I'm writing this in the hope that someone will be spared the trouble I recently went though. We are about to move out of our apartment in Santa Monica and parking in our area is just terrible,  so we also need to obtain temporary "No Parking" signs in order for the large removal truck to park. Seems like an easy thing to request right? Or so you would think...

I headed down to the Santa Monica City Hall and walked to room 115, which is where the transport and parking department is situated. There were about 10 people waiting outside all with tickets in hand. "Ah, a ticketing numbering system....how organised", I thought. This gave me high hopes. I lined up to obtain said ticket then walked out towards the other 10 people waiting outside. As I looked up at the TV, I see my number is being called so walked back in to the room to counter number 1. There was a stern looking girl who made eye contact with me and must have been watching me obtain my ticket because she said to me "Sir, you need to go outside, wait in line like everyone else and watch the TV for your number being called."

I looked at my ticket again and stood there and in the brief second it took for her to look down and her paper and then look up again, My mind was racing overtime. What witty comment could I possibly come back with? She looked up again and I waved the ticket in the air and exclaimed "Emm, I know, I did and it did so I'm here".She took the ticket from me and told me to take a seat. First blood to the man!

I explained my situation, that I needed some No Parking signs because we were moving. She asked if we were moving in or moving out and I told her we were moving out. "Have you brought proof of your address?", she asked and when I produced my driving lisense I could see her face starting to light up. "Sir, you need to bring a utility bill with your address. Without this, we cannot give you a No Parking Sign." Damn, there was the equalizer...1-1.

At this point, I just walked out because arguing with the crazy lady would have give her more delight and made me more mad. What it did do though was illustrate the lack of communication between city departments and the people. I got home and looked up the internets (all of them) for the rules on obtaining and displaying Temporary No Parking Signs. They are listed here: http://www01.smgov.net/planning/transportation/parkingregulations.html

....I wont repeat what's in that page but nowhere does it state what documentation you must take with you in order to obtain a No Parking sign. So chances are you'll have at least one wasted trip to City Hall.

Anyway, after reading the website I went for visit number two and to my dismay they had changed staff behind the counters. I was so looking forward to seeing my new best friend again! My ticket got called and I explained the situation. I showed her the utility bill and she wrote out two "No Parking Signs" and I handed over my $4.00. Here's the conversation that ensued:

• Me: "So I just have to put these outside my house then...nothing else?"
• Lady: "Nope"
• Me: "Oh, So I don't need to have them up for at least 24 hours prior to the day of the truck arriving?"
• Lady: "Oh yeah, you need to do that."
• Me: "Ahh, ok...Oh and I don't need to call the Santa Monica Police Parking Department as soon as I place the signs so that they can inspect them?"
• Lady: "Oh yeah, you need to do that too."
• Me: "Ahh...ok, and I'm sure that I read somewhere if I don't remove the signs I'll be fined up to $350.00. Is that true?"
• Lady: "Yes, you must take them down or else you'll be fined."
• Me: "Ahhh....ok, so aside from the stuff I just mentioned there's really nothing I need to do"
• Lady: "Nope!"

So we've two issues here. The website doesn't tell you stuff that the people in City Hall know about.....and the people in City Hall aren't aware of the information on the website.  This leads to mass confusion, Annoyed people and general big pool of poop! I mean, Cmon guys, get it together?! It's not that difficult. Update the website, train the people on the 3 or 4 easy, but all important things to do and everyone will be happy.

 ......And here's the real kicker (and this is something I found out from personal experience). If you don't notify the police transport department and someone does park in the area you have reserved, there's nothing you can do about it. If the police don't have it on record that you called in they will not authorize the towing of the offending vehicle. That's kinda an important point so I don't see why City Hall doesn't tell you this?? Infact, I don't see why the people at City Hall don't tell you ALL the really important information that's on the (pretty difficult to find) website?

 .....And another thing.......the number they give you on the website to call .....(310) 458-8466......doesn't give you an option for verifying the No Parking signs. Choose the option that says something like "If this is an out of hours concern, press 8 to speak with an operator". That person will then give you some abuse and transfer to someone that gives a crap.

Moving is stressful enough without these kinda hassles!

After looking around the internet, there seems to be alot of mystisism around how Microsoft interview and what the day involves. After going through a few in my time and actually coming out the other end with an offer I thought I would lend in my 2 cents worth.

