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| − | [[Image:Nuvola apps important.png|25px|left]] 2/7/2013 IAP Personal Update | + | [[Image:Nuvola apps important.png|25px|left]] 8/25/2013 Yahoo APM! |
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| − | =====CardSpring===== | + | ==Yahoo APM== |
| − | [[IAP]] is about trying something different. After a string of management internships, I felt I was losing touch with my Course 6 side. Could I still program? Since I took a lot of course 6 classes this past semester, I had spent a lot of time benchmarking my course 6 skills. Course 15 naturally left me with less time to hack on code. I was lucky to be selected to extern at [[CardSpring]], a company that powers loyalty apps by letting them place webhooks on when a credit card is used at a business. It was a great opportunity to join a bunch of hard-core backend-programmers. The [http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffwinner CTO] ran cryptography at Netscape during the SSL days. It was my first exposure to more modern tools like Git, Ruby, and Cassandra and working predominately on the backend (it's an API company). I studied hard the week before the job to catch up on the latest tools. | + | [[File:Marissa and Michael.jpg|thumb|Me with Marissa Mayer]] |
| | + | [[File:Yahoo APMs 13.jpg|thumb|The 2013 Yahoo APMs]] |
| | + | I am about 1 month into my new job at [[Yahoo]] as an Associate Product Manager or [[APM]]. After I finished classes at MIT, but before I was set to start at Oracle, Yahoo offered me to join Marissa Mayer's new APM program at Yahoo. Marissa started the program back when she had just joined Google - as a way to find and develop new Product Managers out of school, which she thought would be faster than hiring experienced PMs from the industry. This article describes the role http://www.wired.com/business/2012/07/marissas-secret-weapon-for-recruiting-new-yahoo-talent/ though that article overblows things slightly. |
| | + | |
| | + | I’m super happy where I am at. This is the type of job I was aiming for throughout MIT; I think I was well-prepared by MIT; and I think .Yahoo is also in a very interesting state at the moment. They are rapidly redoing everything. This makes new grads are handed large chunks of the product to manage, because they are so understaffed for what the need is. In addition, they are in the midst of a huge culture change. They are replacing their cube farms with open desks. They are rebuilding teams, which were previously laid off. It’s very interesting to work with people on either side of the culture change and to experience the before-and-after at the same time. |
| | + | |
| | + | I’m in charge of designing the platform Yahoo uses to know where you are, and I help designing the membership, accounts, and security features of Yahoo. The work is very similar to what I did at MIT – brainstorming solutions, designing schemes, working with other stakeholders to refine plans and achieve consensus. |
| | | | |
| − | As a programmer I built a complete set of integration tests using [http://rspec.info/ rspec]. The tests were designed to simulate the use of the API by publishers - both normal, expected uses and unexpected, error conditions. It was a good way to learn the insides and outs of the API. The team was really, really helpful to me and the other interns and helped us get up to speed with Ruby and the code base. | + | As an APM, I’m part of Yahoo’s inner circle – giving it the feel of a small company. My experience working with administrators at MIT prepared me very well for working with the executives at Yahoo. It's probably the best business/leadership/PM experience possible in the world for someone just out of school. I think it's rivals management consulting in terms of business experience - since you're directly responsible for something, but still involved at a high level. I think one learns by doing and by being exposed to stuff. The greater scope and responsibility one has, the more one learns, I believe. |
| | | | |
| − | Continuing my benchmarking obsession from last semester I thought a lot about: How much are you expected to know going in? What are you expected to learn on the job? There are so many different subsets of programming that it is impossible to be an expert in all of them. How much should a new grad know about specific tools already? And more generally, how can you measure and compare smartness/aptitude: how fast should you be able to figure something out? How many times do you need to be helped with something before you can do it on your own? How much should you try on your own, before asking for help? Should you lean more towards asking if it is a risky operation?
| + | ==Mountain View== |
| | + | [[File:Mountain View Home.jpg|thumb|Mountain View Home]] |
| | + | [[File:Chevy Volt.jpg|thumb|Chevy Volt]] |
| | + | I'm settled into my new place in [[Mountain View]]. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634601732288/ Photos] I'm sharing a house with 2 other guys, who were friends of friends. I've purchased a [[Chevy Volt]]. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634595577805/ Photos] It goes 40 miles in a charge, but after that it can use gas. In almost 2 months, I haven't gone to the gas station once! |
| | | | |
| − | In the end, I left with a positive review. The team was "sorry to see me go," "happy with my work product," and "thought I learned fast." This made me very, very happy - I was still able to code! I was able to catch up and learn up to their expectations as a MIT Course 6-er. I think this helped restore some of my self confidence I talked about lacking from the past semester.
