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Cracking Google's Code: Lessons from its Cutting-Edge Talent Management

In an intensely dynamic era, organizational success hinges on accessing, engaging and retaining exceptional talent consistently. This case study examines how technology leader Google has effectively leveraged unconventional yet impactful talent management philosophies and programs to assemble world-class workforces fueling relentless innovation.

By continually fine-tuning robust hiring processes, empowering employee-led development, championing inclusive compensation, and catalyzing retention through culture, Google furnishes inspirational blueprints for modern talent management strategies . Let's decode vital insights from Google's playbook driving people-centric transformation.

Google's Innovative Talent Sourcing

Strategic Google talent management sourcing entails proactively seeking and onboarding prime candidates aligning with current and emerging organizational needs.

Google confronts exponential application volumes given its premium employer brand. Facing this dilemma, it pivoted dramatically from traditional interviews, relying instead on data-based techniques to identify high-potential applicants objectively. Its refined sourcing blueprint offers crucial talent acquisition lessons.

Predictive Hiring Algorithms

Initial interviews notoriously used brainteaser questions that data proved unrelated to eventual workplace success. Since 2008, Google has deployed predictive hiring algorithms leveraging candidate assessments on role-relevant tasks to forecast on-job performance using machine learning models.

These algorithms also classify interview difficulty and customize it per applicant, besides mitigating biases through blind reviews. Their ability to screen talent at scale efficiently aids Google's high-volume hiring.

Structured Behavioral Interviews

Complementing its algorithms, Google conducts structured behavioral interviews developed per job families evaluating concrete problem-solving, collaboration, role-play simulations, and work deliverables. This technique provides observational talent signals on applicants' motivations, cognitive styles, and interaction quality superior to subjective impressions. The blend of algorithmic and structured interviews furnishes robust sourcing.

Internal Mobility Prioritization

Despite fierce external competition, Google preferentially fills high-value openings through internal transfers, allowing for the calibration of employee strengths and role demands using performance insights.

Frontline data aids better internal mobility matching than external guessing. This policy simultaneously assists retention while strong employee referrals tap hidden talents within Google's talent networks. Taken together, its sourcing framework synthesizes automation and human intelligence for recruiting excellence.

Googler Capability Development

Beyond strategic hiring, continuous capability enhancement ensures Google stays at technology's cutting edge. Its rich learning ecosystem guided by internal mobility data empowers employees to direct their skills upgrading.

Peer Learning Culture

Google's pioneering "Googler-to-Googler" peer learning model allows any employee passionate about a topic, coding, public speaking, or guitar to conduct classes attended by colleagues globally. This stimulates organic development and networking outside traditional hierarchy barriers.

Granting employees autonomous teaching opportunities unlocks organization-wide knowledge flows beyond closed teams. Over 80% of Google's technical employees teach classes, unlocking unique learning opportunities.

Leadership Coaching Ecosystem

Google supplements peer learning through its personalized coaching framework that connects emerging talent with veteran leaders, offering tactical project advice to career navigation discussions. Leaders volunteer time guiding mentees through crucial capability-building phases while attaining developmental giveback. This human connections culture accelerates individual and collective growth simultaneously.

Specialist Development Through Certifications

Google actively grooms employees to deepen specialist capabilities like technical writing or business analysis via externally accredited certifications using tuition support, dedicated exam leaves, and access to prepped faculty. This grassroots skills augmentation rapidly plugs organizational talent gaps, outweighing slower external hiring . It also boosts employee retention and external marketability.

Thus, Google fosters decentralized, employee-guided enrichment, expanding learning beyond fixed organizational development programs. This culture uplifts capability building as a collaborative, continuous responsibility, eventually uplifting Google's competitive advantage.

Inclusive Rewards Framework at Google

Compensation plays an undeniable role in attracting and retaining talent, particularly given the severe competition in the tech industry. But missteps risk irrevocable reputational damage. Google's rewards framework balances pay equity with wider welfare safeguards that cultivate loyalty beyond transactional conformity.

Focus on Holistic Well-being

Rather than solely chasing compensation leaders, Google recognizes spectacular benefits that boost long-term employee health and happiness and also recruit and retain talent . Thus, extensive well-being investments in team leisure spaces, recreational amenities, stress alleviation therapies, and lifestyle perks enable fulfilling experiences culminating in stronger communal bonds, purpose, and output payoffs beyond financial considerations alone.

As an ethos, this signals organizational commitment towards collaborative welfare, centering human dignity over hierarchy privileges or preferential gain for a few.

Equitable System Transparency

Procedural justice around compensation norm setting and delivery claims equal importance as absolute pay rates at Google. Rigorous peer performance input drives pay increments and stock rewards allocation. Blind audits evaluate ethnicity or gender pay parity analytics and correct unwarranted differences.

Such process integrity and access to decision-making logic upholding fairness matter profoundly among talent beyond indiscriminate pay growth detached from contribution or ethics. Google's compensation process transparency and collective participation foster greater trust in leadership.

Control Against Unconscious Biases

Contrasting opaque compensation secrecy in most corporations, Google employees access peer pay range details for informed self-assessment. Anonymous performance feedback and manager ratings aid transparency in settling internal concerns. Through extensively researched processes, structured metrics , and collective decision protocols, Google diminishes exclusionary leadership biases that distort talent retention. Extensive analytics further spot outlier variations, investigating deeper before irreversible talent exits.

In tandem, sustainable collaborative benefits, procedural equitability, and informational access make Google's rewards ecosystem an exemplar of balancing external constraints with internal justice for durable access to premium capabilities.

Retaining Through Culture & Community

Apart from accessing and growing talent judiciously, crafting environments where top performers relish working over rivals remains pivotal, too. Google deploys cultural pillars fostering leadership connect, grassroots welfare guardrails, and fluid project mobility pathways for retaining talent sustainably.

Leadership Accessibility & Connectivity

"Google Walkabouts" enables unstructured access opportunities for employees interacting with the CEO and leadership during open hours at cafes or through scheduled town hall meetings to discuss corporate vision and policies or address workplace concerns transparently. High-touch forums demolish latent hierarchy barriers while understanding employee considerations for inclusive decision-making. The resultant workplace bonhomie and reciprocal appreciation drive Google's unmatched retention capabilities.

Employee Resource Groups

Self-organizing affinity-based groups like Greyglers (Google employees above 40 years) or Gayglers cater to minority communities facing common issues. With leadership sponsorship, their grassroots influence seeds necessary inclusion guardrails checking workplace marginalization. They enjoy representation privileges across people processes, granting affected groups decisive voices on cultural policies and guiding Google's growth responsibly. Therefore, overlooked minority retention improves through identity celebration platforms.

Fluid Project Mobility Pathways

Through its famous "20% time policy", Google permits engineers to spend one paid day weekly tinkering with passion ideas unrelated to assigned projects. These creative detours have spawned hit offerings like Gmail, Google Maps, and AdSense! By aligning employee aspirations to corporate innovation trajectories, Google unlocks discretionary energies for breakthroughs while simultaneously delighting talent desirous of flexing creative muscles beyond structured objectives. Its cultural support for personal growth opportunities cements employee loyalty substantially.

Key Takeaways from Google's Talent Innovation Playbook

In the 21st century people-driven marketplace, Google's analytical hiring customs, peer-cultivated skill fluency models, and caring culture grant durable talent leverage. By optimizing human capital beyond mechanical processes into a source of inspiration and identity internally, Google breeds innovation externally. Its competitive advantage thus stems from talent that feels genuinely invested in beyond transactional compliance.

By balancing shareholder accountability with welfare safeguards, Google fosters a globally admired workplace ecosystem that will cement its leadership identity for a generation. Its ethical, evidence-led people philosophy thereby orchestrates enormous market value and magnetism.

Indeed, Google talent management offers immortal lessons on engineering people policies for performance while grounding leadership in collaborative purpose wedded to prosperity sustainably. Its emphasis on talent specificity over pedigree, learning continuity against episodic training, and cultural fairness over controlling diktats represents pioneering wisdom for reliably unlocking abiding human enterprise.

In essence, Google Talent catalyzes Google's ascent.

Talent sourcing limitations at Google

Despite such exemplary sourcing protocols, the scope remains for Google's recruitment processes to expand diversity – whether gender, ethnic, or socioeconomic – given debatable demographic imbalances in current workforces mirroring endemic societal prejudices.

Legal controversies around compensation discrimination claims and excessive confidentiality clauses similarly risk undermining their employer brand traction with younger talent cohorts advocating greater transparency and accountability around workplace relations.

Additionally, intensified tech sector unionization efforts aligned to growing industry criticism about online platform accountability also threaten looming talent retention risks from moderating the appeal of technology careers amidst eroding public trust.

Current talent landscape implications

As complex economic crosscurrents roil industries globally, decisively elevating workforce capability building for strategic resilience remains vital to staying competitive. With recession risks looming, coupled with intensifying tech talent competition, Google must expand its talent pipelines further, leveraging alumni networks while cross-training high performers for agility.

Fostering communicative, caring, and equitable cultures also allows for attracting multifaceted, conscientious talent increasingly seeking purpose and belonging beyond mere compensation alone. Ultimately, corporate values must inform everyday behaviors, not just espoused policies alone.

Google's talent advantage remains a key force multiplier, securing its industry leadership for years and spawning high-impact ecosystems that benefit hundreds of millions worldwide. Yet market dominance should not foster ignorance when people challenge solutions that match the scale and standards the tech pioneer originally set.

Its exemplary people programs certainly compile extensive blueprints toward crafting organizational environments where top-tier, conscientious talent keeps excelling while also urging leadership accountability. However, realizing diversity, equity, and justice in daily interpersonal interactions equally represents continuous culture-building challenges for Google's remarkable work communities to keep thriving amidst global headwinds.

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• Original Article
• Open access
• Published: 19 December 2017

GOOGLE: a reflection of culture, leader, and management

• Sang Kim Tran 1 , 2  

International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility volume  2 , Article number:  10 ( 2017 ) Cite this article

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This paper provides a viewpoint of the culture and subcultures at Google Inc., which is a famous global company, and has a huge engineering staff and many talented leaders. Through its history of development, it has had positive impacts on society; however; there have been management challenges. The Board of Directors (BoDs) developed and implemented a way to measure the abilities of their managers, which helped to identify problems. This paper will analyze the case study of Harvard Business Review, Oxygen Project, and clarify the management problem in Google’s organization. It will also compare Google with Zappos, a much smaller organization, and present how the BoDs of Zappos assesses its culture and subcultures. In this paper, we will recommend eight important points to building an organizational culture that is positive for stable growth of a company. We believe that much of what be learned could be useful to other business leaders, regardless of company scale.

Introduction

In a large society, each company is considered a miniature society (Mawere 2011 ). Similar to large societies with large cultures, small societies also need to build their own cultures. A culture is influenced by many factors and determines if it is a great culture. Corporate culture requires both the attention to the efficiency of production and business and to the relationship among people in the organization closely (Bhagat et al. 2012 ). Regardless if it is a large or a small organization, it must encounter issues of cooperation among individuals and groups. There are many factors leading to the success of business process re-engineering in higher education (BPR), the main four elements are culture, processes, structure, and technology. Culture is listed as number one (Ahmad et al. 2007 ). Hence, culture becomes the most important factor to the success of the development of a business. Organizational culture is the set of shared beliefs (Steiber and Alänge 2016 ), values, and norms that influence the way members think, feel, and behave. Culture is created by means of terminal and instrumental values, heroes, rites and rituals, and communication networks (Barman n.d. ). The primary methods of maintaining organizational culture are through the socialization process by which an individual learns the values, expected behaviors, and necessary social knowledge to assume their roles in the organization. In addition, (Gupta and Govindarajan 2000 ) and Fig.  1 in (Ismail Al-Alawi et al. 2007 ) illustrates that culture was established by six major factors, such as information systems, people, process, leadership, rewarding system, and organization structure. Therefore, there is a wide variety of combined and sophisticated cultures in the workplace, especially in big corporations like Google, Facebook, Proctor & Gamble, etc. Each organization tends to have a common goal, which is to create a culture that is different from other companies and to promote their teams to be creative in developing a distinctive culture (Stimpson and Farquharson 2014 ). Clearly, we can see that Google’s culture is different than others. What makes this company unique and different from others, as well as the dominant cultures and subcultures existing at this company? How do leadership behaviors impact the organizational culture? By operating a case study of a Harvard Business Review to analyze its organizational culture, subsequently, having compared it with Zappos’ culture, this paper will clarify the similarities and differences in managing organizational cultures between them and consider whether the solutions for the problems can be applied to other business models, and for tomorrow leaders or not?

Trends of using product by information searching

Company overview

This part shows how Google became famous in the world and its culture and subcultures made it a special case for others to take into consideration. Google is one of the few technology companies which continue to have one of the fastest growth rates in the world. It began by creating a search engine that combined PageRank system, developed by Larry Page (ranking the importance of websites based on external links), and Web search engine, created by Sergey Brin (accessing a website and recording its content), two co-founders of the company (Jarvis 2011 ; Downes 2007 ). Google’s achievements absolutely do not come from any luck. Google has made extra efforts in creating an index of a number of websites, which have been up to 25 billion websites. This also includes 17 million images and one billion messages to Usenet group (Downes 2007 ). Besides searching for websites, Google users are able to search for PDF files, PostScript, documents, as well as Microsoft, Lotus, PowerPoint and Shockwave files. Google processes nearly 50% of search queries all over the world. Moreover, it is the number one search option for web users and is one of the top five websites on the Internet, which have more than 380 million users and 28 billion visits every month, and more than 50% of access from countries outside the US (Desjardins 2017 ). Google’s technology is rather special: it can analyze millions of different variables of users and businesses who place advertisements. It then connects them with millions of potential advertisements and gives messages of advertisement, which is closest to objects in less than one second. Thus, Google has the higher rate of users clicking advertisements than its opponent Yahoo, from 50 to 100%, and it dominates over 70% market share of paid advertisements (Rosenberg 2016 ). Google’s self-stated mission: “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful (Alves n.d. ).” Nowadays, it is believed that people in the world like “Google” with words “the useful-lively information storage”.

