Getting the Offer

Practical lessons from recent alumni on getting a job in this market

When I first arrived at HBS, the formalities of U.S. recruiting were incredibly confusing to me. Coffee chats with no coffee. Cold emails to strangers, hoping they would make time. Conversations that were not quite interviews, but not entirely casual either. 

Over the past year and a half, I have learned a lot about how recruiting works here. But before recruiting for full time roles, I decided to ask alumni in tech who had just gone through the recruiting process themselves what their biggest insights are. So I spoke with four alumni who took very different paths into tech: Matt Young (PM at Apple), Madden Osei (PM at Riot Games), Arushi Jindal (AI investing to DevRev Strategy & Ops), and Ivan Goryachev (Technical Staff at Pi). I asked them how they chose roles, how they secured interviews, what interviews actually looked like, and what they wished they had understood earlier.

Matt Young (Big Tech)

2+2 → McKinsey → NFL Chief of Staff → HBS → PM, Apple (iPhone)

How did you get your offer?

I interned at Apple over the summer in Services. There was no promise of a full-time role. During the summer, I had a coffee chat with a former MBA intern who had joined a year before me. At the time, there was no headcount. While I was on the China trek, she submitted my resume internally when something opened up. I interviewed during the trek and got the final offer the night before OWA move-out in late June.

How did you decide where to apply?

For my MBA summer, I made a list of 15 companies. I told myself not to put too much pressure on myself - I wanted to get outside my zone of knowledge. I wanted to do something new and either love the internship or hate it. 

For full-time, I withdrew from processes where I was just to ‘go through the motions of interviewing.’ I was also aware that many of the roles I wanted were just-in-time hiring. If I locked something in during September recruiting, I might miss something that would be posted in April. I was genuinely willing to graduate without an offer if it meant waiting for the right role. You need to have an honest conversation with yourself about how long you can sustain that before settling for any job.

I was solving for two out of three: company, location, type of work. If I was moving to a location I didn’t love, the bar for the job had to be high. I wanted to work in the core of the business, under strong leaders, at the cutting edge. With the right leader, opportunities compound.

What actually worked to get interviews?

Networking mattered, but not with executives. The former MBA intern who helped me was six months into her role. Cold emails worked occasionally, maybe 50% response rate when thoughtfully written. Resume drops alone were far less effective than targeted outreach. At the end of the day, you only need one to work.

What do interviewers look for?

If a company is hiring externally, they’re open to teaching you how to succeed internally. Show respect for existing processes. Ask smart questions and form a perspective. Acknowledge the learning curve.

Madden Osei (Late-Stage Startup)

McKinsey → Microsoft PM → HBS → PM, Riot Games

How did you decide where to apply?

Business school is expensive, but I optimized for growth over compensation. I wanted a role that felt slightly bigger than I could handle. Smaller teams, more ownership.

I applied to around 25 companies. Ten were through my network, 15 were cold. 8 of the 10 networked applications became interviews. 5 became offers. With cold outreach, I got 2 interviews and 2 offers.

When you chase too many rabbits, you catch none. Once I narrowed to entertainment x tech, the community started working for me and sent opportunities my way.

How do you actually get the interview?

The moment you get admitted to HBS, their job is done. Say thank you for the brand name and take it from there. I looked for HBS alums doing something big in the space I was interested in and worked to get warm intros to all of them. A lot easier of a strategy than searching in the ether.

Every job I got wasn’t posted on any website. My strategy was to connect with alumni and network, and explain what I want to do. I ended up finding jobs that weren’t posted anywhere. I used some first principles thinking: “What experiences do I want to get and what do I want to do” rather than focusing on a specific role. Let your network tell you what you should do and what role you should have. 

I didn’t formally apply anywhere until I spoke to the hiring manager. It’s physically impossible to sort through thousands of CVs. The way in is to get your resume directly to the decision maker. Most of the roles I got weren’t posted anywhere but rather came through a conversation.

What does networking actually look like?