| + | I'm meeting a lot of new people here. Everyone seems to be a friend of a friend at least, and about 20-30% have heard of me before! That's kinda scarey! |
| | | | |
| − | However, in the end I also found that I personally like product management more than development. It is a completely different style of working - At Disney I lived in Outlook; here I didn't touch calendar invites once the whole trip. But I think product management fits my aspirations more closely. It's fun to read up on a system and then be able to understand it. It's exciting to think critically about a problem and come up with a way to crack it! Often the reward cycle is much smaller, as you are making visible progress every day. However, you are still stuck to your desk, doing work assigned to you. Ultimately, that type of work is not as fulfilling.
| + | ==Leaving MIT== |
| | + | I had my best semester ever, my last semester at MIT. I had 5 As and one B-. I was literally 10 points away from a 5.0! |
| | | | |
| − | =====San Francisco=====
| + | [[File:Pens MIT Spring 2013.jpg|thumb|Pens|200px]] |
| − | Living in [[San Francisco]] was super amazing. I am super glad I am moving there after school. So much of the field is in the Bay Area - so I have so many interesting friends in the area! Plus, the city is really nice. There are lots of shops and restaurants all within walking distance. I think the public transit is actually pretty good, despite what the locals say. I enjoyed exploring the different areas of the city; in part to look for housing: [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632665672855/ Sunset], [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632665679387/ the Presidio], [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632665684269/ Berkeley], [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632669827382/ SOMA], [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632669836078/ Pacific Heights and the Marina], and
| + | [[File:Paper MIT Spring 2013.jpg|thumb|Paper|200px]] |
| − | [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157632669841364/ South Beach]
| + | This semester I used 32 inches of paper, as well as 31 pens. Here is a chart of usage over time: |
| | | | |
| − | =====Next Semester=====
| + | [[File:Pens and Paper Usage.png]] |
| − | This semester, my last at MIT, I have 4 required classes left, plus a paper. For my management degree, I have to take [[15.053|15.053 Linear Programming/Optimization]], as well as [[15.075 Statistical Thinking and Data Analysis]]. For Course 6, I need to take one more AUS or CS Lab class; I taking [[6.170|6.170 Software Studio]] . I also need to do an [[AUP]]. I am planning on working on something relating to [https://panopticlick.eff.org/ Penopticlick] with [http://groups.csail.mit.edu/mac/users/hal/hal.html Prof. Hal Abelson]. I also need to take one more HASS-D, [[4.605|4.605, the History of Architecture]]. I am also taking [[6.933|6.933 Founders Journey]] where entrepreneurs come in and talk about their startups. For example, in the first class, Paul English, one of the cofounders of Kayak shared his story. I am also "shopping" a number of other interesting-looking classes. --[[User:ThePlaz|ThePlaz]] ([[User talk:ThePlaz|talk]]) 00:57, 7 February 2013 (EST)
| + | |
| | + | I wrote up two white papers on MIT Policy. [[A Framework for Community Engagement]] is a refinement of the community engagement process which administrators currently follow. [[Problem Solving Teams]] proposes having students work as "management consultants" on the Institute’s biggest problems. This joins [[Unrelenting Advocacy]], about how stundets should act like lobbyists and consultants. This rounds up my [MIT Policy White Papers] series. |
| | + | |
| | + | [[File:MIT Graduation.jpg|thumb|MIT Graduation]] |
| | + | Graduation was a super rainy affair - it was pretty miserable. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634578617238/ Photos] However, I'm happy to say that I've now graduated. It was sad to leave all of the stuff I really liked about MIT behind. |
| | + | |
| | + | I used the time I was off (3 weeks at MIT, 3 weeks at home, and 3 weeks in CA) to get organized and clean up my stuff. I emptied some boxes I hadn’t touched in years. I scanned more paper. However, I have still not managed to post my MIT stuff or more from the archives. |
| | + | |
| | + | ==Personal Style== |
| | + | I also spent some time to reflect on my [[Personal Style]]. I spent several months iterating on this - and it ended up being quite lengthy! I wanted to record this, because I know with will update over time, and I wanted to make a record of it. I think it's also helpful for people to know how I approach problem solving. |
| | + | --[[User:ThePlaz|ThePlaz]] ([[User talk:ThePlaz|talk]]) 02:55, 25 August 2013 (EDT) |
| | ''[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:ThePlaz&action=edit§ion=new Leave Plaz a (public) message] [[Image:File_icon.gif]] or [[User:ThePlaz:E-mail me|send me a (private) e-mail.]][[Image:Mail_icon.gif]]'', ''[http://feeds.feedburner.com/ThePlazPersonalUpdates Subscribe via RSS feed], ''[http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=786542 Subscribe via email]'', ''[http://friendfeed.com/theplaz Detailed feed]'', ''[[Old Updates|See past updates]]'' | | ''[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:ThePlaz&action=edit§ion=new Leave Plaz a (public) message] [[Image:File_icon.gif]] or [[User:ThePlaz:E-mail me|send me a (private) e-mail.]][[Image:Mail_icon.gif]]'', ''[http://feeds.feedburner.com/ThePlazPersonalUpdates Subscribe via RSS feed], ''[http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=786542 Subscribe via email]'', ''[http://friendfeed.com/theplaz Detailed feed]'', ''[[Old Updates|See past updates]]'' |
| | </div> | | </div> |
8/25/2013 Yahoo APM!