General Interview format 

In my time I've been for 3 full time interviews over a 5 year period. One was an SDET ( Software DEveloper in Test) position and 2 have been for Program Manager positions. There are obvious differences in the questions that you get asked but the format of the interview day is pretty much the same:

• You meet the recruiting manager at 9:00 for 15 mins. This is usually the person you've been chatting to for the past few weeks.
• From 9:30 onwards, you'll meet a different person usually for a 50-55 min interview session.
• At the start of the day, you are given an interview schedule that will normally detail your interviews up to and including lunch. (yeah, Lunch is also an interview).
• After lunch, it's pretty much "suck it and see". By that, I mean that the interview can end at any point. You'll see someone for about an hour, they will ask you to sit out in the reception area and someone will come out to see you. At that point, you may be told that the interview is over or you'll go in for another interview session.

So how do you know if you've seen everyone you have to see? Well, I've found there are 2 indications to wether you have met everyone you're supposed to. Firstly, you should know the name of the actual hiring manager (ie, the manager who has the "head count"). Also, the last person in any interview is refered to as the "As App" or "As Appropriate". They are normally someone who isn't tied to the group but is someone thats fairly high up and is judging your general "Microsoft Fit" as opposed to your actual ability to fulfill a particular discipline. Also, one of the best indicators is that if you're still seeing people at 5:30 then it's a good sign. If it's 3:00 and you've been told the interview is over.......there's a better than even chance they wont proceed with an offer.

Something else to note. The info above is relevent for a full time position. If you're going for a temp position (A- or a V-), the number of people you see will probably be less.

Specific Interview Questions

I'm sure you've read all the comments about the kind of questions you get asked. Quick disclaimer here.....I've only been exposed to Test and PM Full time interviews so if you're applying for a different position, you're experiences may differ. From what I've seen, long gone are the days of asking the crazy "Fuzzy logic" questions like -

"Train A leaves a station traveling north at 4:00am. Train B leaves another station 100 miles away traveling south at 5:25am. If they pass each other 22 mins later at a combined speed of 95 MPH, what kind of ham does the driver have on his sandwiches?"

Now, Microsoft tend to focus on how you think in practical situations. Some of the best questions I had when interviewing for the testing position was things like "How would you test for the number of golf balls in the air at any one time". Another one was when I sat down and the interviewer passed me a coke can and said "How would you test this?". There are no right or wrong answers but they want to see your train of thought and make sure you think in a logical fashion.

As far as Program Management type questions go, you obviously get asked about the software lifecycle but its more in terms of your personal experience. It's not enough to sit there and talk about the methods of program/project management (That would probably take about an hour and its something you can learn from a book). Alot of questions will probably start with "Tell me about a time when....." and they will be looking for examples of how you handled difficult situations, bringing projects back on track, managing resources, Identifying mistakes and making improvements etc etc.. There are many great resources on the web for specific question relating to specific roles and I'll list them below.

What did I do differently this time - A few tips.

As I mentioned above, this was my 3rd FTE (Full time Employee) interview so I've been turned down twice before. After I received my offer I sat down and tried to go over what I did differently. Here are my thoughts: Again, this is a purely personal thing...Take from it what you will.

The Stress factor. All the other times, I spent the evening prior to the interview studying PM sites, making notes and relating those to my experiences as a PM. This usually meant I didn't get to sleep until 3am and woke up even more stressed. This time was different and I purposfully stayed away from that. I went out for dinner, went back to the hotel, sat and thought for an hour on the kinds of questions I may be asked and was tucked up in bed by 10:00pm.  Point to take away from this - If you have some experience under your belt (and you obviously do because it says so on your resume and you've got to the interview stage) there's no need to stress out about cramming the night before.

Self Confidence. It's a big thing to be interviewing at Microsoft. The company is world renouned and in most cases, the benefits they offer are fantastic. It's a long term opportunity. My point is that I got into the mindset of regarding everyone that worked there as "better than me." The upshot being that when it came to the interview I gave this impression of being "Not worthy" and almost not being up to the task. This time was different in that YES, you've got to appreciate that you will be speaking to some very talented people but that YES, you are also just as talented. The person sitting opposite you asking questions may be on the interview panel because they are your potential manager or it could be because they are going to be working alongside you. I made a point of remembering this during the interview and I'm sure that played a big part. I'm not saying be "cocky" and "Big Headed"...Just realise that you're there because they want you there.

