While many other tech companies, including Facebook's owner Meta, have recently had to put recruiting efforts on the back burner, YouTube is still hiring.
The company has hundreds of open roles and is taking a future-minded approach to growth, CEO Susan Wojcicki said at Davos in May.
"When you go through a downturn, I think it's important to keep that long-term view," said Wojcicki, who noted that she's been through two recessions during her tenure at Google. "There may be areas where we decide to delay starting a certain project, but in general we're still saying this is an important business. We're going to grow; we're going to continue to invest here."
And despite a mixed response to YouTube parent company Google's new hybrid work week, which has employees back in the office about three days a week, Google remains one of the most attractive places to work in tech. The company ranked No. 7 on Glassdoor's list of the best places to work in 2022, down slightly from No. 6 on last year's list.
"A lot of people moved," Wojcicki said of YouTube's return to the office, which she described at Davos as a mixed bag. "We are a much more distributed company than we ever were beforehand."
Getting hired at YouTube is no easy feat. Employees are expected to be creative, while also having technical skills.
"YouTube is a product and engineering company, so we are always looking for outstanding people in computer science and technology," Allison Wright, YouTube's VP of people operations, told Insider. "It goes without saying that we are also looking for people who are as passionate as we are about video and experienced in the broader creative and entertainment industries."
Because YouTube is focusing on Shorts and shopping this year, the company is seeking candidates who are particularly innovative in those areas, Wright added.
Diversity is also a priority, given that the company's mission, as Wright put it, is "to give everyone a voice and show them the world."
Insider spoke with two current and three former YouTube employees to learn what it takes to land a job at the video giant. Some of the people spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized by the company to speak publicly about its hiring process.
How to stand out as an applicant
When reviewing candidates, YouTube looks at applicants' "Googleyness" — or whether an applicant's personality is a good fit for Google's culture, a current YouTube employee told Insider. The company prioritizes the ability to collaborate and to successfully approach various challenges, for example.
"At YouTube, we want to understand the person behind the resume," Wright said. "What distinct attributes and experiences are they excited to share with the team that will be impactful to their teammates, the evolution of our platform, and the success of YouTube."
Wright offered three tips for applicants: be yourself without researching the ideal responses to interview questions; know what YouTube does, with an understanding of the broader context of the platform; and demonstrate that you work well with others.
"At YouTube, collaboration is key," she said. "So when you're telling an interviewer about your experience, consider examples and learnings that express when and how you partnered with others to achieve a common goal."
Plus, it's important to be familiar with the platform as a consumer and, in some cases, as a creator.
A second current YouTube employee told Insider that they had a YouTube channel and a TikTok account prior to applying for a role at the company. And two other current employees who spoke with Insider in 2021 said they worked at a company that managed YouTube creators' businesses prior to landing their roles at YouTube.
For example, Matt Kovalakides, who is the former head creator liaison at YouTube, is also a former creator. He ran a comedy channel with 114,000 subscribers prior to applying to YouTube.
Another former employee who worked on YouTube Shorts said that their knowledge of short-form video, their previous experience working with short-form creators, and the fact that they, themselves, were short-form creators helped them stand out during the interview process.
If you've applied and you're still not getting any luck, the second current employee recommends applying to jobs at a company that works closely with Google or YouTube.
There are several advertising agencies and creator management firms that work with the company on various projects. The employee recommends using this experience as a stepping stone and a way to network with YouTube employees while gaining show relevant work experience.
Prepare for several rounds of interviews
The application process at YouTube typically consists of multiple rounds of interviews.
"It was definitely a difficult process," the former Shorts employee said. "I had to meet with people all across the business to really prove the fact that I understood the space and can provide subject matter expertise."
Here's what the several rounds of interviews usually look like, according to the employees:
- First, a phone screening with the recruiter.
- Then, several interviews with your would-be manager.
- Next, an interview with the head of the department.
- Then, an interview with someone who doesn't work within the department you're applying for, but works with the department.
- Lastly, your application is presented to Google's hiring committee, and you'll go through a background check.
- The recruiter follows up with applicants several times throughout this process to collect information to build out a profile, the first employee said.
Former interns can have a slightly different process. The second current employee completed an hour-long "end of internship" interview, as well as two back-to-back 45-minute interviews, before landing a full-time job.
A second former employee, who was interviewed in 2018 and went on to work as a software engineer, told Insider that the hiring process for them focused on coding drills. They did five rounds of interviews, all of them with fellow software engineers, none of whom were managers.
Before interviewing, they practiced coding exercises for months with a book called "Cracking the Coding Interview," by former Google employee Gayle Laakman McDowell.
"If you answer the questions right, you'll probably get in," the former employee said. "It's all technical, almost like an exam."
How to get that first interview
The two current YouTube employees said that college students looking to get a foot in the door should take advantage of Google's internship programs. These are typically offered to rising college seniors, though there are summer bootcamp programs available for younger students, as well.
The BOLD (building opportunities for leadership and development) Program is a paid summer internship for students in their third year of a four year BA/BS program or fourth year of a five year BA/BS program who are interested in working in technology, according to Google's career page.
"We have a lot of people who go through that internship program and then a year later, when they graduate, they are able to come back and join the company," the first current employee said.
Within the marketing department, YouTube offers a program called The APM (associate product manager) Program, which is designed for recent college graduates.
"It's sort of like an entry-level class of people who come into the company together and basically learn how to work within the organization," the first current employee said about the APM Program. "The program lasts a while, and people do rotations within the company. There are other equivalents to these programs within other departments."
The second current YouTube employee agreed, saying that they were a Google intern before joining YouTube full time. After completing the internship program, they were offered an interview for a full-time role.
"It can seem daunting to go work for YouTube or Google, but these programs can ease that transition," the first current employee added. "If you are going to apply, I think it's always helpful to have a referral."
If you don't know anyone who works at YouTube for a referral, don't fret. The first current YouTube employee recommends networking and connecting with employees who have your dream job on LinkedIn to plan an introductory call.
The first current employee told Insider in 2021 that they landed a role in the gaming department by networking at events that YouTube employees attended and building a working relationship with employees at the company. YouTube employees often attend events centered around creators and fan meet-ups, like VidCon, SXSW, Playlist Live, and VidSummit.
"What I strive to do is help people understand what the environment is like, what the expectations would be, and the things that you would want to know going into the job," the first current employee said about taking calls with people who reach out to them on LinkedIn. "I also try to help people understand what I believe we are looking for in employees, and how to portray that in the interview."
"The worst that happens when you reach out to someone is that they don't respond," they added.
Having a professional resume writer to help revise and rewrite your resume can't hurt either.
The first current employee shared that professional resume writers could know what specific keywords to include in a resume that YouTube might be looking out for.
"The process is both straightforward and mysterious," the first current employee said about YouTube's application process. "Be persistent and also try out anything that you think could benefit you."