Predominant culture at Google

The dominant culture in the organization depends on the environment in which the company operates the organization’s objectives, the belief system of the employees, and the company’s management style. Therefore, there are many organizational cultures (Schein 2017 ). The Exhibit 3.1 at page 39 in (Schein 2009 ) provides what culture is about. For example, employee follows a standard procedure with a strict adherence to hierarchy and well-defined individual roles and responsibilities. Those in competitive environments, such as sales may forget strict hierarchies and follow a competitive culture where the focus is on maintaining strong relationships with external parties. In this instance, the strategy is to attain competitive advantages over the competition. The collaborative culture is yet another organizational way of life. This culture presents a decentralized workforce with integrated units working together to find solutions to problems or failure.

Why do many large companies buy its innovation? Because its dominant culture of 99% defect-free operational excellence squashes any attempts at innovation, just like a Sumo wrestler sitting on a small gymnast (Grossman-Kahn and Rosensweig 2012 ). They cannot accept failures. In fact, failure is a necessary part of innovation and Google took this change by Oxygen Project to measure the abilities of their multicultural managers. This means that Google itself possesses multiple different cultures (see Google’s clips). Like Zappos, Google had established a common, organizational culture for the whole offices that are distinctive from the others. The predominant culture aimed at Google is an open culture, where everybody and customer can freely contribute their ideas and opinions to create more comfortable and friendly working environment (Hsieh 2010a ).

The fig.  2 .1 in chapter two of (Schein 2009 ) and page 17 in part one of (Schein 2017 ) provide us three levels of culture which are Artifacts, Espoused values and Underlying assumptions helping us to understand the culture at Google. At page 84, in (Schein 2009 ), the “artifacts” are identified such as dress codes, level of formality in authority relationships, working hours, meeting (how often, how run, timing), how are decisions made, communication, social events, jargon, uniforms, identity symbols, rites and rituals, disagreements and conflicts, balance between work and family . It seems that Google is quite open in these artifacts by showing a respect for uniform and national culture of each staff individually and giving them the right to wear traditional clothes.

Ad Blocking Incidence

Working at Google, employees enjoy free food served throughout the day, a volleyball court, a swimming pool, a car wash, an oil change, a haircut, free health care, and many other benefits. The biggest benefit for the staff is to be picked up on the day of work. As assessed by many traffic experts, the system set up by Google is considered to be a great transport network. Tad Widby, a project manager and a traffic system researcher throughout the United States, said: “I have not seen any larger projects in the Bay Area as well as in urban areas across the country” (Helft 2007 ). Of course, it is impossible for Google to “cover up the sky”, so Yahoo also started implementing the bus project for employees in 2005. On peak days, Yahoo’s bus also took off. Pick up about 350 employees in San Francisco, as well as Berkeley, Oakland, etc. These buses run on biofuels and have Wi-Fi coverage. Yet, Danielle Bricker, the Yahoo bus coordinator of Yahoo, has also admitted that the program is “indirectly” inspired by Google’s initiative (Helft 2007 ). Along with that, eBay recently also piloted shuttle bus transfers at five points in San Francisco. Some other corporations are also emerging ideas for treatment of staff is equally unique. Facebook is an example, instead of facilitating employees far from the workplace; it helps people in the immediate neighborhood by offering an additional $10,000 for an employee to live close to the pillar within 10 miles, nearby the Palo Alto Department (Hall 2015 ).

When it comes to Google, people often ask what the formula for success is. The answer here is the employees of Google. They create their own unique workplace culture rules to create an effective work environment for their employees. And here are the most valuable things to learn from Google’s corporate culture (Scott 2008 ) that we should know:

Tolerate with mistakes and help staff correct

At Google, paying attention to how employees work and helping them correct mistakes is critical. Instead of pointing out the damage and blaming a person who caused the mistake, the company would be interested in what the cause of the problem was and how to fix it as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Also as its culture, we understand that if we want to make breakthroughs in the workplace, we need to have experimentation, failure and repeat the test. Therefore, mistakes and failures are not terrible there. We have the right to be wrong and have the opportunity to overcome failure in the support of our superiors and colleagues. Good ideas are always encouraged at Google. However, before it is accepted and put into use, there is a clear procedure to confirm whether it is a real new idea and practical or not?

Exponential thought

Google developed in the direction of a holding company - a company that does not directly produce products or provide services but simply invest in capital by buying back capital. In the company, the criteria for setting the ten exponential function in lieu of focusing only on the change in the general increase. This approach helps Google improve its technology and deliver great products to consumers continuously.

Of course, every company wants to hire talented people to work for them. However, being talented is an art in which there must be voluntary work and enthusiasm for the work of the devotees. At page 555 in (Saffold 1988 ) illustrated that distinctive cultures dramatically influencing performance do exist. Likewise, Google, Apple, Netflix, and Dell are 40% more productive than the average company which attracts top-tier employees and high performers (Vozza 2017 ). Recognizing this impact, Google created a distinctive corporate culture when the company attracted people from prestigious colleges around the world (West 2016 ; Lazear and Gibbs 2014 ).

Build a stimulating work environment

When it comes to the elements that create creativity and innovation, we can easily recognize that the working environment is one of the most important things. Google has succeeded in building an image of a creative working. Google offices are individually designed, not duplicated in any type of office. In fact, working environment at Google is so comfortable so that employees will not think of it as a working room, with a full area of ​​work, relaxation, exercise, reading, watching movies. Is the orientation of Google’s corporate culture to stimulate creativity and to show interest in the lives of employees so that volunteers contribute freely (Battelle 2011 )?

Subculture is also a culture, but for a smaller group or community in a big organization (Crosset and Beal 1997 ). Google, known as the global company with many more offices, so there are many subcultures created among groups of people who work together, from subcultures among work groups to subcultures among ethnic groups and nations, multi-national groups, as well as multiple occupations, functions, geographies, echelons in the hierarchy and product lines. For example, six years ago, when it bought 100 Huffys for employees to use around the sprawling campus, has since exploded into its own subculture. Google now has a seven-person staff of bicycle mechanics that maintains a fleet of about 1300 brightly-colored Google bikes. The company also encourages employees to cycle to work by providing locker rooms, showers and places to securely park bikes during working hours. And, for those who want to combine meetings with bike-riding, Googlers can use one of several seven-person (Crowley 2013 ).

Leadership influences on the culture at Google

From the definition of leadership and its influence on culture; so what does leader directly influence the culture existed? According to Schein, “culture and leadership are two sides of the same coin and one cannot understand one without the other”, page three in (Schein 2009 ). If one of us has never read the article “Google and the Quest to create a better boss” in the New York Times, it is listed in a priority reading. It breaks the notion that managers have no change. The manager really makes a difference (Axinn 1988 ; Carver 2011 ). In fact, a leader has a massive impact on the culture of the company, and Google is not an exception. The leaders of Google concerned more about the demands and abilities of each individual, the study of the nature of human being, an appreciation their employees as their customers. At Google, the founders thought they could create a company that people would want to work at when creating a home-like environment. It is real that they focus on the workplace brings the comfort to staff creatively and freely (Lebowitz 2013 ).

In my opinion, a successful business cannot be attributed solely from a single star; that needs the brightness of all employees. It depends very much on the capacity and ability to attract talented people. It is the way in which the leader manages these talents, is the cornerstone of corporate culture. One thing that no one can deny is that a good leader must be a creator of a corporate culture so that the employees can maximize capabilities themselves (Driscoll and McKee 2007 ; Kotter 2008 ).

To brief, through the view of Google’s culture, BoDs tended and designed to encourage loyalty and creativity, based on an unusual organizational culture because culture is not only able to create an environment, but it also adapts to diverse and changes circumstances (Bulygo 2013 ).

Company growth and its impact

“Rearrange information around the world, make them accessible everywhere and be useful.” This was one of the main purposes set by Larry Page and Sergey Brin when they first launched Google on September 4th, 1998, as a private company (Schmidt and Rosenberg 2014 ). Since then, Google has expanded its reach, stepped into the mobile operating system, provided mapping services and cloud computing applications, launched its own hardware, and prepared it to enter the wearable device market. However, no matter how varied and rich these products are, they are all about the one thing, the root of Google: online searching.

1998–2001: Focus on search

In its early years, Google.com was simply one with extreme iconic images: a colorful Google logo, a long text box in the middle of the screen, a button to execute. One button for searching and the other button are “I’m feeling lucky” to lead users to a random Google site. By May 2000, Google added ten additional languages to Google.com , including French, German, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Norwegian and Danish, etc. This is one of the milestones in Google’s journey into the world. Google.com is available in over 150 languages (Scott 2008 ; Lee 2017 ).

2001–2007: Interface card

A very important event with Google around this time was the sale of shares to the public (IPO). In October 2003, Microsoft heard news of the IPO, so it quickly approached Google to discuss a buyout or business deal. Nevertheless, that intention was not materialized. In 2004, it was also the time when Google held a market share of 84.7% globally through collaboration with major Internet companies, such as Yahoo, AOL, and CNN. By February 2004, Yahoo stopped working with Google and separately stood out for engine search. This has led Google to lose some market share, but it has shown the importance and distinctness of Google. Nowadays, the term “Google” has been used as a verb just by visiting Google.com and doing an online search (Smith 2010 ). Not stopping at the homepage search, Google’s interface tag began to be brought to Gmail and Calendar with the links at the top of the page. Google homepage itself continues to use this style.

In 2006, Google also made an important acquisition to buy YouTube for $1.65 billion (Burgess and Green 2013 ). However, the company decided to keep YouTube as a separate brand and not to include it in Google Video search. Thanks to the backing of an Internet industry giant, YouTube has grown to become the world’s largest online video sharing service (Cha et al. 2007 ).

2007–2012: Navigation bar, Google menu, Google now

Google began to deploy a new navigation bar located at the edge of the screen. It includes links to a place where to look for photos, videos, news, maps, as well as buttons to switch to Gmail, Calendar, and other services developed by the company. In the upper left corner, Google added a box displaying Google + notifications and user accounts’ image. Google Now not only appeared on Android and it’s also brought to Chrome on a computer as well as iOS. All have the same operating principle, and the interface card still appears as Android it is.

2013–2014: Simplified interface

Google has moved all of the icons that lead to its other applications and services to an App Drawer button in the upper right hand, at the corner of the screen. In addition, Google.com also supports better voice search through the Chrome browser. Google has experimented with other markets, such as radio and print publications, and in selling advertisements from its advertisers within offline newspapers and magazines. As of November 2014, Google operates over 70 offices over 40 countries (Jarvis 2011 ; Vise 2007 ).

2014–2017: Chrome development and facing challenges

In 2015, Google would turn HTTPS into the default. The better website is, the more users will trust search engine. In 2016, Google announced Android version 7, introduced a new VR platform called Daydream, and its new virtual assistant, Google Assistant.

Most of Google’s revenue comes from advertising (Rosenberg 2016 ). However, this “golden” business is entering a difficult period with many warning signs of its future. Google Search is the dominant strength of Google and bringing great revenue for the company. Nonetheless, when Amazon surpassed Google to become the world’s leading product in the search engine in last December, this advantage began to wobble. This is considered a fatal blow to Google when iOS devices account for 75% of their mobile advertising revenue (Rosenberg 2016 ).

By 2016, the number of people installing software to block ads on phones has increased 102% from 2015. Figure  1 illustrates that by the year’s end, about 16% of smart phone users around the world blocked their ads whilst surfing the web. These were also two groups having the most time on the Internet, high-earners and young people; however, these people have disliked ads (see Fig. 1 ).

Figure  2 shows the young people have the highest ad blocking rates. It is drawing a gloomy picture for the sustainable development of the online advertising industry in general and Google in particular. Therefore, in early 2017, Google has strategies to build an ad blocking tool, built into the Chrome browser. This tool allows users to access ads that have passed the “Coalition for Better Ads” filter so as to limit the sense of discomfort (see Fig. 2 ).

For the company impact, the history shows that speedy development of Google creates both economic and social impacts to followers in a new way of people connection (Savitz 2013 ). In this modern world, it seems that people cannot spend a day without searching any information in Google (Chen et al. 2014 ; Fast and Campbell 2004 ), a tool serves human information seeking needs. Even though when addressing this paper, it is also in need the information from Google search and uses it as a supporting tool. Nobody can deny the convenience of Google as a fast and easy way to search (Schalkwyk et al. 2010 ; Jones 2001 ; Langville and Meyer 2011 ).

Research question and methodology

In order to get the most comprehensive data and information for this case analysis, a number of methods are used, including:

Research data and collect information were mostly from the Harvard Study (Project Oxygen), which has been selected because it is related to the purpose of our study.

Data collection and analysis has been taken from Google Scholar and various websites related researches. We look at the history of appearance, development, and recognize the impacts of this company, as well as the challenges and the way the Board of Directors measures the abilities of their manager when the problem is found.

Analyzing: It was begun by considering expectations from the Harvard Study. Subsequently, considering the smaller organization (Zappos) in comparison of how its cultures and subcultures are accessed as well. Since then, the paper has clarified the management problem that Google and Zappos confront and deal with it so as to help other businesses apply this theoretical practice and achieve its goal beyond expectations.

In our paper, we mainly use the inductive method approach by compiling and describing the other authors’ theories of corporate culture, especially Google and Zappos in merging and comparing, analyzing them and making our own results.

From the aspects of the research, the questions are suggested as below:

What is the most instrumental element found from the Harvard study?

Is there any difference and similarity between a huge company and a smaller enterprise in perspective of culture and subculture?

What makes Google different from others, the dominant cultures as well as subcultures existing? How do leadership behaviors impact on the organizational culture?

How organizational culture impacts on business achievements?

The Harvard study

Project oxygen summary.

