Adios Microsoft!
Thanks for a phenomenal start to my career
I submitted my badge and laptop last week at Microsoft, and it was one of the toughest goodbyes I’ve ever had to bid.
After 6 years with the company, it feels surreal to suddenly not have access to that infinite pool of knowledge I so often took for granted.
I joined Microsoft in 2020 right during the pandemic and moved to Raleigh which quickly became a second home.
Many Firsts:
Microsoft paved the way for a lot of “firsts” in my life. It was my first full-time job at a Big Tech company. While I did intern at Samsung for six months, the internship ended before I could get a real taste of the industry, so I don’t quite count it. It was also the first time I saw a significant paycheck deposited into my bank account, and the first time I owned stocks of any kind.
Coming from a small town in India, I didn’t understand the different components of a corporate compensation package. My dad worked as a store manager in a small, family-owned business, and a fixed base salary was all he ever received throughout his career. No sign-on bonuses, no stocks and that was all I knew. Because I had never discussed salaries with any other adults, I genuinely thought that was just how the world functioned: everyone working strictly for a wage. When Microsoft offered me a six-figure salary, stocks, a sign-on bonus, and relocation assistance, I literally had to re-read the offer letter twice.
With that milestone, I started living on my own for the first time, bought my first car, got married, and eventually bought our first house. Microsoft provided a wonderful foundation for my life. The work-life balance was fantastic, almost to the point where, initially, I didn’t know what to do with myself after 6:00 PM. Coming straight out of college, where we pulled all-nighters balancing four projects at a time, the contrast was stark. For the first time, I had the space to develop personal hobbies, and I started a habit of volunteering.
My first project began a couple of months after I joined. It was exciting. I was building Microsoft’s very first custom AI chip. Microsoft’s bold mission statement is “to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more,” and the project I worked on felt like a true testament to that goal. From there, I moved on to consecutive projects that are now out in the market as Maia 100, Cobalt 100, and Cobalt 200. I will forever be proud of the work I contributed to them. What started as a handful of people in Raleigh grew into a global semiconductor team with hundreds of engineers spread across the US and India, and I was fortunate enough to witness it all firsthand.
On a more personal note, I’ve often spoken with friends working at various other companies across the industry.Many of their companies have massive pipelines where a single project is just one of many, and sometimes my friends didn’t even know which end-product their IP went into.Being part of such massive organizations often left them feeling buried under heavy hierarchies.
When I compare my experience to what I’ve heard from others, I feel incredibly fortunate to have associated myself with Microsoft’s flagship products. That was only possible because we operated like a startup early on. Because of that small, tight-knit team, my peers and I were able to truly stand out and make a name for ourselves. For that, I am forever grateful.
Philosophy, Company, and the People:
Microsoft is an excellent place to start a career because the company embraces a holistic and fantastic set of philosophies. There are five core traits and philosophies I will take away from Microsoft and safeguard with me always:
1. Grit : Persistence will take you places
2. Empathy: To empathize is to be human.
3. Give: Giving more always translates to a more fulfilling life.
4. Leadership: To lead is to have a vision with conviction.
5. 1% Better Everyday: Continuous growth makes way for miracles.
I learned so much about corporate culture, semiconductor engineering, and the broader industry as a whole. Thanks to the world-class documentation created and maintained by so many people over several decades, navigating the company as a fresh graduate was an invaluable experience. It truly helped me slowly transform from a junior engineer into a seasoned one over the course of six years.
On top of all that, the people! I had the opportunity to work alongside some of the best minds in the industry. They were kind, motivated, and incredibly hardworking. Everyone I met within the company truly practiced a “learn-it-all” rather than a “know-it-all” culture, which made working with them so much more enjoyable. They taught me never to shy away from asking questions and reinforced the fact that there is no such thing as a dumb question, especially early on in one’s career. I have made some truly fantastic memories working with them.
But as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and my chapter with Microsoft is closing as well. Relocating to the Bay Area has made it an even harder farewell to Raleigh, my close friends, my colleagues, and the company.
Looking back, I am deeply thankful and grateful for an amazing six years, and I am looking forward to the exciting adventures ahead.