Garmin (was Re: Jobs?)

[Kendric Beachey]

Disclaimer:  I work for Garmin but I don't speak for them.  The following is 
merely my own observation.

True, the engineers do everything on Windows.  All the software you would run 
to interface with your GPS unit only runs on Windows.  There are some open 
source projects that will at least let you transfer some of the data in and 
out via Linux, but transferring maps still has to be done via Windows.  
(Windows via VMware should do this just fine, although that is a pricey 
solution.)

But inside the IT department, especially in the internet/intranet stuff, open 
source is the norm.  I even go so far as running Linux as my primary desktop 
(and use VMware just to read email).  Several open source packages that 
became part of our setup (and several that didn't) were first an unofficial 
pilot project on my desktop.

My advice for catching on with Garmin is BE PATIENT and don't get discouraged.  
We hired about 175 people last year from about 23,000 unsolicited resumes.  
With that kind of flooding, the HR department can't get anyone through the 
pipeline in any less time than a few months.  My own way in actually involved 
having a good friend in the IT department, but that isn't the reality for 
most people.  I'm not even sure that would work now; I myself have zero input 
into (and awareness of) the screening process.

A final note--the job threads that pop up on the list every now and again 
really make me feel for you guys.  Not a day goes by that I don't thank my 
lucky stars that I have a job, a job that I really love.  Keep your heads up 
folks!  Things may look bleak, but fulfilling jobs really are out there!
--
Kendric Beachey

On Thursday 13 March 2003 11:43 pm, Jeremy Oberg wrote:
> I don't know what the IT department is looking for, but the engineering
> side won't interview candidates that do not have a 3.5 GPA or higher.
> I think all their phones are handled by the phone company.  Their
> firewall appeared to be Raptor running on Solaris 2.6 .  They use all
> Dell equipment. They are switching from NT 4 to 2000 on the desktop.
> Their advertising department runs Macs. They run a mixture of
> Novell/NT4/2k on the server.  They run perl scripts on the desktops for
> versioning.  I think they're still using Star Teams for software
> development.  Last time I talked to them they seemed very opposed to
> Open Source Software in production (who is going to support it?  All we
> know is proprietary X), their IT department handles EVERYTHING
> internally (absolutely nothing outside!)
>
> That said Friday, Cessna is announcing who they are selecting for their
> integrated cockpit selection.  If Garmin wins the contract it should be
> several hundred million dollars, so I bet they would be hiring.
>
> -Jeremy
> They currently have job openings listed
> http://www.garmin.com/aboutGarmin/jobs/index.html
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: zscoundrel <zscoundrel at kc.rr.com>
> Date: Thursday, March 13, 2003 12:24 pm
> Subject: Re: Jobs?
>
> > I don't really have any contacts with them, but I know that they
> > make
> > more than just GPS units.  They were one of our toughest
> > competitors in
> > the aviation nav/com market when I worked for the old King Radio
> > division of Allied signal.
> >
> > As I understand it, when Honeywell absorbed Allied Signal, some of
> > the
> > old King Radio lines were sold off to Garmin.  This may have put
> > them in
> > an overstaffed position.  I have heard many stories about how well
> > Garmin is run, so I would imagine that they would retain and
> > reorganize
> > rather than lay off.  This would make it tough to get on as there
> > would
> > not be many openings.
> >
> > Keep trying, Garmin has a good reputation for being well and
> > ethically
> > managed, I am sure that it would be a good place to work.
> >
> > numa at thenuma.com wrote:
> > > There are other GPS companies out there, Trimble, Topcon, and in
> >
> > other> accurate instruments, you have Nikon, just to name a couple.
> >
> > > Trimble has purchased most of the existing GPS compaines.  Kris
> > >
> > >>If your referring to the GPS/Depth Finder company, yes a very hard
> > >>company to get into.  If you ever find the secret, let me know.
> > >>
> > >>Steven Elling said:
> > >>>I guess I'll throw this out there...
> > >>>
> > >>>Does anyone have a contact within Garmin?  I've tried to get on
> >
> > board>>>with  them since I graduated from DeVRY in `97 but I can't
> > even get a
> >
> > >>>call-back.   I've done everything from sending in résumés,
> >
> > filling out
> >
> > >>>applications,  submitting my résumé on-line in reference to current
> > >>>job openings, to  calling them up to speak to an HR rep.  Garmin
> >
> > has>>>been nothing short of a  tough nut to crack.
> >
> > >>>majordomo at kclug.org Enter without the quotes in body of message
> > >>
> >
> > majordomo at kclug.org>>Enter without the quotes in body of message
> >
> >
> > majordomo at kclug.org> Enter without the quotes in body of message
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > A marble traveling at 22,000 miles per hour would strike with as
> > much force as a 400-pound safe traveling at just 60 miles per hour.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > majordomo at kclug.orgEnter without the quotes in body of message
>

-- 
Kendric Beachey
ak at kc.rr.com

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