google’s free food policy for employees
Rubenstein mentioned Google’s free food policy for its employees and shared that he had a chance to enjoy a meal on the day he recorded the interview with Pichai. The billionaire admitted that the food was “very good".
He asks Pichai how the company ensures that its spending on food translates into higher productivity, and follows up with, “Why do you think other companies don’t give away food as much as you do?"
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Pichai says, “In technology, if you go to the Bay Area, I think a set of things which Google has done as part of the now standard modern workplace in the Bay Area."
“But people value in-person collaboration to us. I can recall several times when I was working at Google early on, being in cafes, meeting someone else, talking, and getting excited about something, so it sparks creativity. It creates community and I think the benefit that comes out of it far dwarfs the costs associated with it," he added.
Watch the entire interview here:
About Sundar Pichai
Sundar Pichai was born on June 10, 1972, in Chennai, India. He attended the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT KGP), where he earned a degree in metallurgical engineering and met his future wife, Anjali Pichai. Pichai later pursued higher education in the US, earning a master’s degree in materials science and engineering from Stanford University, followed by an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
In 2015, Google co-founder Larry Page appointed Pichai as the CEO of Google, while Page transitioned to lead Alphabet, the newly created parent company. In 2019, when Page and Sergey Brin stepped back from day-to-day operations, Pichai was promoted to CEO of Alphabet as well.
In 2022, Pichai received the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award, for his contributions to Trade and Industry.
In April this year, he was on the cusp of becoming a billionaire – a rare milestone for a non-founder tech executive.
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