People are more receptive than you think. And they like to talk about themselves.

During calls:

• Find what genuinely excites you about the role or business.

• Talk to the person in front of you like you would when you meet someone interesting at a bar - be genuine, don’t be rigid with a list of questions. 

• The goal isn’t to ask for a job immediately. It’s to ask, “Can you coach me in my career?”

• At the end, always ask who else you should speak to. Leave with a clear next step.

• Just be normal.

What do interviews look like?

Huge variation. Some had take-home assignments, product teardowns, panel interviews. In one case, I pitched myself into a role. When you talk to the hiring manager early, they give you the cheat code. Prepare obsessively. If it’s an AI role, use the product nonstop. If it’s gaming, play constantly. Show you can add value immediately. For AI roles, understand systems conceptually. Don’t just name tools.

Arushi Jintal (AI Startup / International)

VC Roles → HBS → Together (AI Fund) → DevRev Strategy & Ops

How did you decide where to apply?

Geography was non-negotiable. I wanted to return to India. I spoke to eight funds even if they weren’t hiring. For tech roles, I wasn’t too fussy about sub-sector, but I focused on AI. I got serious about three opportunities. People get confused applying everywhere globally after business school. Specificity helps you move faster.

What worked to get interviews?

Cold emails. All my jobs came from them. I used Apollo to source emails. In the email - I made sure to get to the point quickly. I found it was very effective to tell startups what are 3 specific ways you can do to help them. For investing, I sent my work upfront. 

How do you vet companies?

Revenue isn’t enough. Ask how conflicts are handled. Ask how founders behave in rough times. In India, the market is small. I always tried to find someone who knew someone at the company. Pay attention to the vibe.

What about interviews and skills?

Investing roles required presenting a thesis. DevRev required a consulting-style deck. Reuse and improve materials across rounds.

For business roles, highlight generalist skills. For GTM, highlight sourcing. For operating roles, show analytical depth.

Did you upskill?

Mostly on the job. But I spent weekends experimenting with AI tools, learning workflows, models, and agents. Curiosity matters. Show what you’ve built.

Ivan Goryachev (AI Robotics)

Mechanical Engineer → MIT → HBS → Technical Staff, Pi (Robotics)

How did you get your role?

I was set on founding after HBS, though this fell through around graduation. When it did, a friend introduced me to Pi. The interview included a 48-hour design challenge. I slept six hours total. I ended up also sending them a deck on where robotics is heading and what I would do if hired.

Treat the process like you’re joining as a co-founder and show that level of ownership.

Why take the job?

Three reasons:

1. Rare chance to be at the cutting edge.

2. Quality of people. The founders were transparent and humble.

3. Emotional continuity. Every role in my life opened because of the previous one.

What matters most in getting hired?

Good taste in decision-making and high motivation. Be humble, but not falsely modest. Don’t hide strengths. Don’t pretend you have skills you don’t.

Get as technical as you can. Build prototypes. Learn tools. Even non-technical roles require systems thinking.

Networking advice?

None of my jobs came from applying online. Blasting resumes led to one interview and one offer. When reaching out, don’t send casual coffee requests - make sure you respect other people’s time. Present a clear case for what you can contribute and have a specific ask.

What repeats across all four

Despite different paths, a few themes were consistent:

• Focus beats volume. Targeting 40 roles will lead to lower results than focusing on 10.

• Network > Linkedin. Sending in CVs won’t get you anywhere. 

• Technical fluency is increasingly expected.

• The best roles often don’t follow structured recruiting timelines. 

Recruiting into tech is less structured than consulting or finance. That can feel uncomfortable. But it also means the process is more malleable than we assume. Turn that into lemonade.

Shira Amit (MBA ‘26) is from Israel and is the current HBS Tech Club Co-President. She graduated from the Hebrew University with a degree in Philosophy, Political Science, and Economics. Prior to HBS, she was a Product Manager at Wix, Head of CRM at a startup, an air traffic controller, and had a stint in farming.