Chapter 1 Levy Question 2 - The World According to Google - Culture

[abartleKU]

2. From the start of Google in the late 90´s, Page and Brin started to work together in shaping their business idea, the group wished to keep a fresh spirit in the company. What is the Google culture, how was the culture created and promoted?

[Alauna Thornton]

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote:

2. From the start of Google in the late 90´s, Page and Brin started to work together in shaping their business idea, the group wished to keep a fresh spirit in the company. What is the Google culture, how was the culture created and promoted?

 Levy shares

“Brahat was convinced to work with the company because he could feel the pull of Larry Page’s crusade to make the world better by cracking hard problems at the intersections of computer science and metaphysics.”  Even with all of their inexperience the cofounders were considered technically adept and infectiously confident and this what created the atmosphere that promoted Google.”

[Sean Hadley]

Google culture is built on the founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin's belief in an "open culture". This philosophy encourages a "fresh spirit" where every employee is a hands-on contributor and has the flexibility to make suggestions across and even all the way to the executives of the company. Employees are hired today based upon the the idea their intellect and determination help the company and less emphasis on experience. (More)

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote:

[Beverly Pell]

I think Google culture reflects the attitudes, beliefs and values of its founders, Page and Brin. They profile their applicants meticulously. They have produced a culture which places value on the whole body, mind, soul and spirit. They use food, color, and space in "user-friendly" ways. Everything has to be "googly." Creative and innovative people tend to flock to areas which are open, stimulating, entertaining, playful, and inviting. Page and Brin want to be the best, so they hire the best and keep their employees in top condition. They operate with the philosophy that everyone matters. [oh, and their motto, "Don't be evil."] Everyone has something to bring to the whole; and if they didn't, they wouldn't be working there. Brin and Page also have excellent boundaries, and fill in their staff on a "need to know" basis. Plus, the founders couldn't care less what people think about them. 

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote:

[abartleKU]

This response doesn't answer the discussion question entirely, but provides some info about Google's culture. Here's a 2014 interview with Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg which gives some more insight into the Google culture, especially as it is today. The reporter asks questions about Google's work in China and privacy concerns people have about their data. Schmidt and Rosenberg talk about the value of diversity on teams to get the best ideas rather than selecting an idea based on consensus.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/video/inside-googles-culture-leadership-book-tells-google-works-25701847

I'm a visual person so for me seeing pictures of a Google office helps me to imagine the day-to-day life of a Google worker. Here's a link to the San Bruno office, where work on YouTube gets done http://www.google.com/about/careers/locations/san-bruno/ 

Google prides itself on being unconventional, innovative, and creative. The perception I have of Google is that it's a flat organization; people's job titles do not matter. People have funny job titles, such as Anti-Embarassment Enforcement Officer and Jolly Good Fellow. Their HR department is People Operations, and Google employees refer to it as POPs. They value technical expertise. 

I've had the opportunity to visit and work in Google offices, and I "drank the kool-aid." It was a great experience. 

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote:

[Christopher Simpson]

Google's culture is about being open minded, innovative, and different They encourage their workers to try new things and branch out to new ideas. Just as long as the new ideas fit with the motto.  "Don't be evil."
They are also ambitious, and are willing to try new things that other companies may not have tried before, and achieved that by beliving in " a core belief that the success of their company would hinge on having world-class engineers and scientists committed to their ambitious vision."

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote:

[Melania Piedra Barrera]

I think the phrase that starts the chapter summarize the Google culture "It was science fiction more than computer science".  These people were able to dream beyond of what it looks possible at that time, they were not experts in all the areas that were involved in that project, but were able to create a team, proving that what they were dreaming was possible.  Innovation, creativity, thinking out of the box and a little bit of craziness I think are also elements of this culture.

[Jake Montgomery]

You hear all the time about the 'Google culture', about how it's one of the top places to work and has been for ages, about how they set aside time to pursue passion projects, etc. But to me the culture is really identified in a quote from this chapter. I especially like it taken out of context: "That's not how we think [...] We are focused on our users." Lots of companies say that they are all about their users/consumers, but I don't really believe it. Most companies are about revenue. And though Google has made impressive amounts of money, I still think they are trying for the optimum user experience, which I certainly cannot say for other companies.

On Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 6:36:04 PM UTC-6, abartleKU wrote: