In the founders letter, Larry and Sergey wrote "Google is not a conventional company. We do not intend to become one." Additionally, they noted that "you could expect us to make smaller bets in areas that might seem very speculative or even strange when compared to our current business." From its onset, Google has tried to do more yet important as well as meaningful things with its resources. The brand is one of the highly recognized around the world and the company's innovation in advertising and search has made its websites one of the highly used across the globe. According to Kuntze $ Metallic (n.d), the Google search engine is so popular that it is currently listed as a verb in the dictionary. It is one of the highly sought company in the world for its employee-centered policies and benefits. The company has offices in fourteen states and thirty-six countries around the world. The firm faces rapid changes and disruptive technologies in addition to competition in its business segments especially from companies that desire to connect people and providing them appropriate advertising.
Culture and employees
According to the company’s annual report (2015), Google prides its culture and embrace collaboration and creativity. It also encourages different ideas that help in addressing complex issues that it is likely to face. The company promotes transparency and dialogue in its operations while ensuring that any news from the company reaches the employees first using internal channels. Despite having achieved global status and maintaining unrivaled leadership in the industry, the company still cherish its roots as a start-up. It encourages its workforce to act on great ideas irrespective of their roles or responsibility within the company. There are opportunities for advancement in Google where each employee can be promoted based on merit. The employees enjoy their work at the company and cases of absenteeism and turnover are minimal.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Google hires employees with diverse perspectives and backgrounds that suit the global demand. The company strives to ensure that it provides a conducive environment for its employees enabling them to have a fulfilling career. The workforce is one of the best assets for the company and recognizes its role for its continued success. Despite hiring talented employees, the company offers competitive compensation programs. According to the annual report, Google had 61,814 full-time employees whereby 23,336 are in research and development, 19, 085 works in sales and marketing while 10,944 are attached to operations while 8,452 work in administration.
Shagvaliyeva & Yazdanifard (2014) discussed the importance of flexible working hours, benefits for employees and work-life balance to a company’s employees. The authors stated that flexible working hours are beneficial to both employees and employers. From the employee perspective, flexibility helps in the allocation of work and life responsibility. It also gives the worker an opportunity to manage their time between life and work-related activities. Where employees succeeded in both work and none work roles they are likely to find work-life balance leading to satisfaction. Flexibility has the potential of higher employee satisfaction, better performance, and stronger organizational commitment lowering absenteeism and employee turnover. It is a work environment that provides less stressful work, creativity, flexibility, recognition, teamwork and better remuneration that encourages employees to seek employment from one company.
The above factors and more make Google one of the best company to work with. According to Stewart (2013), Google offices around the globe reflect the company's long-standing philosophy which is to create the happiest as well as the most productive workplace in the world. The company has one of the best working environments in the world and high perks. The firm has play areas, coffee bars, cafes and open kitchens. It also has sunny outdoor terraces, a gourmet cafeteria that serves free breakfast, lunch as well as dinner. The conference rooms have velvet drapes, and there are conversation places that are designed to the standards of vintage subway cars. The company has a fully stocked library with private reading areas.
The company allows its software engineers to design the desks or workstations that look like oversize tinker toys. Some of the workstations have standing desks or even attached treadmill enabling them to walk while working. The employees scribble on the wall to express themselves, and the company is still pushing its boundaries of the workplace. The company provides for its employees including those who prefer to eat healthy diets. Such gestures show the care and importance that Google places on its employees. The company also maintains a map of where each employee lives whereby most of them is a walking distance from the Chelsea office (Stewart 2013)
According to one of the employees of the company interviewed by Stewart (2013) at Google, employees don't have to show that they are working or even act like they are working. The company's culture shuts down weekends by giving people a work-life balance while paying them handsomely. The employee mentioned subsidized massages, free eyebrow shaping once a week, free yoga and Pilate's classes. Professionals also teach different courses and there are health consultations by a personal health counselor. The list of employees’ benefits is endless making Google the company of choice for an individual who desires to have a work-life balance.
Current employees feel fortunate to work with the company. The company's physical space encourages creativity. By providing such space which is fun and where workers want to enhance the exchange of ideas. Great ideas are born from the interactions that the company's employees have. The work itself is motivating encouraging employees to be creative.
The success of Google in creating a friendly environment for its employees that keep them glued for long can be attributed to a long-term study which was aimed at understanding work. According to Bock (2014), the study was not a typical employee survey as such would be affected innate characteristics and the surrounding environment. The study included questions on static traits for example personality, attitudes on culture, co-workers and work projects. Similarly, the study identified how the employees fit into the connected environment. The interaction of the factors and the biographical characteristics are then considered. The short-term goal of the study is to improve the well-being of the employees like balancing work and personal life. The researchers placed individuals on a continuum of segments and integrators. The study is helpful in work-life balance, determining the characteristics of a team and the influencers of a satisfying as well as productive work experience. Similarly, it will be useful in identifying mechanisms for maintaining peak performance over long periods. It also helps to identify the process of raising new ideas and lastly how the company can maximize productivity and happiness at the same time.
References
Bock, L. (2014). Google’s Scientific Approach to Work-Life Balance (and Much More) . Harvard Business Review . Retrieved 14 January 2018, from https://hbr.org/2014/03/googles-scientific-approach-to-work-life-balance-and-much-more
Google, (2015), 10-K . Annual Report 2015. Sec.gov . Retrieved 14 January 2018, from https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1288776/000165204416000012/goog10-k2015.htm#sE6CD9F65F0AA8AE3CD60CA518A030F8A
Kuntze, R., & Matulich, E. Google: searching for value. Journal of Case Research In Business And Economics .
Shagvaliyeva, S., & Yazdanifard, R. (2014). Impact of Flexible Working Hours on Work-Life Balance. American Journal Of Industrial And Business Management , 04 (01), 20-23. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ajibm.2014.41004
Stewart, J. (2013). At Google, a Place to Work and Play . Nytimes.com . Retrieved 14 January 2018, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/16/business/at-google-a-place-to-work-and-play.html
