MongoDB Named One of the 25 Highest Rated Public Cloud Computing Companies to Work For

#cloudculture badge

At MongoDB, we are very proud of our culture and were recently recognized by Battery Ventures in their “25 Highest Rated Public Cloud Computing Companies To Work For." This is a list based on Glassdoor ratings and reviews left by employees. We’ve entered this list for the first time and we are really honored to be featured on it.

Of course, this isn’t just about the company but about everyone who works or has ever worked at MongoDB who have all contributed to making this a great place to work. The Glassdoor rating of 4.3, according to the top 25 list, is a testament to that. Our CEO, Dev Ittycheria, has a 93% approval rating on Glassdoor too; a score that reflects his strong leadership.

Dan Heasman, our Chief People Officer said, “At MongoDB, we have managed to maintain low power-distance — access to senior leaders is easy for everyone. We place experimentation, learning and continuous improvement at the forefront of how we execute — and people know that they are working on things that truly matter and contribute to our growth. Most importantly, and what continues to inspire me, the quality of the people here is incredible. We continue to hire bright, brilliant, and energizing people who share our core values.”

Those core values are found everywhere in MongoDB; they are part of everything we build and every decision we make. Those core values lead to the sentiments reflected through many of our Glassdoor company reviews at MongoDB such as this:

MongoDB puts hiring the best and developing employees as a top priority. They set vision for growth and outlined objectives to get there, with a strong follow-through. The team culture is collaborative, and fun with lots of team extra-curricular activities. Employees get tons of resources to further develop their skills and there is no real hierarchy culture. The CEO is active in conversations with all levels — there are no politics, just shared efforts towards growth.

We are grateful to everyone at MongoDB for their work in creating a great culture and to Battery Ventures for recognizing us as a top company to work for. If you are interested in exploring our open job opportunities, take a look at our Careers page and join us!

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Repeatable Performance Tests: CPU Options Are Best Disabled

