Google Interview

Google is one of the most techie companies for any role. Therefore, Google takes the “technical” in TPM very seriously. My suggestion will be if you are not technical enough, you should apply for the Program Manager role and not the Technical Program Manager.

It plays a huge role in leading cross-functional efforts and influencing their team without authority. They also work on defining the roadmap and help in executing them.

Variations of (T)PM in Google

There are a lot of variations in (T)PM roles in Google. As we discussed in the previous lesson, it boils down to the team and organization. Most of the positions come in the Infrastructure pool because there is a high demand for this role to manage the infrastructure.

The TPM role in Google has a lot of opportunities for career advancement.

• From the TPM role, we can advance our career either into management like manager/director, or we can become a senior TPM as well. Senior TPM handles complex programs with a massive scope.
• Some TPM may switch their career to other roles like Engineering Managers or Product Managers.

From a growth perspective, the TPM role in Google has a lot of opportunities. First, let us understand various types of TPM roles in Google.

Cloud TPMs

The world is evolving and so is the consumption of the cloud. GCP is moving at a faster rate. They need great Program Managers to deliver the solutions for the customers. GCP TPMs work from the initiation to the delivery of market solutions and partners to accelerate our journey in the cloud.

SRE TPMs

The TPM role within SRE is to fulfill the motto of SRE - making things faster and reliable while preparing the infrastructure for the future. We may lead the cross-functional efforts between dev and different SRE teams to achieve the goal of reliability.

Capacity TPMs

Capacity TPMs own the physical machines of their organization and focus on optimizing the usage and processes by using software and automation. They focus on physical parts like the disk, CPU, and so on . Also, they closely partner with the leadership to set the vision and goals.

Hardware TPMs

As a silicon TPM, we will be responsible for helping those that ship hardware products. We will also work closely with Product Managers, engineers, and other TPM to lead this effort. It will impact Google Hardware’s product excellence and timeliness of the release.