Let Them Eat Cheesecake. Tamir's Microsoft Journey & How You Can Get There Too (With A Little Cheesecake).

A little bit about M.E. (my.experience.)

Name: Tamir Bar-Haim

Nickname of choice: Tambo
Current industry: High-Tech (hardware/software/services)
Spice Girls or Backstreet Boys: Please. Is this a trick question? New Kids on the Block. The passion, the music, the rat tails, the dancing, the style, it’s no contest.


My roots.
Hometown: Richmond Hill
School attended: Wilfrid Laurier University
Program: Honours BBA, with a focus on marketing
Approximately how many classes I slept through: Almost single Economics class years 1-3
Favourite crunch-time snack: Cheesecake. Any kind. In case you haven’t tried it, the White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory can work miracles.

In the beginning.
Favourite first industry-related job or internship: Jr. Product Manager for Multimedia Graphics.
Company: ATI Technologies (now AMD Inc.)
How many years ago: Almost 7 years ago
What this experience taught me: What it takes to survive in the hi-tech industry. Work/Life balance is limited, everything you think you know changes daily and, to be truly successful in the long run, you need to be passionate and knowledgeable about technology (sounds obvious, but many don’t get it).  
The one thing I can’t believe I did here: Day one, I show up to work at my first internship. As I wait for my computer/laptop/something my boss tells me – “there are tons of loose computer parts lying around, build your machine.” I’m a marketing major working in an environment where everyone else was an Engineer so I was a little bit shocked. Not only did I figure this out, I later built critical machines from scratch for the press to test out our newest graphics cards and learnt a tremendous amount about PC architecture along the way.

Why I’m cool now.

Current employer: Microsoft Corp.

Position: Sr. Marketing Manager

Cubicle, desk or office: Office, complete with Raptors bobbleheads, calendars, wind-up toys, figurines and a lunch box. 

Favourite song to get you pumped for work: Renegades of Funk by Rage Against the Machine (not a fan of the politics, but damn, this song does the trick)

What’s interesting about what I do: My job involves helping to launch Microsoft’s most important products (e.g. Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008, etc.) and ensuring early adopters are familiar with the technology, are trained to use it and motivated to deploy it within their organizations. 

What I love about this job: Billions of people around the world use the products my company makes and I help to market. There are very, very few other companies that have left such a strong imprint on the world. I know many marketers who feel they are “selling out” by working for the Big Corporation and feel that they aren’t doing any good to society. This is nonsense. I love my company - Microsoft helps everyday people easily share stories, pictures and conversations with each other. I love that Microsoft helps businesses around the world be more productive and provides a platform for those businesses to innovate on. Like Microsoft and others, it’s possible to make a difference and have a positive impact in the Corporate world.  

Work I would prefer to give to the intern: I’ve been that intern! I think it’s important not to just dump busy work on students. For the most part, interns are willing to work harder than everyone else and just want a chance to succeed and learn.

How can you be as cool as me?

Never leave home without: My raincoat. Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring, Arbor Day, doesn’t matter. It’s not that Seattle is flooded with a tone of rain, but you can bet 6-8 months of the year it will rain at some point during the day. 

Just say 'NO' to: Apple, Google, Linux, CP24. It’s not that I drink the Microsoft kool-aid every day (though it tastes so sweet and wonderful) and insist that our products are always the best of the best (though Zune is great, try it!). I’m the kind of guy who is intensely loyal, and if I’m going to give years of my life to a company, I’m not going to shoot myself in the foot as a stockholder and employee just for an iPod or GoogleTalk. 

Advice for people wanting to take your job: Go for it! Be aggressive. The best advice I ever got was that you OWN your career and nobody will care more about it than you do. Think about your career path often, meet with people who have the job you want and learn what it takes to be successful, create a 5 year plan and look for opportunities to help you get there. 

Caveats of the industry: Everything moves very, very, very quickly. Technology is ever growing and game changers come along all the time. Your 3-year plan will likely last no more than 6 months. You need to constantly innovate and look out for what your competitors are doing. This means long nights and painful days coming along often – make sure you love it and that it’s worth it for you. 

Kick-ass perks: Free drinks (pop, coffee, hot chocolate, etc.) and shuttles to drive us around “campus.” But more importantly, the best perk is a Microsoft Card that gets you 50% a dinner for two at tons of restaurants around the city. When there are 50,000 or so employees in the same city who work at the same company, they can sure band together for kick-ass perks. 

You wouldn’t believe me if I told you: In America they call Pylons “Cones” and they don’t know what a “Garborator” is. Every day is a struggle. 

Closing statement: The Cheesecake Factory has more than 50 different types of cheesecakes. Every single day. Even right now.

And now, a depiction of Tamir's everyday thoughts presented in doodle form.
Click to enlarge.