Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Corporate Culture
Free reflections on corporate culture inspired by Three Years of Misery Inside Google, the Happiest Company in Tech . There is also her free retelling in Russian .
If very, very briefly, the bottom line is that the good values and message that Google laid the foundation of its corporate culture at some point did not work as it was intended and give almost the opposite of the expected effect. Something from the category of "make a fool to pray - he will break his forehead." What used to help the company find innovative solutions began to work against the business. Moreover, it resulted in mass protest marches (is it a joke, more than 85 thousand employees work in Google).
Here in the free retelling of these values. Here, I mainly relied on the Google code of conduct, but it, with an infection, changed into a quiet glanders, so some things are no longer there, or they are rephrased to a state of complete blur. I believe, including because of the events fascinatingly described in the article, a link to which I gave at the beginning of the post.
Further down the list: Serve our users, Usefulness, Information and the like.
In the modern version of Code of Conduct, paragraphs 1 and 2 are removed from the status of a moral imperative into a kind of soft wish (not even numbered) at the end of the document: “And remember ... don't be evil, and if you see something that you think isn't right - speak up! ”
So here. At first glance, nothing bad can be seen here, even though in the church preach these commandments. But, as it turned out, there is a fundamental danger to the organization itself, especially such a gigantic size as Google. This problem lies in priorities. Previously, the first two principles were put ABOVE all the others. And this automatically made possible the situations described in the article and at the same time practically deprived the company of the tools for their regulation by administrative methods. Because such regulation would be contrary to the priority of values.
Someone from the staff felt that there were too few female programmers in the company, which meant they were discriminated against. Guided by the obligation to dissent, he declares this to the whole company.
The management, scratching the turnip, replies that they say we have the same opportunities for everyone, but there are really not enough girls, therefore, dear recruiters and interviewers, let us be more careful with the female candidates, we will promote equality, so to speak. Numerical.
In response, another employee, guided by the same principle, loudly claims that these actions lower the bar of a house of a high culture of engineering life and, in general, what chaos. In addition, he is rolling out an article - citing even some research - that women are physiologically less likely to be an engineer, so we have what we have.
The masses literally boiled in a unanimous rush. Well, it started. I will not retell, read for yourself, I still will not succeed so well. The trouble is that the company can’t plainly put ears on both sides in this situation, because this will mean a violation of the first principle, which has priority.
Theoretically, one could turn to the second principle - “Don’t be evil” - and appeal to the fact that employees began to do uniform evil. But either situationally it was not visible, or it did not work. It is difficult to judge, for this it was necessary to be in the thick of things. One way or another, the cultural imperative did not work as intended.
Or here is another example. Google decided that it would be nice to go to China and make the users there happy while improving the company's financial position. But there is a small nuance: for this you need to comply with Chinese law and censor search results.
During the discussion of the Chinese project on TGIF (a general meeting at the office in Mountain View), one of the employees (this is an infection!) Carefully asked everyone: Isn't it evil? The masses, as usual, boiled in a unanimous impulse: of course, evil, which is incomprehensible.
Attempts to tell what it is for the benefit of users and for the dissemination of information — all as we love — could not change the opinion of the proletariat. The Chinese project had to be curtailed, deliberately abandoning an amazing business opportunity. And again, due to priorities. Don't be evil is higher than the dissemination of information and the irreparable benefit of the Chinese.
The third example. Last, I promise, the rest is in the article. James Mattis once arrived at Google, the one who was the Pentagon leader until Trump kicked him out of there. Mattis suggested that Google collaborate in the field of computer vision and recognize military objects on photographs from military satellites so that the most advanced army in the world becomes even a little more advanced.
Google agreed, but just in case did not talk about it on TGIF. However, employees working on the project, guided by the first two values (damn it!) Sneakily asked about corporate mailing lists: Isn't it evil? The masses habitually boiled: well, of course, everything is clear, we are for peace in the whole world, and helping the military, even our own, is unworthy of our home of high culture damaged by the forced equality of engineering life.
Sluggish excuses for the fact that this is a research project, and the warriors only sponsor it from the bottom of their hearts, were immediately refuted by digging out a Python code that recognized soldiers and equipment in the pictures. Well, you get the point.
Do not get me wrong, I’m very close to and understand the principles of Google’s corporate culture that are described. In addition, I admire how strong this culture was able to become, it is very rare.
I just wanted to emphasize that culture is a double-edged weapon and when designing the values of your organization you need to understand exactly that you will need to observe these values always and unconditionally. And just in case, put in there a system of self-regulation if the spinning flywheel suddenly flies off the axis.
If in the case of Google the users and dissemination of information were the supreme value, then we would not have to refuse (several times!) From the Chinese project. If Google was a little cynical and prioritized business, there would be no questions about contracts with the military. Yes, probably, it would be more difficult to attract highly moral geniuses to the orderly ranks of their employees. Would that change Google history? And Dunno, after all, AdWords - the main revenue generator - was the idea and implementation of a couple of those employees who saw Larry Page's note “These ads suck” on Friday in the kitchen and saw off a prototype of the solution over the weekend. Guided by the values and principles of Google.
So decide for yourself, but remember that corporate culture is a hellishly powerful thing. Feeding the faith of employees, it becomes an absolutely unstoppable force and will destroy the problems that stand in the way of the Company no worse than the Hulk. But only if she looks in the direction of the goals and objectives of the Company, and not squinting, glances at her own creators.