Yahoo APM
I am about 1 month into my new job at Yahoo as an Associate Product Manager or APM. After I finished classes at MIT, but before I was set to start at Oracle, Yahoo offered me to join Marissa Mayer's new APM program at Yahoo. Marissa started the program back when she had just joined Google - as a way to find and develop new Product Managers out of school, which she thought would be faster than hiring experienced PMs from the industry. This article describes the role http://www.wired.com/business/2012/07/marissas-secret-weapon-for-recruiting-new-yahoo-talent/ though that article overblows things slightly.
I’m super happy where I am at. This is the type of job I was aiming for throughout MIT; I think I was well-prepared by MIT; and I think .Yahoo is also in a very interesting state at the moment. They are rapidly redoing everything. This makes new grads are handed large chunks of the product to manage, because they are so understaffed for what the need is. In addition, they are in the midst of a huge culture change. They are replacing their cube farms with open desks. They are rebuilding teams, which were previously laid off. It’s very interesting to work with people on either side of the culture change and to experience the before-and-after at the same time.
I’m in charge of designing the platform Yahoo uses to know where you are, and I help designing the membership, accounts, and security features of Yahoo. The work is very similar to what I did at MIT – brainstorming solutions, designing schemes, working with other stakeholders to refine plans and achieve consensus.
As an APM, I’m part of Yahoo’s inner circle – giving it the feel of a small company. My experience working with administrators at MIT prepared me very well for working with the executives at Yahoo. It's probably the best business/leadership/PM experience possible in the world for someone just out of school. I think it's rivals management consulting in terms of business experience - since you're directly responsible for something, but still involved at a high level. I think one learns by doing and by being exposed to stuff. The greater scope and responsibility one has, the more one learns, I believe.
Mountain View
I'm settled into my new place in Mountain View. Photos I'm sharing a house with 2 other guys, who were friends of friends. I've purchased a Chevy Volt. Photos It goes 40 miles in a charge, but after that it can use gas. In almost 2 months, I haven't gone to the gas station once!
I'm meeting a lot of new people here. Everyone seems to be a friend of a friend at least, and about 20-30% have heard of me before! That's kinda scarey!
Leaving MIT
I had my best semester ever, my last semester at MIT. I had 5 As and one B-. I was literally 10 points away from a 5.0!
This semester I used 32 inches of paper, as well as 31 pens. Here is a chart of usage over time:
I wrote up two white papers on MIT Policy. A Framework for Community Engagement is a refinement of the community engagement process which administrators currently follow. Problem Solving Teams proposes having students work as "management consultants" on the Institute’s biggest problems. This joins Unrelenting Advocacy, about how stundets should act like lobbyists and consultants. This rounds up my [MIT Policy White Papers] series.
Graduation was a super rainy affair - it was pretty miserable. Photos However, I'm happy to say that I've now graduated. It was sad to leave all of the stuff I really liked about MIT behind.
I used the time I was off (3 weeks at MIT, 3 weeks at home, and 3 weeks in CA) to get organized and clean up my stuff. I emptied some boxes I hadn’t touched in years. I scanned more paper. However, I have still not managed to post my MIT stuff or more from the archives.
Personal Style
I also spent some time to reflect on my Personal Style. I spent several months iterating on this - and it ended up being quite lengthy! I wanted to record this, because I know with will update over time, and I wanted to make a record of it. I think it's also helpful for people to know how I approach problem solving.
--ThePlaz (talk) 02:55, 25 August 2013 (EDT)
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8/25/2013 Yahoo APM!
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