
Gaylon Blank
Manager, Partner Hardware
Microsoft
Microsoft
Manager, Partner Hardware
I manage a team that creates and oversees development of Xbox hardware.
A typical day on our team includes Skype conference calls with strategic hardware partners, in person meetings to triage the week's issues, as well as hands on testing of a variety of hardware both being built by Xbox but also accessories being developed by our hardware partners. With over 100 active products being developed in parallel there is a lot of collaboration and opportunities to see many different technical disciplines working together.
Here's the first step for high school students
Take school seriously. Don't do the minimum effort but put in 110% in everything you do. The lab report you do in school will be the baseline on how you think about requirements and technical specifications in the future. Be present and participate in clubs. Relating to people and being able to have real conversations with people is key to being successful regardless of how smart or technical you might be.