This project began in 2009 known as “the manager project” with the People and Innovation Lab (PiLab) team researching questions, which helped the employee of Google become a better manager. The case study was conducted by Garvin (2013) about a behavior measurement to Google’s manager, why managers matter and what the best manager s do. In early days of Google, there are not many managers. In a flat structure, most employees are engineers and technical experts. In fact, in 2002 a few hundred engineers reported to only four managers. But over time and out of necessity, the number of managers increased. Then, in 2009, people and team culture at Google noticed a disturbing trend. Exit interview data cited low satisfaction with their manager as a reason for leaving Google. Because Google has accessed so much online data, Google’s statisticians are asked to analyze and identify the top attributes of a good manager mentioned with an unsolved question: “Do managers matter?” It always concerns all stakeholders at Google and requires a data-based survey project called Project Oxygen to clarify employees’ concern, to measure key management behaviors and cultivate staff through communication and training (Bryant 2011 ; Garvin et al. 2013 ). Research −1 Exit Interviews, ratings, and semiannual reviews. The purpose is to identify high-scoring managers and low-scoring managers resulted in the former, less turnover on their teams, and its connection (manager quality and employee’s happiness). As for “what the best managers do”, Research-2 is to interview high and low scoring managers and to review their performance. The findings with 8 key behaviors illustrated by the most effective managers.

The Oxygen Project mirrors the managers’ decision-making criteria, respects their needs for rigorous analysis, and makes it a priority to measure impact. In the case study, the findings prove that managers really have mattered. Google, initially, must figure out what the best manager is by asking high and low scoring managers such questions about communication, vision, etc. Its project identifies eight behaviors (Bulygo 2013 ; Garvin et al. 2013 ) of a good manager that considered as quite simple that the best manager at Google should have. In a case of management problem and solution, as well as discussing four- key theoretical concepts, they will be analyzed, including formal organizational training system, how culture influences behavior, the role of “flow” and building capacity for innovation, and the role of a leader and its difference from the manager.

Formal organizational training system to create a different culture: Ethical culture

If the organizational culture represents “how we do things around here,” the ethical culture represents “how we do things around here in relation to ethics and ethical behavior in the organization” (Key 1999 ). Alison Taylor (The Five Levels of an Ethical Culture, 2017) reported five levels of an ethical culture, from an individual, interpersonal, group, intergroup to inter-organizational (Taylor 2017 ). In (Nelson and Treviño 2004 ), ethical culture should be thought of in terms of a multi-system framework included formal and informal systems, which must be aligned to support ethical judgment and action. Leadership is essential to driving the ethical culture from a formal and informal perspective (Schwartz 2013 ; Trevino and Nelson 2011 ). Formally, a leader provides the resources to implement structures and programs that support ethics. More informally, through their own behaviors, leadership is a role model whose actions speak louder than their words, conveying “how we do things around here.” Other formal systems include selection systems, policies and codes, orientation and training programs, performance management systems, authority structures, and formal decision processes. On the informal side are the organization’s role models and heroes, the norms of daily behavior, organizational rituals that support or do not support ethical conduct, the stories people tell about the organization and their implications for conduct, and the language people use, etc. Is it okay to talk about ethics? Or is ethical fading the norm?

The formal and informal training is very important. The ethical context in organizations helps the organizational culture have a tendency to the positive or negative viewpoints (Treviño et al. 1998 ). The leader should focus on providing an understanding of the nature and reasons for the organization’s values and rules, on providing an opportunity for question and challenge values for sincerity/practicality, and on teaching ethical decision-making skills related to encountered issues commonly. The more specific and customized training, the more effective it is likely to be. Google seemed to apply this theory when addressed the Oxygen Project.

How culture influences behavior

Whenever we approach a new organization, there is no doubt that we will try to get more about the culture of that place, the way of thinking, working, as well as behavior. And it is likely that the more diverse culture of a place is, the more difficult for outsiders to assess its culture becomes (Mosakowski 2004 ).

Realizing culture in (Schein 2009 ) including artifacts, espoused valued and shared underlying assumptions. It is easier for outsiders to see the artifacts (visual objects) that a group uses as the symbol for a group; however, it does not express more about the espoused values, as well as tacit assumptions. In (Schein et al. 2010 ), the author stated: “For a culture assessment to be valuable, it must get to the assumptions level. If the client system does not get to assumptions, it cannot explain the discrepancies almost always surface between the espoused values and the observed behavioral artifacts” (Schein et al. 2010 ). Hence, in order to be able to assess other cultures well, it is necessary for us to learn each other’s languages, as well as adapt to a common language. Moreover, we also need to look at the context of working, the solution for shared problems because these will facilitate to understand the culture better.

According to the OCP (Organizational Culture Profile) framework (Saremi and Nejad 2013 ), an organization is with possessing the innovation of culture, flexible and adaptable with fresh ideas, which is figured by flat hierarchy and title. For instance, Gore-Tex is an innovative product of W. L. Gore & Associates Inc., considered as the company has the most impact on its innovative culture (Boudreau and Lakhani 2009 ). Looking at the examples of Fast Company, Genentech Inc., and Google, they also encourage their employees to take challenges or risks by allowing them to take 20% of their time to comprehend the projects of their own (Saremi and Nejad 2013 ). In (Aldrich n.d. ), it is recorded that 25%–55% of employees are fully encouraged and giving a maximum value.

The famous quote by Peter Drucker , “Culture eats strategy for Breakfast” at page 67 has created a lot of interest in (Manning and Bodine 2012 ; Coffman and Sorensen 2013 ; Bock 2015 ). Despite we all know how important culture is, we have successively failed to address it (O'Reilly et al. 1991 ). The organizational research change process from the view of Schein ( 2009 ); it is a fact that whenever an organization has the intention of changing the culture, it really takes time. As we all acknowledge, to build an organizational culture, both leader and subordinate spend most of their time on learning, relearning, experiencing, as well as considering the most appropriate features. Sometimes, some changes are inevitable in terms of economic, political, technological, legal and moral threats, as well as internal discomfort (Kavanagh and Ashkanasy 2006 ; Schein 1983 ). As the case in (Schein 2009 ), when a CEO would like to make an innovation which is proved no effective response, given that he did not get to know well about the tacit implications at the place he has just come. It is illustrated that whatsoever change should need time and a process to happen (Blog 2015 ; Makhlouk and Shevchuk 2008 ). In conclusion, a new culture can be learned (Schein 1984 ), but with an appropriate route and the profits for all stakeholders should be concerned by the change manager (Sathe 1983 ).

It is true that people’s behavior managed by their types of culture (Kollmuss and Agyeman 2002 ). All tacit assumptions of insiders are not easy for outsiders to grasp the meaning completely (Schein 2009 ). It is not also an exception at any organization. Google is an example of the multicultural organization coming from various regions of the world, and the national or regional cultures making this multicultural organization with an official culture for the whole company.

In this case, the organizational culture of Google has an influence on the behaviors of manager and employee. In addition, as for such a company specializes in information technology, all engineers prefer to work on everything with data-evidence to get them involved in the meaningful survey about manager (Davenport et al. 2010 ). Eventually, Google discovered 8 good behaviors of manager, which effect to the role of “flow” also (Bulygo 2013 ; Garvin et al. 2013 ).

The role of the “flow” and building capacity for innovation

More and more people are using the term of “patient flow”. This overview describes patient flow and links to theories about flow. Patient flow underpins many improvement tools and techniques. The term “flow” describes the progressive movement of products, information, and people through a sequence of the process. In simple terms, flow is about uninterrupted movement (Nave 2002 ), like driving steadily along the motorway without interruptions or being stuck in a traffic jam. In healthcare, flow is the movement of patients, information or equipment between departments, office groups or organizations as a part of a patient’s care pathway (Bessant and Maher 2009 ). In fact, flow plays a vital role in getting stakeholders involved in working creatively and innovatively (Adams 2005 ; Amabile 1997 ; Forest et al. 2011 ). An effective ethical leader must create flow in work before transfer it to employees for changing the best of their effort to maintain, keep and develop “flow” in an engineering job, which job be easier to get stress. Definitely, Google gets it done very well.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the knowledge from my Master course, a credit of managing culture which helps me to write this paper. The author also gratefully acknowledges the helpful comments and suggestions of the reviewers and Associate Professor Khuong- Ho Van, who provided general technical help that all have improved the article.

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Sang Kim Tran

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Tran, S.K. GOOGLE: a reflection of culture, leader, and management. Int J Corporate Soc Responsibility 2 , 10 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40991-017-0021-0

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• Google (Alphabet) HRM: Recruitment, Selection, Retention

Google’s (Alphabet’s) success is based on its high-quality human resources. The competitive qualities of the company’s employees include smartness and excellence. The information technology company’s human resource management also includes carefully selected strategies, methods, and techniques for recruitment and selection, and for the retention of high-quality workers. Recruitment practices, selection processes, and retention programs ensure an adequate workforce and retain excellent employees, who are the foundation of the business strengths noted in the SWOT analysis of Google (Alphabet) . These programs also attract employees to the firm. The company is now one of the best places to work. Such popularity and positive perception indicate the success of Alphabet’s human resource management in recruitment, selection, and employee retention.

This article is part of a series on Google’s (Alphabet’s) human resource management:

• Google (Alphabet) HRM: HR Planning, Job Analysis & Design
• Google (Alphabet) HRM: Training, Performance Management
• Google (Alphabet) HRM: Compensation, Career Development

Google’s (Alphabet’s) Recruitment Practices

Sources . Google’s human resource management uses a mixture of internal and external recruitment sources to maintain the adequacy of its human resources. The company uses promotions, transfers, and trainees/interns as the main internal recruitment sources for HR needs. On the other hand, the external recruitment sources at Google include educational institutions and respondents to job advertisements. Most of these ads are available through the Careers section of Google’s website. Through these recruitment sources, the company facilitates a continuous influx of qualified workers, while matching these employees’ capabilities with human resource needs.

Methods . Considering the combination of internal and external recruitment sources, Google uses indirect methods and direct methods of recruitment. The indirect methods are more significant to the company. These indirect methods include advertisements on the company’s website. However, Alphabet’s human resource management also uses direct methods in the form of contacts with potential interns and future employees through academic institutions. This combination of direct and indirect recruitment methods is aligned with the mixture of internal and external recruitment sources to satisfy Google’s human resource requirements.

Selection Process at Google (Alphabet)

The most significant criteria used in Google’s human resource management for the selection of applicants are smartness, creativity, drive for excellence, and alignment with the organization. The company does not use work experience as the main criterion for selection. These criteria are based on the goal of maximizing innovation to support Google’s (Alphabet’s) generic competitive strategy and intensive growth strategies . For instance, the company’s human resource selection provides HR support for software engineering, hardware design, and consumer electronics marketing.

There are different processes used for the selection of applicants at Google. However, in general, the company’s selection process involves background checks, preliminary screening, on-the-job tests, and interviews. Google’s human resource management uses different procedures and steps for the various positions in the organization. For instance, on-the-job tests are generally used for positions that are more frequently filled through absorption of interns and trainees.

Retention Programs for Alphabet (Google) Employees

Compensation packages are the main HRM tool that the business uses for retaining high-quality human resources to fulfill the strategies and goals set in Alphabet’s (Google’s) corporate mission statement and corporate vision statement . The company’s compensation packages are competitive and above average. For example, Google provides high salaries and wages. In addition, employees get free meals and other incentives and benefits. The typical design of the company’s offices emphasizes fun and creativity, which attract and retain creative and innovative workers. Alphabet’s human resource management uses coaching and mentoring to retain and develop employees with leadership potential.

• Alphabet Inc. – Building a Sense of Belonging at Google and Beyond .
• Alphabet Inc. – Form 10-K .
• Engelsberger, A., Bartram, T., Cavanagh, J., Halvorsen, B., & Bogers, M. (2023). The role of collaborative human resource management in supporting open innovation: A multi-level model. Human Resource Management Review, 33 (2), 100942.
• Google Careers – How We Hire .
• Gu, M., Zhang, Y., Li, D., & Huo, B. (2023). The effect of high-involvement human resource management practices on supply chain resilience and operational performance. Journal of Management Science and Engineering, 8 (2), 176-190.
• U.S. Department of Commerce – International Trade Administration – Software and Information Technology Industry .
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Google's Project Oxygen: A Case-Study in Connection Culture

Google recently went public with the results of its Project Oxygen research to identify the practices of Google’s best technical managers. Their approach called for a study of 100 variables by data-mining performance reviews and internal surveys. Laszlo Bock , Google’s Vice President for People Operations, summed up the findings when he said the most important factor they identified was "making that connection" between the manager and the employee. Google is right that the manager-employee connection is important, but it is only part of the story. That is what I told Google’s leaders when I presented at the Googleplex in 2009 as part of the Leading@Google Series . In 2002, I first recognized that employees who gave their best efforts and aligned their behavior with organizational goals frequently used the word "connection" to describe why they were so fired up about their work. Since that time, my colleagues and I have been identifying the multiplicity of ways that great leaders in business, government, the social sector and sports connect with the people they lead to achieve sustainable superior performance. In 2007, we published our findings about connection in the book Fired Up or Burned Out .

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After of nearly a decade of studying connection, I have come to believe it is one of the most powerful and yet least understood aspects of organizational performance. In the business context, the feeling of connection between management, employees and customers provides a competitive advantage. Unless the people who are part of a business feel a sense of connection—a bond, which promotes trust, cooperation and esprit de corps—they will never reach their potential as individual employees, nor will the organization reach its potential. [eventPDF] An organization with a high degree of connection breeds employees who are more engaged, more productive in their jobs, and less likely to leave the organization for a competitor. Organizations with greater connection also have employees who share more information with their colleagues, leading to better-informed decisions and new products, processes and entirely new businesses. Connection is what transforms a dog-eat-dog environment into a sled dog team that pulls together. So what is connection anyway? When we interact with people, we generally feel that we connect with some and not with others. Phrases such as "we really connected" and "we just didn’t connect" are common in our daily conversations. Connection describes something intangible we sense in relationships. We define connection as a bond based on shared identity, empathy and understanding that moves self-centered individuals toward group-centered membership. When connection is present, we feel energy, empathy, affirmation and are more open. When it is absent, we experience neutral or even negative feelings. Although we know what it is like to feel connected on a personal level, few among us understand the effect connection has on us and on the organizations we work in. Reflecting on my personal and professional experiences and on the research I have read and conducted made me realize three things:

• First, connection is a powerful force that creates a positive bond between people based on both rational and emotional factors.
• Second, connection contributes to bringing out the best in people—it energizes them, makes them more trusting and resilient to face life’s inevitable difficulties.
• Third, connection can vary tremendously across organizations depending upon local culture and leadership.