And don't be scared to ask questions. If there's one thing Microsoft love it's using acronyms. My experience is that the interviewer will forget that you may not have worked in MS before, let alone the specific group so they will use acronyms all the time... Not to throw you a curve ball but because they work with these acronyms every day. If they say something you don't understand....stop and ask them!

Interviewing....It's a 2 way thing. This is related to the self confidence thing and was something I did in almost every interview segment. In the past 2 interviews I did, I asked questions but waited until the part where the interviewer said "Do you have any questions for me?".  This time, I treated each session as an opportunity to really find out what that persons role was and how it would interact with the role being offerred. In the back of my mind was always to interview them just as much as they were interviewing me. And it really helped because the hiring manager asked me what I thought of the role and where I thought my part would be.

Remember people's names. Sometimes it's really difficult in an interview situation but this time I made a great effort to remember people's names. When you have an 8 hour interview process there are always going to be overlapping questions. I think I impressed people by saying things like "Yeah..and that was a point I discussed with John..blah blah". Sounds such a small thing but I'm sure it made a big impression. Shows that you're taking an interest and it wasn't something I did previously.

Engaging with the "As Appropriate". Depending on the group you are interviewing with, the As Appropriate could be someone in your team or someone that's never going to work with you. The point of this interview is to assess your "Microsoft Fit". Before, I don't think I really appreciated how important this step is but in reality, It's probably one of the most important steps. I can't recal what level my "As App" was but he was at a VP level and he asked me what direction I thought Microsoft was going in and was it a good direction? Luckily enough, I had just seen the new "I'm a Pc, I'm a Mac" advertising campaign so I talked about that and how it was interesting to come from California (Which is mostly a mac type area) to Microsoft. It's not really an interview thats related to the position, It's at a higher level but is equally as important.

Also, something I've heard is that not many people leave Microsoft for another company. They are a great believer in hiring internally and will look to other departments before advertising positions to the outisde world. This is why they place so much emphasis on the whole "Microsoft fit". You're not just interviewing for a position in a specific group, You're interviewing for a position within the entire company and regard you as a long term investment.

Some Helpful Links

http://geekswithblogs.net/jolson/archive/2005/01/21/20636.aspx  - Interview from the perspective of an SDET

http://www.emicrosoftinterview.com/ - Great resource for Microsoft Interview prep.

http://blogs.msdn.com/descapa/archive/2007/03/24/program-manager-pm-interview-tips.aspx - A great article related to PM specific interviews.

http://qbrundage.com/michaelb/pubs/essays/working_at_microsoft.html - From a current employees perspective.

In conclusion....

So after all the interviews, I got out of the building at 5:45pm and had to rush along the 520 to catch my plane. (It was just as well I opted for the later flight). I spoke to the recruiter that evening and although she didn't have any info on how I performed she did set an expectation that I would hear back within a week. My previous times when I was unsucessful, I generally heard back from the recruiter the next day to be told they wouldn't extend an offer. After 5 days I received an email to say that not only were they extending an offer but that they would be extending an offer of Senior Program Manager. Originally, I was under the impression it was for a normal level PM position. I start this later this month.

I think that everything I've mentioned played a big part in getting the offer. I will say that everyone's experience is different but at the end of the day, Microsoft is just like every other company. If you're reading this and about to interview, Good luck! And please drop me an email if you have any questions.

Hey.....
Right, So now I can finally come out of the career based closet and get it off my chest. For those of you that don't yet know, The Guthrie's are upping sticks again, packing the wagon and moving back up to Seattle. "But you just came from there", I hear you cry. Absolutely right...we did but after four years in sunny Santa Monica we've come to realise that it's not a good long term solution for us. There are a bunch of reasons why and as came closer to this realisation an opportunity with Microsoft came around that we couldn't pass up....

So I'm going to be a Full time Microsoftie, living in Redmond, which is perfect. The downside to this is leaving my current Job at <a href=http://www.business.com> Business.com. I've been there for over three years now, been fortunate to work with a talented set of people and made alot of amazing friends. I keep telling my 10 year old son that you never loose your friends, you just make new ones and I'm going to have to practice what I preach. It's a great company and if any of the emplyees happen to be reading this...GET BACK TO WORK AND DRIVE THAT STOCK PRICE UP! :-)

One of the benefit of choosing Microsoft is the relocation package. Basically, we do nothing aside from get our arses (with Elvis the rabbit) on a plane and live, free of charge, in corporate housing for two weeks. We've already got our new house we're renting right next door to our good friends Phil and Susan. Probably live there for a year then either move on or buy it?!?! There are many other benefits which I'll go into once I actually start but needless to say this will be the easiest move we've ever done!

So the big moving date is Nov 15ish and I start the new gig on Nov 17....right in time for Thanksgiving! Hurrah.......no doubt I'll be joining the plethora of other Microsofties that blog about the company and how great it is to work there. Or I may be too busy!? Who knows?

So here's the story...Just back from a very long weekend in Vegas (3 nights to be exact) and instead of doing all the usual boring bloggy stuff about what we did etc, I thought I would turn this into a "Foreigners guide to Vegas" kinda deal.

If you've been to Vegas before, there are certain things that you probably just take for granted that can end up costing you a bunch of cash. And most of the time, it's probably because you don't know any different and if you're on vacation, you probably dont really care anyway. The place also has some crazy rules regarding kids. We dont normally take the kiddies to Vegas because, despite the state trying a "Kid friendly" marketing campaign, everyone knows that it's not a good place for the young 'uns. Anyway, here's some tips, info and blarb about our experiences:

Driving to Vegas
As mentioned below, we drive to Vegas. From sunny Santa Monica, it's about a 4 and a half hour journey if you dont stop. We tend to stop at Barstow, which is roughly half way there so our journey time is about 5 hours. If you do drive there are a couple of things to watch out for:

• Police traps - They encorce the speed limit, especially in the desert. The roads are so straight that its tempting to step on it but watch out. I'm in no way advocating speeding and they will throw the book at you for going even 10 MPH over. Especially if you have non Nevada license plates.
  
• Road works/traffic jams - Going to Vegas, you want to avoid the Friday afternoon/evening and early on Saturday. As you can imagine, weekenders set off after work or early on Saturday. coming back from Vegas, Anytime on the weekend can be bad..especially Sunday. 
  
• Where to stop?
  Going to Vegas - Barstow marks the last place before hitting the desert. The next decent place to stop after Barstow is Primm, which is the other side of the Desert. If you need to gas up, do it in Barstow.  Also, make sure your car's colling system is in good order. There are a few points where the altitude increases and that puts stress on the car.

How to get around Vegas 1 - Monorail
The main strip is big....impressivly so...and coupled with the fact it can get damn hot, there are a bunch of alternative ways to see the different hotel. For $12.50 a day, you can buy a monorail pass. There is a monorail station at hotels along the strip and its a great way to save shoe leather and beat the blazing heat. Coupled with the fact that many hotels have walkways linking them, it is possible to hop from one to the other without ever having to go outside.

How to get around Vegas 2 - Taxi V's Driving
Because of where we live, we were lucky enough to drive to Vegas from Santa Monica. This is great because once you get there, you can save a bunch on Taxi fares which, obviously depending on where you are going, can add up to a pretty penny. Going from one end of the strip to the other can cost up to $15 each way. If you have your own car, all of the hotels have parking. You can either self park or Valet park. There is no fee for the valet parking but the rule is to slip the attendant a few dollars once they bring the car back to you.  Finding the parking lots from the main strip is really easily because the hotel sign posts are all clear and consise. I managed it and my sense of direction is, to say the least, Pants! The only downside to self parking is that you may have a bit of a walk to the actual hotel entrance. Valet parking is the way to go!

Also, if you have your own car then you can stay off the strip and get away from the constant casino type aptmosphere...which can get to you after a while.

Kiddies info:
There is nothing to say that Kiddies aren't allowed in Vegas and the powers at be actually tried to advertise it as a fun place for the kids. The plain fact is that it's an adult playground but thats not to say kids cant enjoy it either. We have a 10 year old and a 3 year old and we managed to keep them suitably entertained. We stayed at the MGM and spent alot of time in the kiddies arcade. Most of the hotels have kids related stuff but the one thing I found missing are creche facilities, so you can say goodbye to the Vegas nightlife.