If very, very briefly, the bottom line is that the good values and message that Google laid the foundation of its corporate culture at some point did not work as it was intended and give almost the opposite of the expected effect. Something from the category of "make a fool to pray - he will break his forehead." What used to help the company find innovative solutions began to work against the business. Moreover, it resulted in mass protest marches (is it a joke, more than 85 thousand employees work in Google).
Here in the free retelling of these values. Here, I mainly relied on the Google code of conduct, but it, with an infection, changed into a quiet glanders, so some things are no longer there, or they are rephrased to a state of complete blur. I believe, including because of the events fascinatingly described in the article, a link to which I gave at the beginning of the post.
- Obligation to dissent
- Don't be evil
- Equal opportunity employment and prohibition of harassment and discrimination
Further down the list: Serve our users, Usefulness, Information and the like.
In the modern version of Code of Conduct, paragraphs 1 and 2 are removed from the status of a moral imperative into a kind of soft wish (not even numbered) at the end of the document: “And remember ... don't be evil, and if you see something that you think isn't right - speak up! ”
So here. At first glance, nothing bad can be seen here, even though in the church preach these commandments. But, as it turned out, there is a fundamental danger to the organization itself, especially such a gigantic size as Google. This problem lies in priorities. Previously, the first two principles were put ABOVE all the others. And this automatically made possible the situations described in the article and at the same time practically deprived the company of the tools for their regulation by administrative methods. Because such regulation would be contrary to the priority of values.
Episode 1. Cherchez la femme
Someone from the staff felt that there were too few female programmers in the company, which meant they were discriminated against. Guided by the obligation to dissent, he declares this to the whole company.
The management, scratching the turnip, replies that they say we have the same opportunities for everyone, but there are really not enough girls, therefore, dear recruiters and interviewers, let us be more careful with the female candidates, we will promote equality, so to speak. Numerical.
In response, another employee, guided by the same principle, loudly claims that these actions lower the bar of a house of a high culture of engineering life and, in general, what chaos. In addition, he is rolling out an article - citing even some research - that women are physiologically less likely to be an engineer, so we have what we have.
The masses literally boiled in a unanimous rush. Well, it started. I will not retell, read for yourself, I still will not succeed so well. The trouble is that the company can’t plainly put ears on both sides in this situation, because this will mean a violation of the first principle, which has priority.
Theoretically, one could turn to the second principle - “Don’t be evil” - and appeal to the fact that employees began to do uniform evil. But either situationally it was not visible, or it did not work. It is difficult to judge, for this it was necessary to be in the thick of things. One way or another, the cultural imperative did not work as intended.
Episode 2. The Legacy of Mao
Or here is another example. Google decided that it would be nice to go to China and make the users there happy while improving the company's financial position. But there is a small nuance: for this you need to comply with Chinese law and censor search results.
During the discussion of the Chinese project on TGIF (a general meeting at the office in Mountain View), one of the employees (this is an infection!) Carefully asked everyone: Isn't it evil? The masses, as usual, boiled in a unanimous impulse: of course, evil, which is incomprehensible.
Attempts to tell what it is for the benefit of users and for the dissemination of information — all as we love — could not change the opinion of the proletariat. The Chinese project had to be curtailed, deliberately abandoning an amazing business opportunity. And again, due to priorities. Don't be evil is higher than the dissemination of information and the irreparable benefit of the Chinese.
Episode 3. Make love, not war
The third example. Last, I promise, the rest is in the article. James Mattis once arrived at Google, the one who was the Pentagon leader until Trump kicked him out of there. Mattis suggested that Google collaborate in the field of computer vision and recognize military objects on photographs from military satellites so that the most advanced army in the world becomes even a little more advanced.
Google agreed, but just in case did not talk about it on TGIF. However, employees working on the project, guided by the first two values (damn it!) Sneakily asked about corporate mailing lists: Isn't it evil? The masses habitually boiled: well, of course, everything is clear, we are for peace in the whole world, and helping the military, even our own, is unworthy of our home of high culture damaged by the forced equality of engineering life.
Sluggish excuses for the fact that this is a research project, and the warriors only sponsor it from the bottom of their hearts, were immediately refuted by digging out a Python code that recognized soldiers and equipment in the pictures. Well, you get the point.
Instead of a conclusion
Do not get me wrong, I’m very close to and understand the principles of Google’s corporate culture that are described. In addition, I admire how strong this culture was able to become, it is very rare.
I just wanted to emphasize that culture is a double-edged weapon and when designing the values of your organization you need to understand exactly that you will need to observe these values always and unconditionally. And just in case, put in there a system of self-regulation if the spinning flywheel suddenly flies off the axis.
If in the case of Google the users and dissemination of information were the supreme value, then we would not have to refuse (several times!) From the Chinese project. If Google was a little cynical and prioritized business, there would be no questions about contracts with the military. Yes, probably, it would be more difficult to attract highly moral geniuses to the orderly ranks of their employees. Would that change Google history? And Dunno, after all, AdWords - the main revenue generator - was the idea and implementation of a couple of those employees who saw Larry Page's note “These ads suck” on Friday in the kitchen and saw off a prototype of the solution over the weekend. Guided by the values and principles of Google.
So decide for yourself, but remember that corporate culture is a hellishly powerful thing. Feeding the faith of employees, it becomes an absolutely unstoppable force and will destroy the problems that stand in the way of the Company no worse than the Hulk. But only if she looks in the direction of the goals and objectives of the Company, and not squinting, glances at her own creators.
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