What is it about connection that makes it so powerful? Without going too far into the psychology of connection , let me just summarize by saying simply that we are humans, not machines. We have emotions. We have hopes and dreams. We have a conscience. We have common deeply felt human needs: to be respected; to be recognized for our talents; to belong; to have autonomy or control over our work; to experience personal growth; to do work that we feel is worthwhile in a way that we feel is ethical. When we work in an environment that recognizes these realities of our human nature, we thrive. We feel more energetic, more optimistic, and more fully alive. When we work in an environment that fails to recognize this, it is damaging to our mental and physical health. For those of you who see the value of connection, I want to show you how you can bring it out in the workplace by creating a " Connection Culture "—a culture with the necessary elements to meet our human needs. The core elements of a Connection Culture that meet these human needs are vision, value, and voice.

The first element of a Connection Culture is vision . Vision exists when everyone in an organization is motivated by the organization’s mission, united by its values, and proud of its reputation. When people share a purpose or set of beliefs they’re proud of, it unites and motivates them. At Google, many employees connect with its mission to "organize the world’s information and make it accessible and usable." These Googlers understand that Google’s search engine will help change the world by making people smarter and better decision-makers . They are motivated by that prospect. Googlers are also united by its values that include "do no evil" and its "Googley" style, which incorporates the values of being authentic, genuine, fun, and curious. Being Googley ties in to Google’s passion for its modern, bright and colorful visual identity that is incorporated in everything from its website and written materials to its interior office design and building architecture. Google’s reputation connects with Googlers in several respects. The firm is well-known as one of the most innovative companies globally. It has a reputation for hiring smart people, and it is recognized for having one of the best workplaces in the world. All of this makes its talent feel proud to be associated with Google. Value The second element of a Connection Culture is that people are truly valued. My colleagues and I refer to this element in a culture simply as " value . " It means that everyone in an organization understands the universal nature of people, appreciates the unique contribution of each person, and helps them achieve their potential. Value also includes protecting people from abuses such as workplace incivility, sexual misconduct or prejudice—actions that make people feel disconnected from their community because it failed to protect them. At Google, research shows that employees feel valued if they connect with their manager. Google's Project Oxygen research picked up on some leadership behaviors that reflect value. The best technical managers help their employees with career development, take interest in employees’ lives and make time for one-on-one meetings with employees. Voice The third element of a Connection Culture is " voice ." The element of voice exists when everyone in an organization participates in an open, honest and safe environment where people share their opinions in order to understand one another and seek the best ideas. When people’s ideas and opinions are sought and considered, it helps meet the human needs for respect, recognition and belonging. "Being in the loop," so to speak, makes people feel connected to their colleagues, just as being "out of the loop" makes people feel disconnected. The CEO and founders of Google conduct " TGIF " meetings every Friday. Googlers vote on the topics they would like to see addressed in the TGIF. These meetings give employees a sense of voice that makes them feel connected. One of the variables that Project Oxygen identified was that the best technical managers ask questions and do not dictate answers. This also reflects voice.

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The bottom line is that we all need connection to thrive at work and in life. Here are a few suggestions about how to get started:

• Everyone should understand what connection truly is and continuously strive to increase it among the people with whom they live and work.
• Identify the vision that will unite and motivate everyone in your business. That vision may be becoming the best at what you do. It may be bringing something new to the world or conducting your business in a way that reflects your values. For example, Disney’s vision is to "make people happy." To jump start the process, get your most motivated people in a room and ask them when they have felt proud of the company. Listen to their stories and you’ll likely find a vision to rally around.
• Get to know the personal stories of the people you live and work alongside. Learn what has made them happy and what has disappointed them. Find out what their professional and personal hopes are for the future. As people get to know one another, value will increase and connection will be strengthened.

Connection is the key . It makes a difference in families, in workplaces, in schools, in volunteer organizations, in communities and in nations. No one can thrive for long without it.

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Digital editions.

Secrets of Google’s talent retention success

Revolutionary human resource management has once again seen google named the world’s best employer. how, asks elizabeth matsangou, is the tech powerhouse so good at recruiting talent and nurturing innovation.

Author: Elizabeth Matsangou

Related topics:, top 5 ways to manage the board during turbulent times top 5 ways to create a family-friendly work culture top 5 tips for a successful joint venture top 5 ways managers can support ethnic minority workers top 5 ways to encourage gender diversity in the workplace  top 5 ways ceos can create an ethical company culture top 5 tips for going into business with your spouse top 5 ways to promote a healthy workforce top 5 ways to survive a recession top 5 tips for avoiding the ‘conference vortex’ top 5 ways to maximise new parents’ work-life balance with technology top 5 ways to build psychological safety in the workplace top 5 ways to prepare your workforce for the ai revolution top 5 ways to tackle innovation stress in the workplace top 5 tips for recruiting millennials.

This March, Fortune named Google, already the world’s biggest search engine, the number one employer for the sixth year in a row, making the tech company the ultimate talent magnet.

Google has achieved this remarkable feat by transforming conventions in recruitment and management. Internally, the responsible department is not known as human resources, but rather as ‘people operations’, clearly distancing the company from outdated practices. Nor is it considered a subdivision of the business, or an avoidable and sometimes annoying function that deflects resources away from profit making. At Google, people operations is seen as the core of the company, the one area that connects and facilitates all other departments.

Google’s exceptional success shows how far a company can go when it celebrates and nurtures its staff, rather than considering them replaceable tools

Mirroring how it carries out research and development for products and services, Google applies data collection and analysis to both potential and existing employees. Rather than the traditional HR format of decision-making based on assumptions, first impressions and relationship building, Google makes decisions using statistics and algorithms. “The capabilities of IT systems allow a more sophisticated and analytical approach to HR than was possible in the past”, says Mark Thompson, Head of Reward Consulting at management firm Hay Group. Thus, cold hard facts are employed in order to keep the chances of unexpected outcomes to an absolute minimum.

Valued workers When Google went public in 2004, a letter from the firm’s founders was sent to investors, outlining the firm’s modus operandi. Co-founder Sergey Brin added the following: “Our employees, who have named themselves Googlers, are everything. Google is organised around the ability to attract and leverage the talent of exceptional technologists and businesspeople. We have been lucky to recruit many creative, principled and hard working stars. We hope to recruit many more in the future. We will reward and treat them well.”

A simple question

Only a few years ago, the main challenge of getting a job at Google wasn’t the competition, but the now-abandoned bizarre interview questions posed

Explain a database to an 8-year-old in three sentences This challenge aimed to test candidates’ ability to boil down concepts to their constituent elements, and relate them clearly and succinctly

Why are manhole covers round? Aspiring Googlers were asked this question to test their logical reasoning skills, as well as their ability to think flexibly about problems and solutions

How many piano tuners are there in the world? A classic Fermi problem, this aimed to test practical estimation and the ability to work confidently with numbers on a large scale

How many times a day do a clock’s hands overlap? This question was a more straightforward test of applied mathematical ability, but could still throw the unprepared

At Google, employees are considered the company’s most valuable asset – the backbone of the organisation. They are given freedom, a healthy work-life balance, incredible perks, and even the chance to have fun at work. There are many who maintain that such radical practices are a waste of money and time, and some may find them simply absurd. And yet, the results speak for themselves.

Given that Google is a relatively young company, its rate of exponential expansion since being founded in 1998 illustrates just how effective this fresh method of management is. Google’s exceptional success shows how far a company can go when it celebrates and nurtures its staff, rather than considering them replaceable tools. “What HR should and must focus on is understanding the relationship between the things which motivate and engage people as individuals”, says Laurence Collins, Director of HR and Workforce Analytics at Deloitte. “The environment, work, growth, reward and flexibility it offers, [are] part of the employee proposition.”

Coveted careers Each year, two million people apply for around 5,000 vacancies at Google. With better odds of being accepted into Harvard or even of being struck by lightning, many hopeful candidates turn to unorthodox means to make themselves stand out. Lazslo Bock, Head of People Operations at Google, told Forbes in a recent interview that he often receives pleas, bribe offers and even threats from applicants. Yet, as Google only hires the finest recruits in every aspect of its business, it is far more frequently the case that those employed are headhunted. “The recruiting corps at Google might eye a target for years”, Bock explains.

During the recruitment process, Google uses an algorithm to make predictions regarding which candidates have the best chances of succeeding at the role in question. Those with a very high IQ are often chosen, although the ability to learn and absorb information is considered more important. Riddles and brainteasers are no longer used, as analysis carried out by the department has found that those who do well in such exercises are not necessarily the best candidates. Traditional interview questions have thus made a comeback in Google’s interview process. “It is often easier and gives a much bigger return on investment to quickly spot a trend and act upon it”, Collins notes. “The mere ability to see a pattern often gives enough confidence and accuracy to make better HR decisions”.

The people operations team also looks for those who will fit into the firm’s unique culture. Namely, they are looking for ‘Googleyness’ or, in plain English, intellectual humility. Leadership skills are another valuable asset for selection, although the ability to step away and relinquish power is just as important. CEO Larry Page gets the final say on any individual talented (and fortunate) enough to make it through the selection process. Not often, but every now and again, he stops someone at the final hurdle. So as to prevent shortsightedness, verdicts, such as whom to hire and fire, how performance is rated and which promotions are given, are never made unilaterally. “Each of these decisions is instead made either by a group of peers, a committee, or a dedicated, independent team”, writes Bock in his book Work Rules .

An algorithm is also used to examine top candidates who have been rejected, in order to ensure that any gems have not slipped through the net. Although this happens at a very low rate (according to HR consultant Dr John Sullivan, it is just 1.5 percent), this point illustrates the thoroughness of the process. “There are a multitude of ways in which statistical principles can be applied to the provision of people-related forecasts. Assuming that the mathematical rules of the road are applied to both the data structure and the algorithm development, then these can provide great benefit to organisations. In essence, any model requires data to be collected and a series of tests to be applied”, Collins explains.

X marks the spot

Self-driving cars The most significant project at Google X, the search for a reliable, safe driverless car is becoming more of a race. Car manufacturers and governments are pursuing the technology independently, as the reward for a major breakthrough will be financially and reputationally significant.

Google Glass Derided and admired in equal measure, many felt Google’s limited two-year launch of Glass was a failure. In reality, it served as vital research into how such a product can be socially integrated. Very much an ongoing project, Glass is now being redesigned by Tony Fadell, once of Apple.

Project Loon One of Google’s social responsibility tenets is that internet access is a fundamental right. In pursuit of this dream, Project Loon aims to use high-altitude balloons to beam the internet to remote and rural areas. The name comes from the general opinion of the initial idea as crazy and unworkable.

Abundant benefits Many of the perks bestowed upon Googlers have received individual attention for their originality, appeal and, sometimes, for their downright wackiness. Adopting a fun environment is a key stratagem for the company’s founders. To fulfil this requirement, there are arcades on ‘campus’ (as Google HQ is known internally), as well as climbing walls, a volleyball court and even two bowling lanes. There are also regular sport and gaming tournaments, giving employees a chance to bond, as well as let off steam. They may seem like gimmicks, but there is a wider philosophy at play. “All this fun might sound too frivolous to take seriously, but fun is an important part of Google, creating an opportunity for unguarded exploration and discovery”, adds Bock in his book. “Fun is an outcome of who we are, rather than the defining characteristic.”

“Job perks are an important part of some organisations’ value proposition, and the more quirky or unique the better”, says Thompson. Google certainly has quirky and unique perks down to a tee, such as providing napping pods and hammocks for workers to rest when needed, which can boost cognition levels and reduce stress. For a subsidised price, employees can also visit on-site masseurs in order to relax and minimise work-related back pain, while doctors are available throughout the day for other ailments too. Comprehensive health plans include dental and optical care, and, more unconventionally, alternative medicine and even fertility treatment. When the time comes that a Google baby is born, $500 is gifted to the new parents – just because it’s a nice thing to do.

Bicycles are placed throughout the complex for workers to pick up and use whenever they wish, and there is even a squad of electric cars available for use during lunch breaks. There is also, of course, Google’s famous free food policy; various canteens offering an array of different cuisines and healthy sustenance are available for breakfast and lunch, each and every day. Calorie content and nutritional values are provided for the dishes served, as another way in which Google tries to promote a healthy lifestyle for its employees. Free ice cream is on offer too, presumably to boost emotional rather than physical health.

Innovation, communication Google considers enhancing collaboration to be one of the best means for facilitating great work and innovation. Managers encourage their team members to communicate and spend time together as much as possible, for bouncing ideas off one another is how the magic often happens. Within the office space, departments are grouped together by glass dividers, which enables frequent idea exchange without disturbing others, while also maintaining an open and illuminated environment.

Another concept that the people operations team has implemented to inspire the next big idea is ‘20 percent time’. This programme allows employees to work on a personal project outside of their allocated duties for up to 20 percent of their working week. Although one day a week may seem like a lot of time to divert from one’s responsibilities, it is during these hours that an individual’s passion and ingenuity is best harnessed. Illustrating this point are the products that have been created from personal projects, such as Gmail, Google Talk and Google News.

“Google is really good at providing job enrichment. Googlers are assigned several projects at a time and have ownership of their projects. They work on these projects from beginning to end, so they are involved through the whole process and are able to see how their work makes impact on the organisation”, says Dr Jonathan Booth, Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management at LSE.

Each employee is assigned their own mentor within the company. Naturally, the mentor is chosen based on data that matches the compatibility of the two individuals. The ‘career guru’ programme allows junior staff members to discuss their career development, daily schedule and how to deal with office politics, within a confidential and friendly environment. “It is a great place to work because it is a learning organisation”, says Booth. “They really focus on learning and development.” Staff members are also given the valuable opportunity to ask senior management any work-related questions they wish during sessions called TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday), which, in true Google fashion, often take place on Thursdays. “Our weekly all-employee meetings started when ‘all’ of us amounted to just a handful of people, and continue to this day even through we’re now the size of a respectable city”, writes Bock.

