Ex-Googlers, why do you write "Ex-Google" on your profile?

IANAExG - but

(1) If it's an important-enough part of their self-image, people tend to say that they were born in $State, graduated from $College, were in [$Fraternity|$Sorority], attend $Church, are a fan of $Sports_Team, etc.

(2) If's a prestigious-enough past association, people tend to mention that they knew $Senator back in high school, have met $Governor at a few ($VIP-type) charity events, etc.

(3) In an internet-sized social space, where ~0.000% of people could "just happen to know" each other, "IAAExG" is an extremely quick summary of where a person falls in the human and hacker social orders.

> To naive me it sounds like "I got fired from a company once"

Reading between the lines here I'm getting the sense that you think being fired is a huge red flag that should be a career stopper. To me, this, and scrutinising gaps in someone's resume feels archaic and a little bit sad. People leave companies for many reasons, reasons that in the past weren't quite understood. Mental health issues, addiction, changing priorities, motivation burnout, culture fit.

Leaving a big company like Google doesn't mean you automatically got fired - not everyone considers tech giants to be the end game. I worked for a short while at Apple and hated the silos. I had no insight into how my work was helping the mission and I couldn't give feedback to my managers or team. Even worse, I wasn't convinced my work was being used for anything, so I left. Am I unhirable now? I'm still going to use ex-Apple to get work that fits me better.

Google is not sexy anymore. It's a common pattern that people join it, get frustrated and leave to do cool things somewhere else. Being an ex-Google signals you went through the grind of interviewing, started working and saw stuff but thought you could do better. I don't think the implication is that you were fired.

Anyway, stereotypes.

The only icky thing here is that you're not ok with people leveraging their work experience to potentially get new jobs or network.

I used to have my email/LinkedIn in my HN profile and once I even got an interview offer. People also network when they have like-minded interests.

If you are competent enough and worked in other places, then the largest probability is that you left the company by your own accord. It doesn't matter if a company is prestigious or not. It's not fun and games. It's work. People leave.

But the funny thing is that even Recruiters don't really care about whether you were fired or not. If you worked for one, two, three years? That's a positive sign, even if you're fired. Unless someone only stayed for the probation period, they're good.

It isn't about pride; it's about finding a new job and having good new job prospects. I'm not a Googler, but have worked in Big Tech. I don't use "Ex-Y", but what is the problem in doing it?

Recruiters filter by such things, and it does carry some weight. Companies like to recruit folks from Big Tech.

Those folks laid off from Google weren't bad performers. Lay-off means that they are laying off people regardless of their performance as a change in their strategy, towards making shareholders happier.

Furthermore, you should stop being envious of silly stuff and focus on your life.

Availability bias. There are ex-googlers (for example, me) who do not write that and don't even mention that company in their CV, in my case - exactly because working there for only 4 months would not look good.

Slightly edited ChatGPT-generated text is below.

Availability bias occurs when people rely on information that is readily available to them, often overlooking or neglecting information that is not as easily accessible. In the example you provided, individuals may focus on the information that is more readily visible, such as those former Google employees who explicitly mention their association with the company on their profiles, while ignoring those (possibly the majority) who do not mention it. This bias can lead to distorted perceptions and judgments based on the information that is most easily recalled or observed.

It is about credibility. Ex-Harvard, ex-Goldman Sachs, ex-Apple - whatever it is, the institutions that you have previously been a part of can lend their credibility to you and therefore change the reader's perception of your own competence. The goal, of course, is to have built your own reputation which secures that credibility, but it is perfectly acceptable to say "these people who know what they are doing trusted me and therefore you should too".

It’s brand recognition

Its a trend and not just related to Ex-Googlers.I think it helps recruiters find good candidates who have worked previously at Good companies.

> To naive me it sounds like "I got fired from a company once".

You do realize people quit their jobs way more often than they get fired right?