What makes Google great?
Following on from yesterdays theme of Knowledge Sharing here is a perfect example of a company that 'gets it'. Google is a company I really admire and would never bet against. Not for the usual reasons, but because of two 'life principals' that they seem to intuitively grasp and live by:
- It's all about people. You could argue and say that ok, people are important, but so are great products, an innovative business model, competitive advantage or perhaps great leadership etc. But when you trace back any other 'success factor' it comes back to people - its people that create businesses, designed great product and become leaders.
Create a organisation that is a magnet for attracting, and a hothouse for developing great minds, and everything else falls into place. - What goes around comes around. They are generous by nature; - and not just because it's a 'nice thing to do' but because it works. They seem to realise that like love, the more you give the more you have to give - that just as nature abhors a vacuum, it also bends to uphold and support any part that affirms life...that helps people to grow.
In the video below Marissa talks on the key principles that make up the 'Google system'. What other company in such a competitive environment would be willing to give away the family silver in such an open and generous manner?
Google are wise beyond their years. You can see this in this video that Marissa Mayer (photo) gives to Stanford University on 'Ideas about Innovation at Google'.
The video lasts 49 minutes so in case you don't have the time now to watch it, here's a summary of the principles. But do try to watch the video - there are lots of hidden gems:
Ideas come from everywhere. Google expects everyone to innovate, even the finance team.
Share everything you can. Every idea, every project, every deadline -- it's all accessible to everyone on the intranet
You're brilliant, we're hiring. Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin approve hires. They favor intelligence over experience
A license to pursue dreams. Employees get a "free" day a week. Half of new launches come from this "20% time"
Innovation, not instant perfection. Google launches early and often in small beta tests, before releasing new features widely
Don't politic, use data. Marissa discourages the use of "I like" in meetings, pushing staffers to use metrics
Creativity loves constraint. Give people a vision and deadlines
Worry about usage and users, not money. Provide something simple to use and easy to love. The money will follow.
Don't kill projects -- morph them. There's always a kernel of something good that can be salvaged
Have a great weekend and happy Father's day to all the Dads.
Related Article:
Google's 10 golden rules - and they're all about people