Then there is the Google-O-Meter, which allows staff to vote on employee suggestions in order to gauge their popularity and whether each policy or perk has enough traction for implementation. “Googlers have a lot of voice mechanisms in place, so that their opinions and views are heard”, claims Booth. As illustrated by such policies, communication is seen as key at Google. Giving personnel a chance to speak up not only fosters a productive work environment; it can also lead to significant changes within the business.

Recruiting the best In addition to the extensive catalogue of company benefits on offer, Google pays some of the industry’s highest average salaries in order to attract and retain the best talent. As well as this, potential and existing recruits are often attracted by Google’s core objective as a business and the company’s famous motto: ‘don’t be evil’. The philosophy behind Google’s work is to make the world a better place through technology. Given its portfolio of free products, including Google Maps, YouTube and the Google Drive service, it is easy to see why 98 percent of staff surveyed by Fortune said that they feel great pride in telling people where they work.

Projects to support the community are another pillar of the culture at Google; employees are paid for voluntary work they carry out, while philanthropic donations are encouraged. “Some of the most effective perks in terms of staff retention are not about monetary reward at all, but focus on fostering team spirit and a sense of community”, Thompson explains.

Feeling perky

Google is not the only company that offers excellent perks to employees – other firms are catching on as HR and working conditions evolve beyond recognition

On time (if you want) At the HQ of streaming giant Netflix, employees have no fixed hours or days. They can work as few or as many hours as they like, with unlimited holidays, as long as their work is done

Family values Facebook, Google’s main rival in the perks sphere, offers employees $4,000 in cash when they have a child, reimbursement for childcare fees, and even the chance to freeze eggs for future IVF attempts

Leave it to Jeeves Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson provides a free concierge service for 12,000 of its employees, to take care of the simple day-to-day tasks that drain time and energy

Going to Ibiza In a more offbeat move, recruitment firm Spencer Ogden sends those employees who meet their targets three months in a row to Ibiza, to work at their beach office for a week

The future of HR The analytical and data-driven approach allows Google to function based on quantitative evidence and to implement policies that are as far removed from chance as possible. This scientific attitude is a new frontier for management and recruitment, and one that can boost growth and profits to an extraordinary degree. “Human capital analytics is changing the way decisions are made about human capital, and how HR engages with the business and shapes strategy. That is why the adoption of analytics in progressive HR functions is proving to be the single biggest catalyst for improved operational performance”, says Collins.

There are numerous lessons that can be learnt from Google – a whole new way of understanding human resources and how to maximise staff potential, in fact. Most firms consider the traditional bottom line as the best way to maximise growth, but it seems that Google sees things differently: the bottom line is the Googlers. Since the very beginning, Google has treated its staff with respect and care, offering benefits even when resources were scarce. When the company first started, people were allowed to bring their dogs to work, and the free meals on offer consisted of cereal and giant bowls of M&Ms. Thus, the underlying principle of valuing staff was deeply engrained in the company upon establishment – it is considered holy, never reduced and never revoked, as was firmly stated in the welcoming letter to investors: “Expect us to add benefits rather than pare them down over time.”

From the outset, Page and Brin truly understood that in order to nurture creativity and efficiency, employee privileges are paramount. “We believe it is easy to be penny wise and pound foolish with respect to benefits that can save employees considerable time and improve their health and productivity”, the letter read. The saying ‘a healthy worker is a happy worker’ is well known, but Google fully embraces the expression, paying attention to all aspects of an employee’s welfare, from their fitness, to their diet and psychological wellbeing, which ultimately invokes excellence in their work.

It is sticking to this philosophy that has made Google the best at what it does and it is also this that has enabled it to successfully branch out into so many other areas. The cutthroat business atmosphere does not exist in Google’s workspace, and, unlike many CEOs may believe, fostering this unconventional attitude does not cause a company to collapse, nor implode in a cloud of penniless nicety and good feelings. Google illustrates how the opposite is the case, continuing to thrive and attract the world’s finest talent. Generally, people spend most of their lives at work. It is, therefore, vital for it to be as pleasant as possible. Furthermore, an infinite budget or worldwide status is not necessary to create such a setting, as many cynics often claim in response to Google’s style of management. Considering employees as the most precious commodity within a business is how it can be achieved. Creating an environment in which employees want to get up and go to work can enable them to reach their full potential – to the benefit of their employers and all those around them. To some, this may seem like an unmanageable task, but it really isn’t – Google proves that it is possible.

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Launching soon ai-powered interview tool – view demo, case studies of companies with successful talent pools.

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, companies face the ever-present challenge of attracting, retaining, and developing top talent. As the war for talent intensifies, organizations are continually seeking innovative ways to stay ahead of the curve. One such strategy that has gained prominence is the creation and management of talent pools. These talent pools, carefully cultivated reservoirs of potential candidates, have proven to be instrumental in shaping the workforce of the future.

In this blog, we embark on a journey to explore the fascinating world of talent pools through the lens of real-world success stories from American companies. Case studies offer us a unique opportunity to dissect the strategies, tactics, and best practices that have propelled these organizations to the pinnacle of talent management. By delving into the experiences of these industry giants, we aim to uncover the secrets behind their successful talent pool initiatives and provide invaluable insights for businesses of all sizes.

So, fasten your seatbelts as we venture into the realm of talent pools, where we will discover how companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Netflix have harnessed the power of talent pools to not only survive but thrive in an ever-changing marketplace. Let’s embark on a journey through these case studies and learn how they’ve revolutionized their talent acquisition and management practices, ultimately reshaping the way we view workforce development in the 21st century.

The concept of talent pools

In the realm of modern workforce management, the concept of talent pools has emerged as a strategic cornerstone for businesses seeking to secure their future success. Talent pools represent a paradigm shift from traditional hiring methods, offering a dynamic approach to talent acquisition and management.

Defining Talent Pools At its core, a talent pool is a curated group of potential candidates who have been identified and nurtured by an organization for future job openings. Unlike traditional recruitment, which often operates reactively, talent pools are proactive reservoirs of talent that can be drawn upon when specific needs arise.

Advantages of Talent Pools Building and maintaining talent pools bring several advantages to the table. First and foremost, they allow companies to reduce the time-to-hire significantly. Since talent is pre-identified and engaged, the recruitment process becomes more efficient. Additionally, talent pools enable businesses to tap into a broader and more diverse talent pool, enhancing the potential for innovation and creativity within the organization.

Why Talent Pools Matter The importance of talent pools extends beyond just efficiency and diversity. In a world where markets can shift rapidly and unforeseen challenges arise, having a readily available pool of talent can be a strategic lifeline. This is particularly crucial in highly competitive industries where securing top talent can make or break a company’s future success.

As we dive deeper into this blog and explore the case studies of American companies that have mastered the art of talent pool management, it becomes clear that talent pools are not just a trend; they are a fundamental aspect of thriving in the modern business landscape. In the following sections, we’ll dissect the strategies and practices employed by these companies to create successful talent pools and how these efforts have shaped their growth and innovation.

Google’s talent pool mastery

One of the foremost exemplars in the realm of talent pool management is Google, the tech giant renowned for its innovation and continuous growth. By delving into Google’s talent pool strategy, we gain valuable insights into how this company has become a powerhouse of talent acquisition and management.

Creating a Vast and Diverse Talent Pool Google’s success begins with its ability to cast a wide net in talent acquisition. The company has perfected the art of creating a vast and diverse talent pool by actively engaging with potential candidates through various channels, from job fairs to online communities. This approach ensures that Google has access to a broad spectrum of talent, from emerging graduates to seasoned industry experts.

Nurturing Top Talent Through Continuous Learning Beyond merely accumulating potential candidates, Google places a strong emphasis on nurturing and developing top talent within its talent pool. The company invests heavily in continuous learning and development programs, enabling individuals in the talent pool to upskill and evolve alongside the ever-changing tech landscape. This not only benefits the candidates but also ensures that Google has access to a pool of talent that is always at the cutting edge of their respective fields.

Impact on Innovation and Growth The results of Google’s talent pool mastery are evident in its consistent innovation and growth. With a deep bench of top-notch talent readily available, the company can swiftly respond to market demands and embark on ambitious projects. Google’s talent pool has played a pivotal role in the development of groundbreaking products and services, driving its position as a leader in the tech industry.

Google’s case study serves as a compelling example of how strategic talent pool management can transform a company’s approach to talent acquisition. As we continue to explore the case studies of other American companies, we’ll uncover more success stories and strategies that can inspire businesses to rethink their own talent pool initiatives and redefine their paths to growth and innovation.

Amazon’s talent pool ecosystem

Amazon, the e-commerce and tech behemoth, has not only revolutionized the way we shop but has also redefined how companies approach talent pool development and management. Let’s delve into Amazon’s talent pool ecosystem to discover the secrets behind its remarkable success.

The Power of Leadership Principles Amazon’s talent pool strategy is closely intertwined with its Leadership Principles, a set of guiding values that shape the company’s culture and decision-making. These principles play a significant role in identifying and nurturing talent that aligns with Amazon’s core values and long-term vision.

A Holistic Approach to Talent Acquisition Amazon’s talent pool ecosystem takes a holistic approach by encompassing both internal and external talent sources. The company actively seeks talent from within its own ranks, encouraging employees to explore new roles and advance their careers. Simultaneously, Amazon strategically engages with external candidates, leveraging its brand reputation and innovative culture to attract top talent.

A Commitment to Growth and Scalability One of Amazon’s standout features is its relentless commitment to growth and scalability. The company’s talent pool ecosystem is designed to support its ambitious expansion plans across various sectors, from e-commerce to cloud computing. Amazon’s ability to consistently identify, develop, and deploy talent has been instrumental in its ability to enter new markets and thrive.

Outcomes and Successes The outcomes of Amazon’s talent pool ecosystem are evident in its continued dominance in the global market. The company’s ability to adapt to evolving customer demands, launch new ventures, and innovate rapidly can be directly attributed to the strength of its talent pool. Amazon’s case study underscores the importance of aligning talent pool strategies with broader business objectives.

Amazon’s journey serves as a compelling testament to the effectiveness of a well-structured talent pool ecosystem. As we progress through our exploration of American companies with successful talent pools , we’ll uncover more valuable insights and strategies that can inspire organizations to build their own talent pools capable of driving growth, innovation, and long-term success.

Apple’s secret to talent pool sustainability

Apple, a global tech icon, has not only reshaped the world of consumer electronics but has also crafted a talent pool strategy that sustains its legacy of innovation and excellence. Let’s unveil Apple’s approach to talent pool sustainability and how it contributes to the company’s unparalleled success.

Internal Talent Development and Succession Planning A cornerstone of Apple’s talent pool strategy is its unwavering commitment to internal talent development. The company recognizes the value of nurturing and advancing its existing workforce. Through comprehensive training, mentorship programs, and clear career progression paths, Apple ensures that its employees are prepared to take on new challenges and leadership roles within the organization.

The Art of Succession Planning Apple excels in succession planning, identifying high-potential individuals within its talent pool who can step into key positions as needed. This proactive approach to leadership development reduces disruption during transitions and empowers Apple to maintain its strategic vision, even amidst leadership changes.

Fostering a Culture of Innovation Apple’s talent pool sustains a culture of innovation that is deeply ingrained in the company’s DNA. Employees are encouraged to think creatively, challenge the status quo, and push the boundaries of what’s possible. This innovation-centric approach not only attracts top talent but also fuels Apple’s ability to consistently deliver groundbreaking products and experiences.

Impact on Product Innovation and Market Leadership Apple’s talent pool sustainability is the driving force behind its product innovation and market leadership. The seamless transition of leadership and the continuous influx of fresh ideas ensure that Apple remains at the forefront of technological advancements, setting industry standards and delighting customers worldwide.

Apple’s case study underscores the significance of long-term talent pool sustainability in achieving enduring success. As we delve deeper into our exploration of American companies with successful talent pools, we’ll unravel more insights and strategies that can inspire businesses to invest in talent development, creating a workforce capable of driving innovation, maintaining market leadership, and securing a lasting legacy.

Microsoft’s agile talent pool adaptation

Microsoft, a tech giant renowned for its adaptability and resilience, offers a compelling case study in the art of agile talent pool management. Let’s dissect how Microsoft has adapted its talent pool strategy to remain competitive in an ever-evolving industry.

Evolving to Meet Industry Shifts Microsoft’s ability to remain at the forefront of the tech industry lies in its agility to adapt to industry shifts. The company continually evaluates the skillsets required to stay competitive and rapidly adjusts its talent pool strategy to align with these evolving needs.

Upskilling and Reskilling Initiatives At the heart of Microsoft’s talent pool adaptation are its comprehensive upskilling and reskilling initiatives. The company invests heavily in training programs to equip employees with the latest skills and technologies, ensuring that its talent pool remains versatile and capable of meeting emerging challenges.

Cross-functional Collaboration Microsoft fosters cross-functional collaboration within its talent pool, encouraging employees to explore diverse roles and gain exposure to different aspects of the business. This approach not only enhances individual growth but also equips Microsoft with a workforce that can tackle multifaceted challenges.

Embracing Diversity and Inclusion Diversity and inclusion are integral components of Microsoft’s talent pool strategy. The company actively seeks diverse perspectives and backgrounds, recognizing that a diverse workforce leads to more innovative solutions and a broader market appeal.

Microsoft’s talent pool adaptation serves as a testament to the importance of staying agile and responsive in a rapidly changing industry. As we continue our journey through American companies with successful talent pools, we’ll uncover additional strategies and insights that can inspire businesses to build resilient and adaptable talent pools capable of thriving in an era of constant transformation.

Tesla’s niche talent pool cultivation

Tesla, the pioneering force behind electric vehicles and sustainable energy, has crafted a unique talent pool strategy tailored to its niche industry. Let’s delve into how Tesla cultivates its talent pool to drive innovation and disrupt traditional automotive and energy sectors.

Laser-Focused Recruitment Strategies Tesla’s talent pool success begins with its laser-focused recruitment strategies. The company actively seeks talent with specific expertise in electric vehicle technology, renewable energy, and related fields. This targeted approach ensures that Tesla’s talent pool is filled with individuals who possess the knowledge and passion required to lead the company’s mission.

