Do you ever wonder what it’s like to work at Google?
Dan Anderson, a Bradley alumnus, talked about his experience working at Google and his journey to get there at an event hosted by American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS).
APICS, a student organization that encourages the collaboration of business and engineering, brought Anderson to speak on campus on Oct. 20.
This event was held in collaboration with other business and engineering clubs on campus including, Financial Management Association, Women In Business and more. Throughout the event, Anderson spoke on his journey from Bradley to Google and gave advice to students that might want to pursue a similar career.
Anderson’s career began shortly after graduating from Bradley in 2014 when he started working for West Monroe, a digital services firm. During his time there, he learned that individuals are ultimately the one in charge of their careers and that understanding the question of “why” is just as important as the work itself.
Anderson went further into this point by explaining how mentors and allies aren’t “nice to have” but are critical for growth. He also said that it’s very important to ask for feedback on how to improve, rather than just trying to fix the problem yourself. This way, you will learn to take any kind of feedback and use it to your advantage which will separate you from your coworkers.
After working at West Monroe, Anderson decided that he wanted to go into banking at BMO Harris Bank in 2017 because he felt that he would be good at it. During his time, he learned how to advocate for himself, to not be afraid to think rationally and bring changes to an established process.
“Ambition, hard work and resourcefulness, when you’re not in an environment that naturally encourages those things, you need to carve your own path,” Anderson said.
Anderson wove these three attributes throughout his speech, encouraging everyone to use all of those things to improve themselves and their careers.
After his time at BMO, Anderson began his current career at Google in 2020. According to him, Google’s philosophy aims for employees to have every comfort, concern, amenity and benefit taken care of. This way, employees don’t have to worry about anything while at work.
A video included in the speech showed a drone tour of Google’s Chicago office. Within the office, many comfortable sitting areas and working spaces are included as well as a fully stocked food court, gaming room and even a nail salon.
At Google, Anderson has built a standardized process for global tax withholding operations for over 70 countries, along with many other accomplishments. He also learned that setting boundaries makes high stress environments easier to work in and knowing how to get the answers is more important than knowing them already.
During the Q&A portion, students were able to ask Anderson questions about internships and his time at Bradley. In Anderson’s opinion, a good internship is one where you should feel challenged and pushed to succeed.
“Really enjoy your time here at Bradley and make the most of it”
