The Biotech Startups Podcast
🧬 16 Years at Google Taught Me How to Scale From 1 to 150 People | Javier Tordable (2/4)
July 23 · 28 min · Episode 261 · 21.3 MB
0:00-28:34
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🧬 The Biotech Startups Podcast is powered by Excedr—helping life science startups accelerate R&D and commercialization with founder-friendly equipment leasing. Skip the upfront costs, stay lean, and focus on breakthrough science.
As a TBSP listener, you can get exclusive perks through Excedr's partner network—special savings, promotions, and more. Explore these offers today: https://www.excedr.com/partners
"You had this combination of being able to move fast, make changes quickly, but at the same time, responsibility and empowerment."
In this part of the podcast, Javier Tordable shares his early career journey—from starting at Microsoft to spending 16 years at Google as a Staff Engineer and Technical Director. He reflects on the engineering-driven culture at Microsoft and the welcoming environment that shaped his foundation in tech.
Javier recounts joining Google in 2008 when the company was still under 25,000 people, and details his work building key features for Webmaster Tools (now Google Search Console), including the Fetch as Googlebot feature. He and Jon also swap stories about the scrappy early days of building products with limited resources.
Key Topics Covered:
If you enjoy The Biotech Startups Podcast, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing it with your friends. Thanks for listening.
Subscribe to the Podcast:Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-biotech-startups-podcast/id1679591994Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PSL162R2s0zOwU5913Zv4YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thebiotechstartupspodcastWebsite: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Find our guest, Javier Tordable at these links:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtordableWebsite: https://www.pauling.ai/
Find our host, Jon Chee, at these links:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee/
Learn more about Excedr:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/Website: https://www.excedr.com
Intro & Outro Songs Created by OkKyojin, Owned by Excedr:Website: https://flow.page/kyojin
Resources & Articles:Engineering Leadership and Tech Lead Responsibilities: https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/engineering/careers/ic-leadership/tech-lead/Google Search Console and Webmaster Tools: https://search.google.com/search-console/aboutOrganizational Design in Tech Companies: https://a16z.com/scaling-your-technical-org/Scaling Engineering Organizations and Process Documentation: https://stripe.com/guides/atlas/scaling-engSEO Tools for Business Growth: https://www.semrush.com/seo/
Companies, Universities, & People Mentioned:Google: https://www.google.comMicrosoft: https://www.microsoft.com
Timestamps:00:00 Intro01:56 Adjusting to US Culture from Spain04:06 Microsoft's Engineering-Driven Culture05:20 Joining Google in the Post-IPO Era06:40 How the Google Opportunity Came About08:46 Working at Google: Speed and Scale09:12 Building Webmaster Tools and Search Console10:06 Jon's Early Days Starting Excedr12:26 Transitioning to Ads as Staff Engineer16:58 Management Roles and Team Leadership18:59 Operating at Google's Massive Scale20:29 Documentation and Knowledge Management21:05 Office Culture and In-Person Collaboration27:16 Outro
The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.
As a TBSP listener, you can get exclusive perks through Excedr's partner network—special savings, promotions, and more. Explore these offers today: https://www.excedr.com/partners
"You had this combination of being able to move fast, make changes quickly, but at the same time, responsibility and empowerment."
In this part of the podcast, Javier Tordable shares his early career journey—from starting at Microsoft to spending 16 years at Google as a Staff Engineer and Technical Director. He reflects on the engineering-driven culture at Microsoft and the welcoming environment that shaped his foundation in tech.
Javier recounts joining Google in 2008 when the company was still under 25,000 people, and details his work building key features for Webmaster Tools (now Google Search Console), including the Fetch as Googlebot feature. He and Jon also swap stories about the scrappy early days of building products with limited resources.
Key Topics Covered:
- Javier's early career at Microsoft and its engineering-driven culture
- Transitioning to Google in 2008 and the interview process
- Building features for Webmaster Tools and Google Search Console
- Google's culture of empowerment and moving fast
- Comparing early startup resourcefulness with big-tech engineering scale
If you enjoy The Biotech Startups Podcast, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing it with your friends. Thanks for listening.
Subscribe to the Podcast:Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-biotech-startups-podcast/id1679591994Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PSL162R2s0zOwU5913Zv4YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thebiotechstartupspodcastWebsite: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Find our guest, Javier Tordable at these links:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtordableWebsite: https://www.pauling.ai/
Find our host, Jon Chee, at these links:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee/
Learn more about Excedr:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/Website: https://www.excedr.com
Intro & Outro Songs Created by OkKyojin, Owned by Excedr:Website: https://flow.page/kyojin
Resources & Articles:Engineering Leadership and Tech Lead Responsibilities: https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/engineering/careers/ic-leadership/tech-lead/Google Search Console and Webmaster Tools: https://search.google.com/search-console/aboutOrganizational Design in Tech Companies: https://a16z.com/scaling-your-technical-org/Scaling Engineering Organizations and Process Documentation: https://stripe.com/guides/atlas/scaling-engSEO Tools for Business Growth: https://www.semrush.com/seo/
Companies, Universities, & People Mentioned:Google: https://www.google.comMicrosoft: https://www.microsoft.com
Timestamps:00:00 Intro01:56 Adjusting to US Culture from Spain04:06 Microsoft's Engineering-Driven Culture05:20 Joining Google in the Post-IPO Era06:40 How the Google Opportunity Came About08:46 Working at Google: Speed and Scale09:12 Building Webmaster Tools and Search Console10:06 Jon's Early Days Starting Excedr12:26 Transitioning to Ads as Staff Engineer16:58 Management Roles and Team Leadership18:59 Operating at Google's Massive Scale20:29 Documentation and Knowledge Management21:05 Office Culture and In-Person Collaboration27:16 Outro
The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.
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