Attracting Visionaries and Innovators Tesla has a knack for attracting visionaries and innovators who share the company’s commitment to sustainability and clean energy solutions. The allure of working on groundbreaking projects that have the potential to change the world has been instrumental in building a passionate and motivated talent pool.

Building a Culture of Fearless Innovation Tesla’s talent pool thrives in a culture of fearless innovation. Employees are encouraged to challenge conventions, push boundaries, and pursue audacious ideas. This culture fosters an environment where breakthroughs are not only celebrated but expected.

Disruptive Impact on Industries Tesla’s niche talent pool cultivation has had a disruptive impact on both the automotive and energy industries. The company’s relentless pursuit of excellence in electric vehicles and renewable energy solutions has forced traditional competitors to reevaluate their strategies and pivot towards sustainability.

Tesla’s case study underscores the significance of tailoring talent pool strategies to fit the unique needs of niche industries. As we continue our exploration of American companies with successful talent pools , we’ll uncover further insights and strategies that can inspire organizations to create specialized talent pools capable of spearheading innovation and driving transformation in their respective sectors.

Netflix’s talent pool for the creative industry

Netflix, a global leader in the streaming entertainment industry, has redefined talent pool management, particularly within the creative sector. Let’s delve into how Netflix has strategically developed and maintained its talent pool to fuel its content creation and global expansion.

A Focus on Creative Excellence Netflix’s talent pool strategy centers on attracting and retaining creative excellence. The company actively seeks out writers, directors, actors, and other creative professionals who have a track record of delivering exceptional content. This focus on talent quality underpins Netflix’s commitment to producing compelling original content.

Cultivating Long-term Relationships Netflix doesn’t view its talent pool as a mere collection of individuals but as long-term partners. The company nurtures strong relationships with creative talent, offering them creative freedom and opportunities to work on diverse projects. This approach encourages loyalty and fosters a sense of belonging within the Netflix ecosystem.

Global Reach and Cultural Sensitivity As Netflix expands its reach across the globe, the company recognizes the importance of cultural sensitivity and diversity within its talent pool. Netflix actively seeks talent from various cultural backgrounds, enabling the creation of content that resonates with audiences worldwide.

Impact on Content Innovation and Global Expansion Netflix’s talent pool for the creative industry is a driving force behind its content innovation and global expansion. The ability to consistently produce high-quality content in multiple languages and genres has propelled Netflix to its position as a leading global entertainment provider.

Netflix’s case study serves as a testament to the transformative power of a well-managed talent pool, especially within the creative sector. As we continue our exploration of American companies with successful talent pools, we’ll uncover more insights and strategies that can inspire organizations to build talent pools tailored to their unique industry and creative needs.

Lessons Learned from Successful Talent Pools

In our journey through the case studies of American companies with successful talent pools , we’ve uncovered a wealth of insights, strategies, and best practices that can transform the way organizations approach talent acquisition and management. As we conclude, let’s reflect on the key lessons learned from these exemplary companies.

Talent Pools as Strategic Imperatives First and foremost, the case studies of Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Netflix underscore that talent pools are no longer optional but strategic imperatives in today’s dynamic business landscape. Cultivating and managing talent pools isn’t just a trend; it’s a fundamental aspect of thriving and staying competitive.

Adaptability Is Key The ability to adapt and evolve talent pool strategies in response to industry shifts is paramount. Companies like Microsoft and Tesla have demonstrated the importance of staying agile and being ready to pivot when necessary. An adaptable talent pool can be a source of sustained competitive advantage.

Invest in Learning and Development Investing in learning and development, as exemplified by Google and Microsoft, not only attracts top talent but also ensures that your talent pool remains equipped with the latest skills and knowledge. Continuous upskilling and reskilling are crucial for long-term success.

Cultivate Company Culture Company culture plays a pivotal role in talent pool sustainability. Organizations like Apple and Netflix have showcased the value of nurturing a culture that fosters innovation, diversity, and a sense of belonging. A strong culture attracts and retains top talent.

Align Talent Pool with Business Objectives The alignment of talent pool strategies with broader business objectives is evident in the success of companies like Amazon and Tesla. A well-crafted talent pool should support the company’s growth, innovation, and market leadership goals.

In closing, these case studies serve as beacons of inspiration for businesses seeking to harness the power of talent pools. By adopting the strategies and principles revealed in these real-world examples, organizations can redefine their talent acquisition and management practices, ultimately securing a path to growth, innovation, and enduring success in the 21st century workforce landscape.

In the course of our exploration of talent pools and their pivotal role in shaping the workforce strategies of prominent American companies, we’ve uncovered a wealth of insights and strategies that can benefit organizations of all sizes and industries. These case studies serve as beacons of inspiration, illuminating the path toward more effective talent acquisition and management.

From Google’s mastery of talent pool creation to Amazon’s ecosystem approach, from Apple’s commitment to talent sustainability to Microsoft’s agility in adaptation, and from Tesla’s niche talent cultivation to Netflix’s creative industry focus, each company has showcased the transformative power of talent pools. These organizations have harnessed the potential of their talent reservoirs to drive innovation, fuel growth, and maintain competitive advantages in their respective sectors.

The key takeaways are clear: talent pools are not just a concept but a strategic imperative in today’s dynamic business landscape. They provide a means to identify, nurture, and leverage the best talents available, offering organizations a vital edge in the quest for excellence.

As we conclude our journey through these case studies, we encourage businesses to take a closer look at their own talent strategies. Consider adopting elements from these successful models, adapting them to your unique needs and goals. Building and maintaining talent pools isn’t a one-size-fits-all endeavor, but the principles and practices explored in these case studies can guide you toward creating a more resilient and agile workforce.

In an era where talent is the ultimate differentiator, the ability to cultivate and manage talent pools effectively is a game-changer. Embrace the lessons learned from these case studies and embark on your own path to talent pool success. The future of your organization’s growth and innovation may very well depend on it.

Did you know that hiring with testlify gives you 6x recruitment process boost and also helps you in saving money. So what are you waiting for? Book a demo with us today and find all your hiring needs at one place.

Talent pools streamline recruitment by pre-identifying potential candidates, saving time and resources.

Netflix nurtures relationships with creative talent, offering creative freedom and diverse projects.

Adaptable strategies, as seen in Microsoft and Tesla, ensure relevance in evolving industries.

Apple invests in internal talent development and succession planning.

Amazon’s Leadership Principles shape its talent pool by aligning values and vision.

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Using people analytics to drive business performance: A case study

People analytics— the application of advanced analytics and large data sets to talent management—is going mainstream. Five years ago, it was the provenance of a few leading companies, such as Google (whose former senior vice president of people operations wrote a book about it ). Now a growing number of businesses are applying analytics to processes such as recruiting and retention, uncovering surprising sources of talent and counterintuitive insights about what drives employee performance.

Much of the work to date has focused on specialized talent (a natural by-product of the types of companies that pioneered people analytics) and on individual HR processes . That makes the recent experience of a global quick-service restaurant chain instructive. The company focused the power of people analytics on its frontline staff—with an eye toward improving overall business performance—and achieved dramatic improvements in customer satisfaction, service performance, and overall business results, including a 5 percent increase in group sales in its pilot market. Here is its story.

The challenge: Collecting data to map the talent value chain

The company had already exhausted most traditional strategic options and was looking for new opportunities to improve the customer experience. Operating a mix of franchised outlets, as well as corporate-owned restaurants, the company was suffering from annual employee turnover significantly above that of its peers. Business leaders believed closing this turnover gap could be a key to improving the customer experience and increasing revenues, and that their best chance at boosting retention lay in understanding their people better. The starting point was to define the goals for the effort and then translate the full range of frontline employee behavior and experience into data that the company could model against actual outcomes.

Would you like to learn more about our People Analytics ?

Define what matters. Agreeing in advance on the outcomes that matter is a critical step in any people-analytics project—one that’s often overlooked and can involve a significant investment of time. In this case, it required rigorous data exploration and discussion among senior leaders to align on three target metrics: revenue growth per store, average customer satisfaction, and average speed of service (the last two measured by shift to ensure that the people driving those results were tracked). This exercise highlighted a few performance metrics that worked together and others that “pulled” in opposite directions in certain contexts.

Fill data gaps. Internal sources provided some relevant data, and it was possible to derive other variables, such as commute distance. The company needed to supplement its existing data, however, notably in three areas (Exhibit 1):

• First was selection and onboarding (“ who gets hired and what their traits are”). There was little data on personality traits, which some leaders thought might be a significant factor in explaining differences in the performance of the various outlets and shifts. In association with a specialist in psychometric assessments, the company ran a series of online games allowing data scientists to build a picture of individual employees’ personalities and cognitive skills.
• Second was day-to-day management (“ how we manage our people and their environment”). Measuring management quality is never easy, and the company did not have a culture or engagement survey. To provide insight into management practices, the company deployed McKinsey’s Organizational Health Index (OHI), an instrument through which we’ve pinpointed 37 management practices that contribute most to organizational health and long-term performance. With the OHI, the company sought improved understanding of such practices and the impact that leadership actions were having on the front line.
• Third was behavior and interactions (“ what employees do in the restaurants”). Employee behavior and collaboration was monitored over time by sensors that tracked the intensity of physical interactions among colleagues. The sensors captured the extent to which employees physically moved around the restaurant, the tone of their conversations, and the amount of time spent talking versus listening to colleagues and customers.

The insights: Challenging conventional wisdom

Armed with these new and existing data sources—six in all, beyond the traditional HR profile, and comprising more than 10,000 data points spanning individuals, shifts, and restaurants across four US markets, and including the financial and operational performance of each outlet—the company set out to find which variables corresponded most closely to store success. It used the data to build a series of logistic-regression and unsupervised-learning models that could help determine the relationship between drivers and desired outcomes (customer satisfaction and speed of service by shift, and revenue growth by store).

Then it began testing more than 100 hypotheses, many of which had been strongly championed by senior managers based on their observations and instincts from years of experience. This part of the exercise proved to be especially powerful, confronting senior individuals with evidence that in some cases contradicted deeply held and often conflicting instincts about what drives success. Four insights emerged from the analysis that have begun informing how the company manages its people day to day.

Personality counts. In the retail business at least, certain personality traits have higher impact on desired outcomes. Through the analysis, the company identified four clusters or archetypes of frontline employees who were working each day: one group, “potential leaders,” exhibited many characteristics similar to store managers; another group, “socializers,” were friendly and had high emotional intelligence; and there were two different groups of “taskmasters,” who focused on job execution (Exhibit 2). Counterintuitively, though, the hypothesis that socializers—and hiring for friendliness—would maximize performance was not supported by the data. There was a closer correlation between performance and the ability of employees to focus on their work and minimize distractions, in essence getting things done.

Careers are key. The company found that variable compensation, a lever the organization used frequently to motivate store managers and employees, had been largely ineffective: the data suggested that higher and more frequent variable financial incentives (awards that were material to the company but not significant at the individual level) were not strongly correlated with stronger store or individual performance. Conversely, career development and cultural norms had a stronger impact on outcomes.

Management is a contact sport. One group of executives had been convinced that managerial tenure was a key variable, yet the data did not show that. There was no correlation to length of service or personality type. This insight encouraged the company to identify more precisely what its “good” store managers were doing, after which it was able to train their assistants and other local leaders to act and behave in the same way (through, for example, empowering and inspiring staff, recognizing achievement, and creating a stronger team environment).

Shifts differ. Performance was markedly weaker during shifts of eight to ten hours. Such shifts were inconsistent both with demand patterns and with the stamina of employees, whose energy fell significantly after six hours at work. Longer shifts, it seems, had become the norm in many restaurants to ease commutes and simplify scheduling (fewer days of work in the week, with more hours of work each day). Analysis of the data demonstrated to managers that while this policy simplified managerial responsibilities, it was actually hurting productivity.

The results (so far)

Four months into a pilot in the first market in which the findings are being implemented, the results are encouraging. Customer satisfaction scores have increased by more than 100 percent, speed of service (as measured by the time between order and transaction completion) has improved by 30 seconds, attrition of new joiners has decreased substantially, and sales are up by 5 percent.

The CEO’s guide to competing through HR

We’d caution, of course, against concluding that instinct has no role to play in the recruiting, development, management, and retention of employees—or in identifying the combination of people skills that drives great performance. Still, results like these, in an industry like retail—which in the United States alone employs more than 16 million people and, depending on the year and season, may hire three-quarters of a million seasonal employees—point to much broader potential for people analytics. It appears that executives who can complement experience-based wisdom with analytically driven insight stand a much better chance of linking their talent efforts to business value.

Carla Arellano  is a vice president of, and Alexander DiLeonardo is a senior expert at, People Analytics, a McKinsey Solution—both are based in McKinsey’s New York office;  Ignacio Felix is a partner in the Miami office.

The authors wish to thank Val Rastorguev, Dan Martin, and Ryan Smith for their contributions to this article.

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10 talent tips from google hr.

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What are the keys to great talent development? We learned more from Google People Operations leader ... [+] Iveta Brigis.

Iveta Brigis made it from a tiny high school in upstate New York to Google. In college, she didn’t study computer science, she studied people--and how to develop and compensate them. She joined Google 12 years ago when the company was beginning a series of deep dives in organizational development.

Brigis and her colleagues in Google People Operations learned a lot about recruiting and developing talent. A few years ago, Brigis ran the Google K-12 Talent Academy, an initiative to share lessons learned with school districts.

She recently left the company for new adventures but she meet us at a school and outlined 10 talent takeaways:  

1.  Trust pays off. One now famous Google investigation was into why some teams are better than others. It turns out that psychological safety and team trust were the key variables. Teams that encourage safe discussions and different viewpoints succeed more. Good teams have high social sensitivity, they had team members that could sense how others felt based on their tone of voice, their expressions and other nonverbal cues.

2.  Don’t trust your gut. When it comes to hiring, everyone thinks they are a great interviewer. More process and more structure is almost always better.   

3.  Don’t hire yourself. Most people tend to hire candidates like themselves. Be thoughtful about what you’re looking for. Try to identify success characteristics for the role.

