- Mike Manalac, who is a Certified Public Accountant, moved from Baltimore to San Francisco to work at Google.
- He encountered obstacles such as early rebuffs from major technology companies and a demanding journey to reach Google.
- In time, he moved to Google’s Chicago branch, finding himself with a more favorable equilibrium between his professional and personal life.
This essay, presented as a dictated piece, is derived from an interview with
Mike Manalac
, a 39-year-old accounting manager at Google based in Chicago. The text has been shortened and clarified.
I am a Certified Public Accountant who began my career in 2008 during the
Great Recession
I dedicated eight years to auditing, starting with CohnReznick in Baltimore before moving on to another firm.
PwC
In San Francisco, where I spent around five months searching for technology positions after starting my job hunt.
Following a short period in financial reporting at Walmart’s online wing, I
joined Google
In 2017, serving as a senior accountant located in Sunnyvale, California, I relocated to Google’s Chicago office in 2019.
At CohnReznock, I dedicated myself to working 70 hours per week inside a cramped cubicle illuminated by harsh fluorescent lighting.
It wasn’t entirely negative, yet it fell short of the enjoyable and rewarding career I envisioned. At the same time, workers at Silicon Valley companies were
showered with perks
And they would pass their time cycling around the company grounds on vibrant bicycles (as far as I could tell from what was portrayed in the media). To someone like me who isn’t part of that world, it seemed like an unreachable paradise.
I really enjoyed the 2013 comedy film “The Internship,” starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson as they roamed through Silicon Valley repeatedly. After one such viewing, I resolved to shake things up. Although I had deep roots in my hometown of Baltimore and cherished living there, it lacked the professional prospects available in major metropolitan areas. This made me feel trapped.
I understood that if I desired a prestigious position at Google, I needed to take action and pursue it. Over the following several days, I convinced myself that my thoughts were not irrational.
I left my job, cleared out my home, sold my vehicle, and boarded a one-way plane to San Francisco.
I bid farewell to all that I had known. Having never been to San Francisco before, I arrived without a home. Though I secured a position at PwC, it was intended as a short-term arrangement. After settling into San Francisco, I planned to pursue the career opportunity that prompted me to move.
Soon enough, I faced a dose of reality. Recruiters from big firms such as Google and Facebook weren’t interested in giving me the time of day. Since I lacked experience working for a Fortune 500 firm, these major tech companies were not willing to consider me seriously until I gained more expertise.
I received an offer from Walmart’s e-commerce division in San Bruno to handle financial reporting duties. A key highlight for me was assisting with the rollout of Walmart’s two-day delivery service aimed at rivaling
Amazon Prime
This kind of work experience was necessary for me to catch Big Tech’s attention.
About one and a half years afterward, I found myself once again sitting across from key players at major tech companies in Silicon Valley such as Facebook, Amazon, Salesforce, Uber, Tesla, among others. Primarily, I set up these meetings through conversations initiated with recruiters via LinkedIn. With each unsuccessful attempt, I refined my technique until I began achieving consistent positive outcomes. Later on, I planned to disclose some of my tactics.
playbook
I created and designed content aimed at assisting other stuck accountants in landing their ideal jobs.
I subsequently found myself at Google’s doorstep once more. This time, however, it responded.
Following an extensive two-month interview process, I achieved my goal of joining Google in autumn 2017.
Google presented me with a senior accountant role featuring attractive benefits, which encompassed a substantial sign-on bonus, a six-figure salary, an annual performance incentive exceeding 10 percent of my base pay, along with stock grants. The additional privileges matched the hype and aligned perfectly with what I anticipated from Google.
dream job
The journey to work, nonetheless, felt like a horror story.
I needed to be at the Sunnyvale office, which could be up to two hours away from my home in San Francisco. Since I had relocated across the nation for my ideal position, I wasn’t going to allow a four-hour daily drive deter me. Over the following twelve months, I logged twenty weekly hours riding the company’s shuttle bus, and it was exhausting.
I would exit my apartment at 6:30 a.m. and make my way to the bus stop. The minute I got on the bus, my workday began. By the time I reached the office close to 9 a.m., it felt as though I had already put in half a day’s worth of effort.
I would make the same two-hour journey back home in the evening, departing from Sunnyville at 5 PM and arriving in San Francisco by 7 PM. This long commute resulted in many delayed meals, persistent back pain, and less time for workouts at the gym.
A year later, I volunteered for a transfer to Chicago to help with an office expansion
Back then, departing from what was known as the Bay Area “mother ship” seemed like a perilous decision. I understood that I would deeply regret parting ways with the stunning beauty of San Francisco and the electrifying atmosphere of being at the heart of global technology innovation. However, I recognized that Chicago offered incredible opportunities too; it boasted a lower cost of living along with greater closeness to where I grew up.
My heart remains in San Francisco, yet Chicago truly suits me.
bought a house
, began a family, and reduced my weekly commute by 15 hours. Now, I travel to the office by train three days a week and use the remaining time for other activities.
working from home
I now have ample free time to unwind, and I can join my family for dinner at a much more convenient hour.
Stepping away from the mothership hasn’t hindered my progress at all.
In 2020, I received a promotion to become a manager and currently oversee an accounting team that supports both Google Search and YouTube operations.
If you’re feeling trapped in your professional life, don’t hesitate to embrace potential risks and make necessary compromises. It took me exploring various regions across the East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest before I discovered my enjoyable and rewarding career path, yet it was worth it.
It began with me transplanting my life and traveling four hours each day for my ideal position at Google, but it was completely worthwhile.
Would you like to share your experience? Send an email to Lauryn Haas at lhaas@SofTech.
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