Another good thing about the MGM is the amount of pool space they have. I think there's 7 in all including a new river rapid type pool. The kids loved it and although you;re not allowed to take in any pool toys, I'm sure they could've stayed there for hours. Word of warning though.....we only went to the pool between before 10:00am then after 5:00pm. Sun burned children are a bad thing! 

The one weird thing are the ambigious rules re. kids in the casinos. They can be in there (they have to be because you always have to walk thourgh casinos) but they cant be standing still around the machines. We had a few interesting run ins with hotel security when my 10 year old stopped to tie his shoe lace. Having said that, security know how ambigious the ruels are and dont really say to much, they just ask you to make sure the kiddies are moving. At that point, my 10 year old started jogging up and down on the spot.

Alrighty, well, I think thats all I have to say on the matter. If anyone has any questions about taking kids to Vegas, driving to Vegas or anything in general. Let me know.

Cheers!
Stoafer.

So I have no idea what made me think of this story again. I think it's with all the hot weather we're having here in Sunny Santa Monica. Robbie and I were chatting about beach parties and I thought I'd mention a great example of cultural differences. Here goes..

Business.com (the company I work for) have beach parties every year around August. This is a great thing and, like alot of company sponsored events, Involves drinking. We have a free bar on the beach, games, free food etc etc. Everything you need to have a great time.

I was at the company for about 9 months before my first beach party. As soon as we arrived at said beach everyone ran to the bar. Not wanting to blend in and follow suit I wanted to stay away from the Bud and miller lite and go for a man's drink. I picked the most Scottish/Irish sounding beer (more alcohol obviously) and after tasting it thought it was the "Dogs Danglies". "Yup, this is my choice of beverage for the day", I thought. Because the bar was on a private beach, the barman had to empty the content of the bottle into a plastic cup. Two hours later and I drink the bar dry of said beer and switch to the old fav "Jack and coke". Barman gave me a funny glance but thought nothing of it. End of the day comes and welcome in the weekend.

Monday arrives and at lunch we all get together and chat about the various drunken actions of our work mates. I think back to the day with amazing clarity and boast about how my Scottish ability to hold huge amounts of alcohol was in full effect and despite drinking 9 bottles of beer and 3 Jack and Cokes, I was still standing.  The following conversation ensued:

Me: "Ha, well I managed to do a steller job of not acting like a drunken idiot. I am Scottish and therefore a way better drinker than all of yooz".

Fellow worker: "Emmm...I saw what you were drinking. You were drinking O'Douls".

Me: "Aye what of it?"

Fellow worker: "It's fricken non-alcoholic you idiot".

Now, to this day, this story is STILL mentioned and 2 beach parties have come and gone.  No one bothered to highlight the fact at the time..Oh no, that would be too easy. In the spirit (no pun intended) of helping out a fellow "Non-American", Here  is a good resource of non-alcoholic beverages. Learn these brands to avoid possible confusion and ultimate humiliation.

There's no doubt that alot of people come over to the States on Fly Drives or have been on extended vacation to visit family and have rented a car. First of all, I never sat a driving test back home in the UK because A) It was way too expensive and B) I never had to because public transport was great. I passed my test in Seattle and unlike alot of Americans, I actually paid for lessons as opposed to going to "drivers Ed" and tips from family. The first ime I drove in the UK was last year and I observed some interesting differences that, if not known, could result in some serious accidents.

1. "Right on Red" - Unless told otherwise, you dont need to wait on a green light if you are turning right. This is actually one of the few rules that actually make sense. I mean, if no-one's coming...drive on...
   
   
2. "Pedestrian Crossings" - Like us, Americans tend to place their green man crossings by traffic lights. Makes sense right? Until you notice that as soon as a driver has the green light to go, so does the pedestrian. So, as a driver, even though you have a green light you still need to make sure no-one is crossing the road. Unless you know about it, it can be pretty scary.
   
   
3. "Freeway Driving" - Generally, the American freeways have no concept of "Keep to the left and pass on the right". Drivers will pass you on both sides. In Seattle, this wasn't too bad because the drivers weren't as impatient but L.A is a completely different story. "Rubbernecking" is also a huge problem. This is basically when people slow down to look at accidents, dead and mutilated bodies etc etc. Sounds fun right??? You'd be amazed. Just be aware of a suddent stream of red brake lights...And also be prepared for drivers up on your tail. The 5 second rule of space between cars no longer applies!!!
   