4.  Hire collaborative learners. With the speed of change, the willingness and ability to learn is a key success variable. Because everything is done in teams, collaboration and empathy are key to success.

5.  Broaden your horizons. If you want talent diversity, look beyond the traditional name-brand universities. Google found success in recruiting at minority-serving institutions.

6.  Great workplace. It’s easier to hire if you have a place where people want to come to work. Check your employee value proposition. Find out if people have input in management, and if they receive feedback and recognition. The basics matter.

7.  Engage trainers. At Google, there is a big network of employees who teach classes on coding, teams and management. They receive support on how to design effective learning experiences.  

8.  Bring data. Google is a big data shop, they care about people analytics and strive to be evidence-based.  

9.  Be transparent. Google strives for transparency and shares pertinent information as needed. Educators were particularly interested in strategies for how to do this better.

10.  Grow your own. In hard to hire categories like machine learning, encourage internal employees to learn and teach others. Make the work really attractive by making the mission compelling (pay is just one element of a great job). Again, (like #6), build your value proposition and talent brand.  

We also recorded a podcast with Iveta you can download here .

Where you can’t hire the talent you need, partner with expertise. If you’re a school system or university, use your scale to create a compelling impact proposition. Brigis offered this advice to the state of California in a recent report she co-authored as a Commissioner on the Little Hoover Commission, Artificial Intelligence: A Roadmap for California.

Keep an eye on Brigis and Google People Ops for more lessons learned.

For more, see:

• Growing Talent for the 4th Industrial Revolution
• 6 Talent Development Tools for EdLeaders
• Boosting Career Readiness in Dallas

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Dr John Sullivan Talent Management Thought Leadership

Talent management lessons from apple… a case study of the world’s most valuable firm (part 4 of 4).

October 3, 2011

The purpose of this case study was not to say that you should copy everything Apple does, but rather to point out that with relentless execution and focus on key factors even a firm near bankruptcy can fight its way back to the top. In 13 years Apple has transformed itself from an organization of the verge of collapse to the world’s most valuable firm, amassing a phenomenal innovation record in the process. While Apple’s approach wouldn’t work for every firm, there are lessons to be learned that can influence program design regardless of industry, firm size, or location.

In part 4 of this case study (here’s parts  1 ,  2 , and  3 ) on talent management lessons, the attention is on development practices, role of management, and inspirational leadership.

Make your employees “own” their learning, training and development  — because Apple frequently produces new products requiring expertise in completely different industries (i.e. computers, music devices, media sales, and telephony), its employee skill set requirements change faster than at almost any other tech firm. While there is plenty of training available, there is no formal attempt to give every employee a learning plan. Just as with career progression, employee training and learning are primarily “owned” by employees. The firm expects employees to be self-reliant. Its retail salesforce for example receives no training on how to sell, a practice that is certainly unconventional in the retail environment. The lesson is simple: providing target competencies and prescribing training can weaken employee self-reliance, an attribute problematic in a fast-changing environment. Employee ownership of development encourages employees to continuously learn in order to develop the skills that will be required for new opportunities.

Make managers undisputed kings  — Apple is not a democracy. Most direction and major decisions are made by senior management. “Twenty percent time” like that found at Google doesn’t exist. While in some organizations HR is powerful when it comes to people management issues, at Apple, Steve Jobs has a well-earned reputation for deemphasizing the power of HR. Although Apple was the first firm to develop an HR 411 line, I have concluded that most of the talent management innovations at Apple emanate from outside of the HR function. There is a concerted effort to avoid having decisions made by “committees.” Putting the above factors together, it is clear that at Apple, managers are the undisputed kings. The resulting decrease in overhead function interference, coupled with the increased authority and accountability, helps to attract and retain managers that prefer control. Unfortunately, concentrating the authority has resulted in having some managers being accused of micromanagement and abusing team members.

Having a product focus drives focus, cooperation, and integration  – Apple is notably famous in the business press for its “product-focused” approach (versus a functional or regional focus). Everything from strategy to budgets to organizational design and talent management functions are designed around “the product.” One of the primary goals of talent management is to ensure that the workforce is focused on the strategic elements that drive company success. That focus can be distracted with selfish or self-serving behavior that instead shifts the emphasis to the individual, a business function, a particular business unit or even a region. Although deciding to have a product focus is normally a business decision, it turns out that Apple’s strong product focus also has significant positive impacts on talent management.

This laser focus on producing a product makes it easy for everyone to prioritize and focus their efforts. A product focus is so powerful because it’s easy for employees to understand that final products can never be produced without everyone being on the same page. A product focus increases coordination, cooperation, and integration between the different functions and teams because everyone knows that you can’t produce a best-selling product without smooth handoffs and a lack of silos and roadblocks. With a singular focus on producing product, there is simply less confusion about what is important, what should be measured, what should be rewarded, and what precisely is defined as success. A product focus increases the feeling of “we’re all in this together” for a single clear purpose: the product.

Apple purposely offers only a relative handful of products, so employee focus isn’t dispersed among hundreds of products as it is at other firms. By releasing products only when it can have a major market impact, Apple essentially guarantees that every employee can brag that they contributed to an industry-dominating product that everyone is aware of. This focus on product helps to contribute to employees feeling that they are “changing the world.” This focus may also reduce the chance that employees will notice that the day-to-day work environment with its politics and the required secrecy may be less than perfect. And because Apple is no longer a small firm, with nearly 50,000 employees, a unifying and inspiring theme is required to maintain cohesion and a single sense of purpose.

Find a passionate and inspirational leader  — although Steve Jobs is no longer the CEO, no analysis of Apple would be complete without mentioning his importance in the firm’s success and the design of its talent management approach. He influenced nearly every aspect of the talent management approach. Not only is he one of the highest-rated CEOs by the public (he is  ranked  number three on the glassdoor.com list) but as a role model, he has had a huge impact on innovation, productivity, retention, and recruiting. His value is indisputable. The day after he resigned, Apple’s stock value fell by as much as $17.7 billion. It is too early to tell whether the new CEO, Tim Cook, who is markedly less inspirational, will be able to maintain the momentum that Jobs created. He has already shifted some executives and changed the company’s philanthropy approach by instituting a matching gift program for charitable donations.

Other miscellaneous talent management issues  — Apple executives are certainly in high demand at other firms that seek to be equally as innovative (for example, the head of the retail operation recently left to become CEO at JCPenney). Despite this demand, Apple certainly doesn’t have any significant turnover problems. You can, however, find  plenty  of negative comments about Apple on sites like glassdoor.com. Some describe Apple’s approach toward employees as a bit arrogant, and employees are certainly pushed to their limits. If you don’t “bleed six colors,” you simply won’t enjoy your experience at Apple for long. Although originally the firm emphasized employee recognition, it is not easy for those outside the firm to connect recent product successes to a single individual or team.

Apple is a team environment. Although many teams are forced to operate in isolation, that actually helps to build team cohesion. The competition between the different development teams is also intense, but that also helps to further strengthen cohesion. Like most engineering organizations, its decision-making model is certainly focused on data. Apple management likes to control all aspects of its products, but despite that, it is one of the best at using outsourcing to cover areas like manufacturing, which it has determined is not a core corporate competency.

Final Thoughts

Although Apple clearly produces extraordinary results, its approach to talent management is totally different than that of Google and Facebook, which also produce industry-dominating results. As Apple has grown larger, its rigor around sustainable innovation has grown as well, a feat that proves impossible for most organizations including the likes of HP, Microsoft, and Yahoo.

The three “big picture” learnings I hope you walk away from this case study with include:

• Focus on “the work” — it is management’s responsibilty to do whatever is necessary to keep work exciting and compelling.
• Strive for continuous innovation — Apple’s emphasis on being “different” is so strong that it can’t be overlooked by any employee or applicant. It delivers industry-dominating innovation levels because everyone is expected to.
• Deliver on your brand — Apple works hard to make sure that potential applicants, employees, and even competitors admire its products, the firm, and how it operates.

These three factors are not easy to copy, but they are certainly worth emulating. If you can bring them and the results that they produce to your firm, there is no doubt that you will be a hero.

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Book Title : Talent Management

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HR transformation case study

Hyatt’s talent strategy transformation

A talent for caring: How Hyatt is activating its purpose and transforming culture to unlock growth for colleagues and the business

Client:  Hyatt Hotels Corporation Our Role:  Help design and implement a Talent Philosophy and an associated Playbook, a resource to allow leaders to move the business forward through consistent, focused, yet flexible Talent management. Industry:   Hospitality and leisure Services:   Workforce Transformation , People and organization

Bringing purpose to life on a global scale

Hyatt had rallied around a unifying purpose— we care for people so they can be their best. Hyatt’s purpose resonated instantly within the organization because “care” is at the core of Hyatt’s DNA. While “care” can be limited to only a feeling, Hyatt sees it as more: It’s an action taken that starts with listening and empathy, resulting in caring action that leads to people being their best. With this in mind, Hyatt began to take a fresh look at how its colleagues could be their best. In doing so, Hyatt realized that managers and their teams needed a clearer framework for understanding their roles and accountabilities. They needed a simpler approach to be more consistent and confident in making people decisions (how they hire, develop, grow and reward colleagues) and how they create a culture where colleagues can be their best selves every day at work through enhanced focus on leading inclusively and creating the right environment for colleagues’ wellbeing.

The starting point? Listening and understanding the root issues by conducting extensive research with colleagues around the world to discover the leadership behaviors that most successfully drive business outcomes. With more than 120,000 colleagues working in more than 875 hotels in over 60 countries on six continents, it was also time to optimize its HR processes, tools and systems; designing around the needs of the business and removing inconsistencies and fragmentation in an effort to improve operational effectiveness and increase colleague and job candidate satisfaction. Hyatt’s HR leaders aspired to create a superior Talent experience to bring purpose to life for every colleague and potential colleagues—and, by extension, for every guest and customer—in its hotels worldwide.

“One of the most rewarding aspects of our work with Hyatt has been participating in the evolution of a significant HR transformation that impacts everyone in the organization on some level, and ultimately, Hyatt guests worldwide. We were inspired by Hyatt’s commitment to including the perspectives of its people in every region.” Jon Glick, Principal, PwC

Design-thinking + analytics + change management = a vision forward

When Christy Sinnott, Hyatt’s Talent Management Leader, first met PwC’s account and HR consulting team and began discussions about their shared passion for purpose-focused organizations, data driven decisions, and culture, none could have known that these discussions would evolve into a multi-year effort to transform Hyatt’s talent strategy. The HR transformation journey has engaged PwC professionals with subject matter experience in every aspect of HR program design and management. Activating Hyatt’s leadership development model through talent development training targeted at Hyatt's top and rising leaders was the first step. With a new set of expectations for leaders in place, Hyatt asked PwC to help design and implement a Talent Philosophy and an associated Playbook, a resource to allow leaders to move the business forward through consistent, focused, yet flexible Talent management. A current state assessment helped identify challenges and gaps; a blueprint for success helped to facilitate alignment of business and people strategies; and plans for the future state supported development of a clear and compelling Talent Philosophy. That Philosophy—a series of six commitments to its colleagues—is grounded in Hyatt’s purpose and values and designed to guide the relationship between leaders and their teams. The Playbook maps Hyatt’s People strategies to specific systems, processes and procedures to support transparent and consistent standards across the organization.

“PwC helped us understand how applying the lens of purpose could transform and focus HR structures and processes to create world-class leaders and, subsequently, to re-imagine the entire talent experience. In a global organization of our size and complexity, this has been an amazing collaboration among so many people, including our colleagues around the world.” Christy Sinnott, Senior Vice President of Talent Management, Hyatt

Re-imagine the talent experience to help Hyatt and their colleagues map a route to growth

With the Playbook underway, Hyatt’s HR leaders realized that while they had done a lot to evolve their strategy and systems around Talent, there was much more they wanted to do. They invited PwC to help them re-imagine the entire talent experience, with the goal of improving internal processes on a global scale to support strategic workforce planning and permit colleagues to pursue their own growth as the organization continues to grow. PwC teams helped Hyatt identify pain points, create diverse personas and stories to envision colleagues’ overall experience from pre-hire through promotion, and map opportunities to promote a clear understanding of, and commitment to, brand and purpose. Along the way of this extended journey, the PwC team helped support Hyatt with a multi-year colleague listening program; create a roadmap for the implementation of digital platforms to support efficient HR processes across the organization; consider strategies to advance Hyatt’s commitment to Inclusion and Diversity; and develop specific tools and methods to measure success and business outcomes.

“Inclusion is a core organizational capability at Hyatt that will continue to drive many aspects of our business, including Talent. Working with PwC to further our inclusion goals has been extremely helpful and timely.” Malaika Myers, Chief Human Resource Officer, Hyatt

Creating an ideal future-state experience

Demographics shift. The business climate changes. Guest expectations evolve. One constant for Hyatt is its culture of care which is at the heart of its business strategy. Scaling an enhanced talent experience worldwide will allow Hyatt to enable colleagues to be their best and achieve business outcomes as Hyatt continues on its growth trajectory.

The team is now actively working to advance care for colleagues in many ways:

• A Global Leadership Performance Model that helps drive the behaviors that drive results creating a high-performing culture that can adapt to the changing business climate.
• A streamlined and improved candidate experience , including a redesigned applicant process, new on-boarding tools and resources, and an evolving new hire orientation program, that Hyatt anticipates to reduce source-to-hire time and increase retention .
• Diversity Business Resource Groups and the Global Inclusion & Diversity Council are helping to develop a robust pipeline of diverse leaders for the future to execute current and future business strategy, increase retention, differentiate Hyatt as an employer of choice and drive greater personalization of the guest experience.
• A New People Leader Curriculum provides new managers with a Talent Playbook that creates consistency across the organization, empowers leaders of people to make the right decisions for their teams , and brings clarity to the supporting systems and processes.

At the center of the work is an intense focus on:

• Eliminating key pain points  for colleagues so we  bring the right roles to the right people at the right time . Transparency around and opportunities for career growth and development, performance measurement and rewards.
• Simplifying HR programs and processes  contributes to a  shared understanding of responsibility for leading talent.  HR managers work closely with people managers to help them proactively build and develop their teams, with flexible customization to support distinct functions, hotels and regions.
• Expanding  talent and recruitment outreach to institutions in diverse communities  to drive an expanded, more diverse candidate pool, and in some cases identify  business development opportunities .

