Interview conducted by Nicole Blahut (Q20)

Alex in front of the Google building.

With 2 more years still left of college, Alex March has a bright future ahead of him. He is currently working for Google. Luckily for the QUEST community, he was more than willing to tell us about his experience.

1) Before diving into the details of your work with Google, tell us a little about yourself.

Well, I am in Cohort 19, majoring in Accounting and Information Systems. I come from Ramsey, New Jersey but I am loving it here in San Francisco. I enjoy trying new foods, going to concerts, and traveling (going to China with QUEST this winter and can’t wait).

2) So Google?! That’s exciting. What is it you are doing there?

I am currently working within GeoCommerce on the Sales & Merchant Solutions team (SMS) for Google Offers. Basically, I am creating internal tools and analyzing data. I am building and maintaining real-time partner reporting dashboards for the Strategic Partner Managers who deal with Google’s Marketplace partners. I am also creating a tool that allows Market Managers to gather all of the necessary data in one source. In addition, I have identified at least 6 key drivers on how to improve the email impression targeting system and worked closely with a team to implement and monitor changes.

3) Sounds like they are keeping you busy. What about working with Google has been different from past internships and experiences?

This past summer, I interned at GE Capital (which was also an extremely rewarding experience).  Google has been a much different experience in regards to the company culture. Google doesn’t focus on how you are getting your work done as long as it gets done. This makes it an extremely fun environment (I spend about 10 hours a day on campus). It honestly feels like a continuation of college. The openness and exposure to the leadership team every Friday at TGIF is something that you probably would not find at any other company that size. It truly is amazing how much trust and transparency there is throughout the organization; it makes you feel like everyone is part of the ‘Google team’.

4) How has QUEST helped you transition into this role?

The QUEST family made my transition to San Francisco so much easier. QUEST set me up with a list of QUEST Alumni in the bay area and at Google. The alumni were happy to chat with me and give me advice about moving here. In terms of the work itself, QUEST prepared me for working with and leading cross-functional teams. At Google, I work with people from a multitude of backgrounds.

5) What has been the most rewarding aspect of your experience?

I don’t think I could pick just one aspect. I have really enjoyed experiencing the Google culture. Working with such brilliant co-workers and learning from them every day has been great. It has also been very rewarding to see the impact I am actually having. It’s so cool seeing the SPMs use my dashboard daily. I am also building my technical tool belt (building decision support systems, database management skills, and using Actionable Business Intelligence to create real time reporting tools)…….and of course, I can’t forget the food! Food here in San Francisco has been incredible!