In an effort to improve repeatability, the MongoDB Performance team set out to reduce noise on several performance test suites run on EC2 instances. At the beginning of the project, it was unclear whether our goal of running repeatable performance tests in a public cloud was achievable. Instead of debating the issue based on assumptions and beliefs, we decided to measure noise itself and see if we could make configuration changes to minimize it. After thinking about our assumptions and the experiment setup , we began by recording data about our current setup and found no evidence of particularly good or bad EC2 instances . In the next step, we investigated IO and found that EBS instances are the stable option for us . Having found a very stable behavior as far as disks were concerned, this third and final experiment turns to tuning CPU related knobs to minimize noise from this part of the system. Investigate CPU Options We already built up knowledge around fine-tuning CPU options when setting up another class of performance benchmarks (single node benchmarks). That work had shown us that CPU options could also have a large impact on performance. Additionally, it left us familiar with a number of knobs and options we could adjust. Knob Where to set Setting What it does  Idle Strategy  Kernel Boot  idle=poll  Puts linux into a loop when idle,  checking for work.  Max sleep state    (c4 only)  Kernel Boot  intel_idle.max_cstate=1  intel_pstate=disable  Disables the use of advanced  processor sleep states.  CPU Frequency  Command Line  sudo cpupower frequency-set -d  2.901GHz  Sets a fixed frequency. Doesn't  allow the CPU to vary the  frequency for power saving.  Hyperthreading  Command Line  echo 0 > /sys/devices/system/  cpu/cpu$i/online  Disables hyperthreading.  Hyperthreading allows two  software threads of execution to  share one physical CPU. They  compete against each other for  resources. We added some CPU specific tests to measure CPU variability. These tests allow us to see if the CPU performance is noisy, independently of whether that noise makes MongoDB performance noisy. For our previous work on CPU options, we wrote some simple tests in our C++ harness that would, for example: multiply numbers in a loop (cpu bound) sleep 1 or 10 ms in a loop Do nothing (no-op) in the basic test loop We added these tests to our System Performance project. We were able to run the tests on the client only, and going across the network. We ran our tests 5x5 times, changing one configuration at a time, and compared the results. The first two graphs below contain results for the CPU-focused benchmarks, the third contains the MongoDB-focused benchmarks. In all the below graphs, we are graphing the "noise" metric as a percentage computed from (max-min)/median and lower is better. We start with our focused CPU tests, first on the client only, and then connecting to the server. We’ve omitted the sleep tests from the client graphs for readability, as they were essentially 0. Results for CPU-focused benchmarks with different CPU options enabled The nop test is the noisiest test all around, which is reasonable because it’s doing nothing in the inner loop. The cpu-bound loop is more interesting. It is low on noise for many cases, but has occasional spikes for each case, except for the case of the c3.8xlarge with all the controls on (pinned to one socket, hyperthreading off, no frequency scaling, idle=poll). Results for tests run on server with different CPU options enabled When we connect to an actual server, the tests become more realistic, but also introduce the network as a possible source of noise. In the cases in which we multiply numbers in a loop (cpuloop) or sleep in a loop (sleep), the final c3.8xlarge with all controls enabled is consistently among the lowest noise and doesn’t do badly on the ping case (no-op on the server). Do those results hold when we run our actual tests? Results for tests run on server with different CPU options enabled Yes, they do. The right-most blue bar is consistently around 5%, which is a great result! Perhaps unsurprisingly, this is the configuration where we used all of the tuning options: idle=poll, disabled hyperthreading and using only a single socket. We continued to compare c4 and c3 instances against each other for these tests. We expected that with the c4 being a newer architecture and having more tuning options, it would achieve better results. But this was not the case, rather the c3.8xlarge continued to have the smallest range of noise. Another assumption that was wrong! We expected that write heavy tests, such as batched inserts, would mostly benefit from the more stable IOPS on our new EBS disks, and the CPU tuning would mostly affect cpu-bound benchmarks such as map-reduce or index build. Turns out this was wrong too - for our write heavy tests, noise did not in fact predominantly come from disk. The tuning available for CPUs has a huge effect on threads that are waiting or sleeping. The performance of threads that are actually running full speed is less affected - in those cases the CPU runs at full speed as well. Therefore, IO-heavy tests are affected a lot by CPU-tuning! Disabling CPU options in production Deploying these configurations into production made insert tests even more stable from day to day: Improvements in daily performance measurements through changing to EBS and disabling CPU options Note that the absolute performance of some tests actually dropped, because the number of available physical CPUs dropped by ½ due to only using a single socket, and disabling hyperthreading causes a further drop, though not quite a full half, of course. Conclusion Drawing upon prior knowledge, we decided to fine tune CPU options. We had previously assumed that IO-heavy tests would have a lot of noise coming from disk and that CPU tuning would mostly affect CPU-bound tests. As it turns out, the tuning available for CPUs actually has a huge effect on threads that are waiting or sleeping and therefore has a huge effect on IO-heavy tests. Through CPU tuning, we achieved very repeatable results. The overall measured performance in the tests decreases but this is less important to us. We care about stable, repeatable results more than maximum performance . This is the third and last of three bigger experiments we performed in our quest to reduce variability in performance tests on EC2 instances. You can read more about the top level setup and results as well as how we found out that EC2 instances are neither good nor bad and that EBS instances are the stable option . If you found this interesting, be sure to tweet it . Also, don't forget to follow us for regular updates.

April 30, 2019
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Being Latine in Tech: Two MongoDB Employees Share Their Advice on Building Careers in Engineering