   
4. "Parking on side Streets" - I didnt notice this too much in Seattle but after moving down to L.A, I parked my car facing the wrong way....and I got a ticket and had to pay $150. Cars always park in the direction of the traffic..which makes sense on large roads but even on single track roads the same rule applies. Don't be caught out. 
   
   
5. "Giving way to Pedestrians" - Here's one thing that Americans do better than back in the U.K. Pedestrians always have the right of way. Even if there is no crossing! You can always tell tourists when they approach the road because they always stop and wait for cars to pass by. Understandable really, but locals will automatically assume that drivers will stop..which is a really dangerous assumption to make!
   

Well, I think that's about it. I've only really scratched the surface on this subject because (and I'm baised because I'm British) the British driving system is probably one of the safest in the world. While it's so easy to pass your test here (put it this way, my driving test took me 15 mins to take because it's designed for 16 year olds), the British one has something like a 60% failure rate..And thats not because people can't drive, it's because it's damn hard. So hard that I believe there has been requests to lower the difficulty level.  Ask Jeremy Clarkeston..I'm sure he knows!

Righty Ho..Tip top n'all that!
Stoafer.....

"I'm sorry sir, You don't have sufficient credit history or credit score".....I tell you, if I had a buck for everytime I heard that I would have no need for credit in the first place.  It's one of the most frustrating things I found after moving over here. You obviously have a fairly well paying job or else you wouldn't have moved in the first place and now you want to do stuff like rent an apartment or buy a car. Failry common things and should be easy right? Think again...

The good news - there are easy ways to start establishing a credit history and even if you haven't made the full transition to the states, you can still do some of these while on holiday. The more time you have them , the better. So:

1) Open a bank account - All you need is an address in the states so if you have friends/relatives...Use theirs. Maintain it well and it'll start the ball rolling.

2) If you are offered, consider a store card - This is how many teenagers establish their credit. Good stores to consider are Target, Sears, Wallmart etc. You'll need to make sure that they report to the credit bureaus because if they don't, It wont do you any good. If you are approved, it will be for a small amount but use it to buy stuff and each month, pay it off in full.

3) If you happen to find a place to live with roommates, and you trust them, offer to put the utilities (electricity, phone, TV, gas) in your name.

4) Secured Credit Card - This is a good one and one that I used. Many banks offer these and you pay them a certain amount of money ($300) and they give you a credit card with a $300 limit.  The bank will use the $300 as security should you fail to make payments. This works well!!!!!!!

5) Check with your employer if they are linked with a credit union. Often, this is the best way to get a real "big persons" credit card.

All of these steps will help you start your credit score but this is only the start. It won't happen overnight and there are no real shortcuts. Equally as important is maintaining a good credit score because it'll save you hundreds in interest rates. If anyone else has some good advice...Please add!

Cheers...Stoafer

Guy's n' Galls...

So here's the deal.  I came over to the states 5 and a half years ago and I must admit, looking back on it, I've come a long way since getting off the plane. I'm from the U.K (Edinburgh to be exact) and after completing my Masters Degree in Applied computing at the fine University of Dundee, I managed to land a job in Microsoft Games. How I got there will be addressed in a later blog but let's just say that it pays to know people. Contacts are everything.

So whats the purpose of setting up this blog? Well, the internet is full of useful info and there are alot of great sites related to immigration and working in the States. There's also alot of stuff they dont tell you; things like How to rent an apartment (it's not as easy as you think), buying a car and this little thing called a Credit Score. My aim is to share my experiences and knowledge with people who either want to move over to the States for work or have already moved and are ready to take the next steps of Green card applications etc etc.

I will make it clear at the outset. I'm not a lawyer..(although I do have a law degree..scoff scoff) so all the usual disclaimers apply. Anything read on this site is purely conversational and I can't be held responsible. The bottom line is that Immigration matters should be dealt with by lawyers. You can't afford to make a mistake. Again, thats something else thats close to my heart as I'm currently in my green card application process.

All that remains for me to say is please email me if you have any questions about anything related to this topic and let's make this a great forum! Next up.....How do you get here!!!!!!

Cheers!

Stoafer.