Many case studies and whitepapers touch on the complexity and simplicity of Google’s organizational culture. While Microsoft has a more formal organizational culture and believes in keeping old school work styles, Google experiments with new elements that constantly redefine its work culture. Each company should have its own culture, but it doesn’t mean organizations cannot follow the lead of most intuitive tech giants like Google.
The secret behind Google’s heightened creativity, productivity, and increased employee engagement comes down to having a happier and stress-free work environment. Google tends to empower its employees rather than assume control or micromanage their activities.
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Google’s Unique Organizational Culture
The world-renowned company has been an active player in developing new tech services and solutions. Google has over a dozen awards, including the Best Organization for Women, Best CEO, and Best Organizational Culture.
But if you don't measure the value of a company based on awards – take the word of their previous employees, and you’ll learn the level of fun and excitement Google creates in its work environment. Google understands that all work and no play can make any workplace dull.
Google consistently brings out new elements into its work environment to create more excitement, productivity, and innovation among its employees. While “how” Google’s HR operates is not clear –it seems that the company rewards its employees far more than market-competitive salaries and benefits.
A top-tier tech giant like Google features dedicated video game stations and nap pods and provides free food to its employees. If you’ve ever had the chance to visit Googleplex, you’ll notice that it is designed as a bright and open space where employees can feel safe and comfortable.
Google’s workplace culture is based on evolved organizational, philosophical, and technological values. In fact, these values continue to help Google secure long-term success. Many reasons make Google’s organizational culture vibrant and encourage talented people from all over the world to be part of it.
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Organizations often wonder what makes Google’s organizational culture so unique. But when they find the answer – it becomes hard to grasp that driving innovation and empowering employees can lead to such drastic improvements.
Google continues to roll out more progressive initiatives that can cater to the needs of millennial and Gen Z employees. Even Google’s internship program is iconic and encourages participants from all over the United States.
Here are the core elements that make Google’s organizational culture unique in 2023:
A Socially Active Workplace
Google is a fun place to work – it doesn’t believe in boring cubicles that create a claustrophobic feeling. Google’s employees thrive in open and vast spaces. In this workspace, employees can work long hours and enjoy every single moment of it.
Google leads with innovation and data, and it uses the same formula to design its open and expanse workplaces. Sure, a lot of companies have dedicated socialization areas where employees can relax, dine, and have fun. But Google takes this initiative to the next level. The company offers its employees a wide range of added services that save their valuable time and energy.
Whether you want to get a professional haircut, dive into a swimming pool, or get a massage, Google’s got its employees covered. In-house services available within the Google headquarters mean employees don’t have to go outdoors for even dry cleaning. Employees can also avail in-house dental and health checkups.
On top of lunches/dinners and snacks – Google has developed a state-of-the-art gym and has built space to encourage employees to play football, table tennis, and other sports. But the perks vary and depend on which Google office you’re working at.
Data-driven Business Decisions
As a premier search engine company, Google understands the value of taking calculated, logical, and analytical decisions based on data. In the age of big data, Google simplifies data to streamline operations, improve employee engagement, maintain direct communications, etc.
At Google, data is the Holy Grail that can optimize decisions around a task or project. Google sees past optimal processes and interprets data to find new opportunities. From automating processes to creating meaningful dialogue, Google never lets an opportunity slip and believes in proactive employee engagement to build effective teams.
Open Communication
Google believes in the science of happiness, which means having open communication guidelines. Like most tech-driven companies, Google uses similar communication tools to share messages with teams. But it prioritizes direct and open communication to avoid misunderstandings. It is an effective way to push the best opinions and ideas to the top.
From CEO to the floor managers – communication revolves around an open-door policy. While there’s no extra incentive for employees who provide feedback, open communication encourages employees to speak up their minds and be honest about new ideas and concepts. Google is a highly innovative company, and it actively hires people who want to share new ideas and believe in collaboration.
Highly Creative Employees
There’s a creative workforce, and then there are Google’s highly innovative employees. But unlike many companies, Google has realized that there are many ways to encourage creativity in the workplace. And the happier the employees are – the more creative and productive they can be in their workspace.
Google’s organizational culture gives mental and physical space to employees to do their thing. Besides, Google understands that productivity has to be meaningful – not mindless. Google employees get the opportunity to work in an environment that makes them comfortable and joyful. While Google doesn’t have cubicle restrictions – young employees don’t find conventional ways of working exciting.
The onboarding process of Google is unique – it prioritizes its employees' creativity over how productive they can be. If a potential candidate doesn’t have a lot of experience but has the passion and curiosity for learning – Google follows through with the hiring. Google hires its employees based on skills, character, and willingness to learn.
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It is one of the main reasons Google always manages to build highly innovative and competent teams. Google values self-starting, team-centric, innovative, self-reflective, and fun people. You can learn coding and design skills, but it takes character to make work exciting for you and your colleagues.
Professional Development and Training
Professional career development often becomes too complex, and skilled individuals struggle to take up a specific position. Google allows employees to make career changes within the company and provides advanced training.
Of course, Google doesn’t compromise on the quality of work and skills, but it gives employees the option to switch careers and provides required training to make a seamless transition. It is one of the most effective ways to retain talented employees and cut back on recruitment and onboarding costs.
Solid Core Values
From company leadership to the CEO, everyone follows Google’s values of innovation and empowerment. During the onboarding, Google communicates its core values. Some of the most famous values of Google’s culture include “great isn’t good enough,” information transcends borders,” “there’s no need to be at a disk to be productive and answer questions,” fast is always better than being slow,” etc.
Having solid and clear core values allows Google to target people who hold the same values. Working at Google means employees can expect top-notch financial and emotional support. Google hires like-minded individuals to foster more innovation and collaboration at the company.
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What Companies Can Learn from Google’s Unique Work Culture
In the end, Google perfectly reflects its management, leadership, and culture. Even if you’re not a tech firm – you can still take away many lessons from Google’s unique work culture. Focus on Google values to make your workplace culture successful.
In the last decade, Google has become a prestigious company to work at. But it’s more than just about high salary benefits and compensation – it’s the added flexibility that gives employees room to grow. Google fosters intellectual employees that want to transform how workflows are optimized.
Final Thoughts
Google treats its employees with dignity and respect to cut out stress and drive more innovation in the workplace. Google wants its employees to prosper and uses direct communication to share and test ideas. Ultimately, Google has created a work environment where employees can feel comfortable and share new ideas without repercussions.
On the surface, Google’s approach may seem counter-productive, but the company risks finding new ways to get the work done and keep its employees happy and innovative. There is no insider secret that Google makes its internal operations and work processes more complex. It simply empowers its employees to communicate and cultivate camaraderie to take care of tasks and build a lively culture.
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By: Brandi Marcene