Ashley Naranjo and Martin Bajana, members of MongoDB’s employee resource group QueLatine, share their career journeys and offer insight into how other members of the Latine community can build careers in tech. Jackie Denner: How did you make your way into the tech industry? Ashley Naranjo: I am a first-generation Latina with a passion for Information Technology and a knack for problem-solving. After graduating early from high school, I embarked on a career in Nursing. I chose Nursing initially because I wanted to make a difference and help others, but my path took an unexpected turn when COVID-19 reshaped our world. In light of the circumstances, I reevaluated my options and decided to seize an opportunity with a program called Year Up . During the intensive six-month training and deployment phase, I not only completed rigorous coursework but also obtained IT Google Coursera certifications and actively pursued CompTIA certifications. This experience allowed me to secure an internship at Meta (Facebook) as an Enterprise Operation IT Support Tech, where my love for technology blossomed. During my time at Meta, I had the privilege of assisting diverse Meta users worldwide with a wide range of technical issues, including troubleshooting, software and hardware support, internal access permissions, and more. The exposure to a global tech environment further fueled my passion for the field. When my internship concluded, I was offered a 1-year contract role with Meta to continue my work as a support tech for the same team. Throughout that year, I immersed myself in all aspects of technology, maximizing my learning opportunities and applying my networking skills. As time went on, I knew I needed a new challenge. This led me to embark on a search for an exciting role, which eventually brought me to MongoDB. I am passionate about driving technological innovation, and MongoDB is a place where I can make an impact. Martin Bajana: My interest in technology stems from a variety of sources. From a young age, I developed a strong passion for video games and exploring new technologies. Whether it was experimenting with the latest gaming consoles or delving into computer hardware, I relished the opportunity to learn and understand the inner workings of these technologies. In school, I discovered my affinity for mathematics, which further solidified my decision to pursue a career in the tech industry. Choosing to study computer science in college was a natural progression for me, as it allowed me to combine my love for technology with my aptitude for problem-solving. After completing my education, I was recruited by Verizon, where I worked on front-end applications and Android development. Although the transition was initially challenging, I persevered and regained my confidence. It was during this period that I realized a career in technology was my long-term aspiration. Throughout my tenure at Verizon, I embraced opportunities to work across various teams, acquiring valuable experience and honing my skills. Eventually, I made the decision to join MongoDB, which has provided me with an enriching journey and the chance to shape my career in the tech industry. JD: Have there been any challenges you've faced throughout your career? AN: Imposter syndrome has been a significant challenge for me throughout my career, and it's something I still deal with to this day. When surrounded by my talented colleagues, I would often compare myself to them and focus on my perceived weaknesses and flaws, leading to a lack of self-confidence. However, I tackled this issue by addressing my feelings with my manager. Her support and guidance helped me realize my own potential and acknowledge my accomplishments. Maintaining a positive mindset has enabled me to view myself as a competent engineer and recognize the value I bring to my team. I have learned to take ownership of my successes and embrace opportunities for growth. Stepping out of my comfort zone has become a regular practice, as personal and professional development often stems from embracing challenges and discomfort. By giving myself permission to take up space and be confident in my abilities, I have been able to overcome imposter syndrome and continue to thrive in my role. MB: I have been fortunate enough to work for companies and teams that value and respect me for the work I deliver. Being in the tech industry and growing up in a culturally diverse region of the country, I have had exposure to individuals from various backgrounds and identities, which has made me more comfortable as a Latinx individual in the industry. My personal goal is to promote a work environment where everyone is judged based on the contributions they bring to the team, rather than their identity. I believe in supporting and respecting the identities of my peers and coworkers while fostering a culture of inclusivity and equality. JD: How has MongoDB supported your career growth and development? AN: In my time working at MongoDB, I have experienced exceptional support that has greatly contributed to my professional development and growth. As an engineer at MongoDB, I have been provided with numerous opportunities to expand my knowledge and skills through participation in tech talks, hackathons, and continuous learning about emerging technologies. I am grateful for the proactive approach taken by my manager and team leaders in fostering my growth as an engineer. Additionally, MongoDB's commitment to diversity and inclusion is evident through the company's DEI initiatives. Platforms like our employee resource group “QueLatine” have made me feel a stronger sense of connection and belonging, particularly among my Latinx peers. By recognizing the power of our diverse backgrounds and experiences, MongoDB empowers us to have a meaningful impact in the industry. MB: I have experienced full support from my leader since day one. They have proactively sought to understand my career goals and have helped me create a clear career path to achieve those goals. This level of support has enabled me to take on challenging projects and initiatives within the company, allowing me to grow and develop in my career. Furthermore, MongoDB offers a wealth of learning and development resources to its employees, which I have fully utilized to continue learning and growing my skill set. JD: What is your advice for other Latines who want to begin careers in tech? AN: Having made a significant career change myself, I can empathize with the challenges that come with exploring new paths, particularly in the tech industry. As a Latina in tech, I feel a strong desire to encourage and raise awareness within our community about the incredible resources and opportunities that are available to us. My advice to others who may be considering a similar journey is to prioritize the continuous development of your technical skills, actively seek out mentoring opportunities, push yourself beyond your comfort zone by honing your networking abilities, and most importantly, believe in yourself and your ability to achieve great things! MB: Navigating the vast world of technology can certainly be overwhelming, but it's important not to fear feeling lost. Even after 12 years in this career, there are still days where I come across something I've never heard of before. Fortunately, we live in a world abundant with resources for continuous learning. My advice is to take the time to explore and ask questions. Seek out open-source projects that you can contribute to, and connect with other professionals in the tech industry who can share their experiences and provide guidance. Additionally, taking advantage of hackathons and other tech events can expose you to new technologies and ideas. Don't be afraid to make mistakes, and most importantly, don't give up! Join us in transforming the way developers work with data. Build your tech career at MongoDB .

September 20, 2023