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Guest:
Jennifer Petoff, Director of Program Management, Google (Site Reliability Engineering)

Episode Date:
August 30, 2025

Summary:
Jennifer Petoff shares her inspiring career path from chemist to Google leader in site reliability engineering. She discusses how intentionality guides her decisions, her passion for travel and door photography, and strategies for balancing personal interests with a thriving career. Jennifer reveals practical approaches for resilience, decision-making, and living life guided by core values.

Key Takeaways:

• Jennifer’s background in chemistry set her up for a unique tech journey.
• Intentionality is her guiding principle for career (and life) choices.
• Travel remains a core inspiration and “north star.”
• She balances work with creative projects like door photography.
• Time management and prioritization are essential.
• Open discussions with her husband inform major decisions.
• Working three days a week helps her focus on personal growth.
• She believes, “Nothing is irreversible” — especially in careers.

Memorable Quotes:

• “Nothing is irreversible.”

Chapters:

• 00:00 Introduction
• 02:30 Career Journey: Chemistry to SRE
• 05:11 Work-Life Balance Philosophy
• 07:50 Living with Intentionality
• 10:38 Navigating Career Change
• 13:28 Support Systems
• 16:14 Travel & Photography Passion
• 18:56 The Impact of Travel
• 21:42 Finding Motivation
• 24:02 Resources for Living Intentionally

Jennifer's treasure trove of links, books, and blogs -

https://www.pivotmethod.com/
https://wildcouragebook.com/ Wild Courage career book
https://sre.google (resources for people who might want to learn more about SRE, including the full text of all 3 SRE Books
Websites -
https://reliablepgm.com (professional and career advice, including “how to SRE anything”
https://travel.sidewalksafari.com (part-time travel)
https://doors.sidewalksafari.com (door photography)