What 20 Years in Tech Taught Me About Career Growth and Leadership

On November 25, Morgan (程墨), a Principal Software Development Lead at Hulu with nearly 20 years of experience at Motorola, Microsoft, Yahoo, and as co‑founder of Yuniao Delivery, delivered a career‑planning and leadership lecture at Peking University’s School of Information Science and Technology.

Story 1: Leaving Your First Company

"How to walk out of the door? Winner or loser?" – When deciding to quit, ask yourself this. Exit with a winner’s mindset: finish your work well, influence others, and try to improve the environment even if you fail. Changing companies alone may not solve the problem.

Story 2: Advice from a Senior Mentor

"How to become a senior engineer?" – Technical skill alone isn’t enough. Effective communication, teaching, and influencing others are essential. Learn to interact with architects and help teammates master new concepts.

Story 3: What Is Your Belief?

Yang Zhiyuan said, "You join a company because you believe in its philosophy, not out of loyalty." Choose workplaces whose values match your own, as illustrated by a colleague who rejected an offer from an entertainment‑focused product company.

Story 4: Being Outstanding Is Not Enough

Leaders must realize that personal excellence is useless without a capable team. Consider how the team would operate if you were absent; sustained success requires collective strength.

Story 5: Facing Challenges

When confronted with challenges, adopt a positive attitude. A leader’s optimism determines outcomes; pessimism drives teams away.

Story 6: The Most Important Quality

As a hiring manager, I value knowledge, experience, and integrity, with integrity being paramount. Integrity means consistency between words and actions and honesty.

These curated insights aim to inspire and guide your professional journey.

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