The hiring journey at TIER IV
TIER IV welcomes new graduates every April, but the company hires candidates throughout the year. Some hail from university laboratories, transitioning from part-time to full-time roles, while others arrive in autumn after completing studies overseas, including international graduates.
In this installment of TIER IV People, we gathered a group of team members for a roundtable discussion focused on our company's hiring journey. They shared their insights and experiences, covering everything from the interview process to onboarding.
Murooka Takayuki | Planning / Control Team
Takayuki joined TIER IV in April 2021. A University of Tokyo graduate, he studied humanoid robotics and was a member of the Robocon (robot contest) team during his tenure at Johou Systems Kougaku (JSK) Laboratory. He’s currently working on deceleration and stop functions for obstacles, as well as route planning.
Lobos Kenzo | Sensing / Perception Team
Kenzo joined TIER IV in November 2021. He participated in RoboCup SPL several times during his time at the University of Chile, before studying machine learning for robotics in the Harada Lab at the University of Tokyo. He’s currently working on sensor calibration and algorithm development.
Tomie Shintaro | Sensing / Perception Team
Shintaro joined TIER IV in April 2022 following his involvement in a joint project with TIER IV as a student. He is currently working on improving the recognition accuracy of CenterPoint and developing recognition algorithms that can be adapted for a variety of sensors and environments.
Kambe Ryuta | Computing Team
Ryuta joined TIER IV in July 2022. He studied type systems at graduate school and is currently working on improving the safety and speed of the lower layer of Autoware.
Mizuno Yudai | Human Resources / General Administration Team
Yudai leads the employee support team and is in charge of health and safety, onboarding, and business travel support. Before joining TIER IV in September 2021, he worked in the human resources department of a semiconductor equipment manufacturer for about 11 years.
Nakano Kurumi | Human Resource / General Administration Team
Kurumi joined TIER IV in 2017 as a member of the employee support team, where she is deeply involved in the onboarding process.
―― What was the interview process like?
Kenzo: The Q&A session went surprisingly smoothly. The interviewer asked me a few questions, like "Do you know this?" and I answered "Yes" and we were done! We spent more time chatting about technology.
Ryuta: It was pretty smooth for me, too. In my interview, I was asked, “What can you do?'' and “How can you contribute to the company?'' I simply told them about my areas of expertise.
Yudai: At TIER IV, we look at each person as a professional and that's why we have such a style, even in the interview process for new graduates.
Takayuki: During my third interview, Shinpei Kato, CEO and CTO of TIER IV, emphasized that the company values professionalism. "By the way, my professionalism is to perfectly adjust figures in PowerPoint,” he joked. I couldn’t understand it at the time, but I've come to understand it since joining the company. I realized that everyone has their own professional approach to work. I thought to myself, I could grow by having that kind of mindset.
Ryuta: I also spoke to Shinpei in the final interview, which lasted one hour. He spent the first five minutes talking about the company and for the rest of the time we talked about technology.
Kenzo: We chatted about technology the whole time in my final interview, too. At first, we spoke in Japanese, but since Shinpei is fluent in English, we spoke in English from the middle of the interview.
Shintaro: I had a fascinating discussion about technology during my interview with a software architect on the Sensing/Perception team. I asked questions about things that are the stuff of dreams but instead of just dismissing them as unrealistic, I was happy to receive responses like, "Technically it's possible, but this part is tricky. If we figure out this aspect, we can make it happen." It was encouraging to get such fitting answers. It was great to see that people at TIER IV are striving to make their dreams a reality.
―― What was your experience like when you first joined?
Ryuta: The most impressive thing was the “on-road training." I had the opportunity to ride in an autonomous vehicle on the Kashiwanoha campus, where autonomous driving experiments are being conducted. It allowed me to confirm things like how the system handles signals and turns.
Kenzo: I joined TIER IV in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. I worked from home right after joining the company and was assigned tasks from the first day.
Ryuta: The time from joining the company to starting work is short. There was onboarding training for about a week, and after that, I was doing the same work as other employees. That was good for me because I wanted to get used to the job quickly. In the first month, I was told to set goals for the next few months and was introduced to projects that I was likely to be overseeing at some point in the future. You get to take hold of the reins at an early stage.
Takayuki: I felt the same way. After the short onboarding training, I immediately started receiving tasks. My boss said, “Complete this task. Come up with your own algorithm, implement it, and give it a try.'' I preferred it that way.
Shintaro: A senior member of the team looked over my training materials and said, "Although it says to do it in autoware.auto, feel free to do it in autoware.universe." Experienced colleagues were very flexible and gave me advice on all kinds of things. The training sessions were designed to connect smoothly with the actual work being done at TIER IV. That flexibility struck me as very startup-like.
Ryuta: Lots of colleagues helped me, too. In the first month, we had an Autoware training program which was quite difficult. When I had problems setting up the software, I asked a lot of questions on a Slack channel for general inquiries called z-oshiete. As soon as I posted a question, someone would respond, which was really helpful.
Shintaro: Everyone is generous regarding gaps in knowledge. I used to think that you couldn't ask colleagues anything at competitive start-ups because of the strict culture. I'd interned at companies with that kind of intense atmosphere.
But at TIER IV, everyone is supportive of people who lack knowledge in certain areas. I've never encountered a situation where I wasn't able to get the information I needed to proceed. Employees can freely ask about even the smallest details on the z-oshiete channel. I didn't think a startup would have such a friendly atmosphere before joining the company.
Takayuki: I feel the same way. During my university days, I was surrounded by people with sharp minds, but sometimes they could be brusque. At TIER IV, the smart people are kind, too.
Yudai: It's reassuring to hear that there are people who will support you. A culture that allows employees to take on challenges is one of TIER IV's attractive points.
―― What kind of candidates would be a good fit for the company?
Ryuta: The long-term plans of start-ups and ventures are generally not set in stone, so employees have to create tasks for themselves. TIER IV's computing team strongly embodies this. People who can make their own decisions and create tasks in this way will be a good match.
Takayuki: Employees have a great deal of discretion. TIER IV would be a good fit for people who can take initiative and come up with algorithms themselves.
Kenzo: I think it's important to have people who can work without much guidance. Ideally, someone who can handle everything from design to verification and experimentation.
Shintaro: That’s right! I think people who have strong technical skills, who like to further develop their skills, and who can act on their own initiative will fit right in. Earlier, I mentioned an episode about the change in the training content. You have to be able to accept and adapt to meaningful changes, even when they occur suddenly.
Kurumi: I've been watching TIER IV’s growth for five years as a member of the HR team. People who are assertive and flexible can thrive at TIER IV, rather than people with passive characters. This is a company where things that have been decided are constantly evolving. It's good to be particular about details, but I also feel that flexibility is an important element.
Yudai: TIER IV is growing rapidly, and the human resources team has been playing catch up to some extent. We are in the process of setting up systems and will continue to enhance the training content. As everyone has said, people are proactive. I receive a lot of feedback and opinions through Slack.
I joined TIER IV because I wanted to support engineers closely and foster an environment in which they can thrive. We will continue to look at ways to create a comfortable working environment for employees and establish systems that support the growth of the company.
・・・
TIER IV is always on the lookout for passionate individuals to join our journey. If you share our vision of making autonomous driving accessible to all, get in touch.
We’re currently hiring for the following related positions:
Visit our careers page to view all job openings.
If you’re uncertain about which roles align best with your experience, or if the current job openings don’t quite match your preferences, register your interest here. We’ll get in touch if a role that matches your experience becomes available, and schedule an informal interview.
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