You might find it hard to believe that Google’s first office was a garage in Menlo Park, California. Believe it or not, renting out that space to the founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin worked wonders for the lady who owned it!
We barely acknowledge the influence of certain meetings we have in our lives. Not to blame, but rarely are they impressionistic enough. However, Susan Wojcicki’s meeting with Larry and Sergey, does stand out as a tale to tell.
It was in September, 1998 when Susan met them and rented out her garage as Google’s first office. Not only did it pave the path for her to become the 16th employee of Google, but also led her to achieve unimaginable heights in her career. Susan became Google’s first Marketing Manager in 1999 out of sheer necessity. Building upon the opportunity, she grew within and with the company to become the Senior Vice President of Advertising & Commerce. She is known to have successfully steered the advertising and analytic projects of Google, including the ground-breaking AdWords, AdSense, DoubleClick, Google Analytics and the likes.
Her career didn’t stop just there. A story that began in the garage of her house, has today established her as the proud CEO of YouTube – a leading global video-sharing website. The incident is a constant reminder that almost anything can happen in one meeting!
SMU-DE Connect 2016 lived up to its promise of a similar career defining, significant, and life-changing meet for the alumni of Sikkim Manipal University – Distance Education – an event that helped them connect with their peers, an event that helped them network with their batch mates, and an event that helped them rediscover themselves among those who shared a similar thread named SMU-DE. One never knows – and we wish – that the person they met during the event for the first time, might have become a friend for life, or a mentor leading them to scale career heights, they only dream of.
Achievers received recognition, emotions went free, and memories got framed at the gala event in the heart of the city of Bangalore, turning a rather lazy Sunday afternoon into a day to remember for those present. Reverberating the unity of the alumni of SMU-DE was the highlight of the event – an exhilarating jam session over the djembes, conducted by musicians from Ghana.
The event also saw industry stalwarts Mr. Venkatesh Parathasarathy [CEO & MD, Food World Supermarkets Ltd] and Mr. Dinesh H S [India Lead, Global Talent Enablement, HP Enterprise] share their experiences of converting hurdles into success and mastering the art of constant learning. While recalling the roots of this success, Dr. N S Ramesh Murthy [Director, SMU – DE] and Dr. Gayathri Devi S [Professor & Dean – Research & Training. SMU-DE] extended their gratitude towards all present, for making it a memorable beginning.
A camaraderie, a partner, a new idea and much more began at Connect 2016, throwing open a whole world of possibilities; from like-minded companions bouncing off ideas, to the start of a new journey. A journey that promises to return every year and scale distances across the country.
Who knows, one might have begun an unforgettable future.
Network. Evolve. Thrive.
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