San Francisco Senior Technology Director Offers Career Advice In Management
Silicon Valley and the broader San Francisco Bay area lead the nation in job creation in technology and business management and the trend is expected to continue well into 2014. Chris Woldemar, a Bay Area native and senior director of engineering at Seagate Technology, a world leader in hard disk drives and storage solutions, offers expert advice in entering a career in technology and/or business management.
What is your current title and educational background?
"My current title and job is senior director of engineering at Seagate Technology in Scotts Valley, Ca. I lead a team of 12 engineers, chemists and technicians in Seagate's Motor Technology Group (MTG) where we help design some of the highest technology spindle motors in the world. I have a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Santa Clara University."
What other positions have you held in the tech industry?
"I'd have to consider myself a bit of an anomaly in today's fast changing high-tech industry where people often change jobs every few years. I've been working in the Hard Disk Drive (HDD) industry for over 25 years now. Working for Seagate was my first job straight out of college and I only left once for 2.5 years to work for another disk drive company temporarily until they went bankrupt and then was hired back to Seagate as a senior manager in the Motor Group. I've worked on numerous aspects of Disk Drive technology starting out as an acoustic engineer."
What advice can you offer to people interested in pursuing a career in high-tech?
"Every few years, there are tons of corporate initiatives that help provide insight into the characteristics and values companies find important. This certainly can help to understand what high-tech companies are looking for. However, I'm more of a purest and believe that to succeed in a high-tech career, you need to be passionate about the technology not about the career. I believe in hiring individuals that love what they do and get excited when a problem is finally solved."
Randy Yagi is a freelance writer covering all things San Francisco. In 2012, he was awarded a Media Fellowship from Stanford University. His work can be found on Examiner.com Examiner.com.