“Participating in CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion, alongside PwC, has been a valuable part of Hyatt’s inclusion journey, particularly the collective effort of organizations to look at bias and to share challenges and best practices. Creating a sense of belonging and community is especially important in the hospitality industry for both our colleagues and our guests.” Tyronne Stoudemire, Vice President of Inclusion and Diversity, Hyatt

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Deloitte’s Pixel: A Case Study on How to Innovate from Within

If you’re an intrapreneur — or aspire to be one — this episode is for you.

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In 2014, Deloitte launched Pixel to facilitate open talent and crowdsourcing for client engagements that need specific expertise — like machine learning or digital production. But uptake across the organization was slow, and some internal stakeholders resisted outsourcing consulting work to freelance talent.

In this episode, Harvard Business School professor Mike Tushman discusses his case, “Deloitte’s Pixel (A): Consulting with Open Talent,” which breaks down the challenges the firm’s leadership faced in growing Pixel within the firm — and how they overcame them.

He explains how the firm selected a leader for Pixel who already had credibility and strong social networks within Deloitte. He also shares how Pixel established credibility by collaborating with early adopters within the firm to generate positive client results.

Key episode topics include: leadership, disruptive innovation, innovation, organizational change, talent management, business consulting services, crowdsourcing, freelance talent, intrapreneurship.  

HBR On Leadership curates the best case studies and conversations with the world’s top business and management experts, to help you unlock the best in those around you. New episodes every week.

• Listen to the original Cold Call episode: Transforming Deloitte’s Approach to Consulting (2022)
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• Discover 100 years of Harvard Business Review articles, case studies, podcasts, and more at HBR.org

HANNAH BATES: Welcome to HBR on Leadership , case studies and conversations with the world’s top business and management experts, hand-selected to help you unlock the best in those around you.

Deloitte is one of the largest consulting firms in the world.  But, like many established firms, innovation is a challenge.

In 2014, Deloitte launched “Pixel” to   – like machine learning or digital production. But uptake across the organization was slow, and some internal stakeholders resisted outsourcing consulting work to freelance talent.

In this episode, Harvard Business School professor Mike Tushman breaks down the challenges Deloitte’s leadership faced in growing Pixel within the firm – and how they overcame them. You’ll learn how the firm selected a leader for Pixel who had credibility and strong social networks within Deloitte. You’ll also learn how Pixel established its own credibility by collaborating with early adopters within the firm to generate positive client results. And you’ll learn how Deloitte’s senior leaders built a narrative of innovation and adaptation around Pixel.

If you’re an entrepreneur – or an aspiring one  – this episode is for you. It originally aired on Cold Call in April 2022. Here it is.

BRIAN KENNY: There are few topics in business media covered as widely and as deeply as innovation. A Google search on the term business innovation yields 672 million results. Harvard Business Review alone has close to 6,000 active articles on this topic. It’s the subject that never gets old because it’s inherently about change. Oh, and it’s really hard to do, especially if you’re in a place that is set in its ways. Management guru, Peter Drucker, famously said, “Innovate or die.” And there are far too many examples of firms that fail to follow that advice and pay the price. But in this episode, we’ll focus on a firm that’s trying to get it right. Today on Cold Call , we’ll discuss the case entitled, “Deloitte’s Pixel: Consulting with Open Talent” with Professor Mike Tushman. I’m your host, Brian Kenny, and you’re listening to Cold Call on the HBR Presents Network. Mike Tushman’s work focuses on relations between technological change, executive leadership, and organization adaptation. And he has just published a new book called Corporate Explorers: How Corporations Beat Startups at the Innovation Game . That sounds exactly like the topic we’re going to discuss today, Mike. Thanks for joining me.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Hey, Brian, it’s so great to be with you.

BRIAN KENNY: Yeah. It’s fun to have you on the show. I want to talk about the case and I want to hear how those ideas relate to the ideas in Corporate Explorers , because there’s obviously a lot of crossover. We’ve had cases before that touch on this topic of how to innovate from within when you are in a well-established firm. And I think it’s so timely and relevant because many of our listeners are probably working in large established firms and they want to know how to innovate. They want to be the person who brings those energy and ideas to the surface. So, thanks for being here today to talk about it.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Hey great, Brian, looking forward to engaging you and hopefully your audience in our work on the corporate explorer.

BRIAN KENNY: Awesome, let’s just dive right in. Let me ask you to tell us what is the central theme of the case and what’s your cold call when you start the case discussion in the classroom.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: The central theme of the case, and indeed the central theme of my course, is to help our students build organizations that don’t drop in the face of outside technical change. That’s the basic point of my course is to empower my students with the research in my field, so they don’t fall prey to the sickness that most incumbent organizations have when the world changes sharply, whether it’s because of technology or because of COVID. My cold call is a double barrel cold call, Brian. The cold call to Balaji, Balaji Bondili, everybody, is: it’s either go big or go home. What are you going to do? And why are you going to do it? That’s my Balaji cold call to the corporate explorer.

BRIAN KENNY: Yeah.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: The other cold call I have is I ask the leaders of Deloitte Consulting, and by the way, this is a very, very successful organization, they’re at the top of the game, and I’m asking Matt David, who’s the head of Deloitte’s consulting business, why is he spending so much time on experimentation? You’ve got a great franchise. You’re doing super well in traditional consulting. Why so much time on experimentation? Those are my two cold calls, Brian.

BRIAN KENNY: All right. That’s a great way to start it off. And I love the idea of role playing. Maybe we should talk more about that as we get into the conversation and I know, you told me just before we started here, that you taught the course yesterday.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Yeah.

BRIAN KENNY: And Balaji was here, so you’ve got all these fresh ideas percolating. So, this is going to be great. This is like right in the moment. Tell us a little bit about how this course relates to your research and to the ideas in Corporate Explorers .

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: My research has been from the get go on how incumbents deal with outside technical change. I went to Northeastern University as an undergraduate. I was an engineer co-op and I worked at a firm that was called General Radio, GenRad, and it was filled with these great, fantastic engineers going back and forth, talking about the celebration of how great General Radio was, outside technical change, all of a sudden my carpool friends don’t have a job. I was totally scarred by this. How could a firm filled with fantastic engineers fail so quickly? My model was you have great technical talent, wow, you can do anything. Well, it turns out that they were strangled by the arrogance of success. And I have been studying that for decades now with my students. So, the point of my course is to help students understand several things, Brian. One is this notion of dynamic capabilities are rooted in playing two games well, simultaneously. A game of executing your existing strategy better than anybody on the planet, that’s one game. The second game is exploring into unknown futures. To play this explore and exploit game simultaneously, and those strategies are inconsistent. So, all of my work has been helping senior leaders deal with paradox and inconsistency. General Radio couldn’t do it, all these engineers were laid off. Second theme of my work and my course is organizations don’t change through incremental change by itself. They change through both incremental and punctuated change and those punctuated changes occur at these discontinuities. The third observation is the way you play this game is you don’t spin out the explore option. You have these ambidextrous organizations that explore and exploit simultaneously and the ambidextrous leader is the one who hosts contradiction.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: And finally, the core idea of my book with Andy Binns and Charles O’Reilly, Corporate Explorer , is that it’s both top down, it’s from the C-level or the general manager level, and the entrepreneurs below in creating a social movement, so that firms evolve in this punctuated way.

BRIAN KENNY: And Deloitte’s a really interesting one for you to look at with regard to these topics. What’s the problem that they’re trying to solve in the context of this case?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: What’s so unique about Deloitte is they actually don’t have a problem to solve. They are doing rockingly well in the high-end strategic consulting business. They have an opportunity to destabilize the consulting industry, at least according to the senior leaders, if they can figure out a new way of doing consulting that complements their existing way, they have the opportunity to disrupt the industry to their favor. So, it’s not that they have a problem to solve. It’s one of these rare examples of an opportunistic move by a really enlightened senior team to both do old-fashioned consulting really well and to do pixelated consulting really well simultaneously. And that is the challenge I want my students to leave prepared for is to lead into these opportunistic moments, which by the way, is partly organization renewal, Brian.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: But it’s also personal renewal. It’s the Matt Davids of the world personally renewing how they lead because now they’re hosting this contradiction: old fashioned consulting, new consulting simultaneously.

BRIAN KENNY: Can you put a finer line on that? What is the difference between sort of old fashioned consulting and pixelated consulting?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Old fashioned consulting, the edge of this case, old fashioned consulting, at least at Deloitte, is Deloitte would… They had an HR strategy of hiring from the best business schools and then they train and socialize these MBAs to be trusted advisors, to be really brilliant with expertise, and information, and synthesizing that information in front of a client.

BRIAN KENNY: Yep.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: And they do really well. That’s a business model that works.

BRIAN KENNY: We know a little about that here at Harvard business school.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Right. We sure do. Pixelating is completely different, Brian. Pixelating, what Balaji brings to the party is go to a client and say, “Here’s your strategic problem,” and they break it into components. And then they send the components of the work to freelance talent, gig talent, talent who in 100 years wouldn’t work for Deloitte, machine learning people, digital people, AI people, who don’t want to work for Deloitte. Balaji promises these really profoundly powerful platforms that bring talent to a client fast and inexpensive. That’s the difference, rather than having a bunch of really powerful consultants work on a project at a very high rate, Balaji gets better, faster, and less expensive client service with freelance talent. And it turns out it works really well. And the edge of the case is: this is really an identity threat at Deloitte.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: It’s an identity threat of the consultants who own problems and solve problems, and it’s an identity threat to the firm because after all we’re Deloitte and we have this brand, and can we retain this brand and can we retain the identity of our professionals even while we do this fundamentally different form of consulting.

BRIAN KENNY: Yeah, and it’s a great example of disruption happening right from within, so that’s the tension for sure in the case. And I want to talk a little bit more about that. Deloitte founded an Office for Innovation to sort of drive this, talk a little bit about that office, and I’d love to hear more about Balaji, background, and why he decided to take this on. This seems like a really dicey move for somebody who’s trying to build a career within the firm.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Yeah. What’s interesting about Balaji Bondili is he is a professional interested in client services. And I don’t want to speak for Balaji, but my sense of Balaji is he’s not anchored to Deloitte. He’ll do this work wherever. And I think he has found a way to do great professional service work, great client service work, and has enough of an entrepreneurial flare to push this inside of Deloitte. What we’ve learned in our , book is there are a whole bunch of people like Balaji who tend to get ignored, is that they have the passion for entrepreneurialism. They have great change management skills and are able to help skeptical, in this case, partners change the coding of the work from a threat to an opportunity. And that is relatively rare. When a corporate explorer is able to help others who code that person as a threat to say, “Hey, wait a minute. Actually, I can do better client service work and I can do it too.” The beauty of Balaji is he had the entrepreneurial edge and he wasn’t in their face. He had a lot of respect for the partners at Deloitte and brought them a tool that could help them do their work better. So, partly it’s bottom up, Brian, and partly he could not have done this and he knows it, he could not have done it without really strong senior support with Matt David. What is,nice about the Deloitte case, Brian, is it starts with really senior level support, that is the head of U.S. Deloitte says we need an Office of Innovation, tax, audit, consulting. We need a view into the future and they create this Office of Innovation, which hosts roughly 60 experiments, Brian. And then Amy Feirn says in consulting, “I’m going to take some of those and bring them into consulting.” That was Balaji. There were maybe 20 experiments inside just consulting. So, the Office of Innovation was a corporate level hatchery, if you will. We talk about ideation and incubation going to scale, they incubate a bunch of things at corporate and then some of them are dropped down into the business units, tax, audit, in this case consulting. So, the corporate level Office of Innovation provides the overall senior support that permitted Matt David in consulting to experiment, which in turn permitted Balaji to be the corporate explorer.

BRIAN KENNY: What kind of a welcome did Balaji receive as he started to socialize this idea with the rank and file consultants, the people who were leading the client work?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: It was a third of the partners said, “Hey, Balaji, this could be fantastic.” Two thirds said, “Please go away.” And it was either aggressive please go away or was passive aggressive, “Hey, we’ll study this Balaji.” And so, the nub of the case is if your Balaji, who knows he has something big, do you try to go big inside Deloitte or do you leave? Do you go home? And if you stay, what do you need from the leadership community to make this thing real?

BRIAN KENNY: You talked about some of the pilots that they launched and I imagine the pilots were a way to demonstrate the efficacy of this approach to people who were leading client teams and to get their buy-in,that they would think yeah, I can have it both ways. Right? Can you give some examples of what some of those pilots were? Because I’m curious again, about the pixelated approach and how different that sounds to me than what I’m familiar with having worked with consultancies over the years.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: So, Balaji was pressed when Pixel was brought down into consulting to provide case and points, data points, will this thing work, will clients pay for this? What are client’s response to this? You’re not using Deloitte partners, you’re using freelance talent. Would clients buy this? They had projects with Richard Walker, who’s one of the individuals in the case, who was a partner in the banking piece of consulting, who actually loved it. And they would take strategy projects for one of their major clients, and it had a big AI machine learning piece to it, and they pixelated it and they got a great solution to this banking strategy. And the client thought it was better. Once Balaji had two or three of these examples, skeptical partners said, “Hey, wait a minute. What’s happening over here in banking with Richard Walker? And once credible leaders across the organization picked this up, Brian, then it took off like wildfire.

BRIAN KENNY: If you look at the tension that’s underlying this case, I have to admit, I probably would be in one of those two thirds, that group of two thirds consultants, who is like, wait a second, this is a threat to me and my role. If we’re going to have gig consultants coming in and doing all this client work, and it’s going to cost less, and they’re going to deliver a better product, that to me sounds like a real danger to my career. How did Balaji manage some of that tension that I’m sure he was hearing about from within the firm?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Yeah, that is the exact nub of my work on structural ambidexterity, Brian. It’s up to the corporate explorer to help these powerful partners recode this from a threat to an opportunity. Partly Balaji can do that by making it easy by not being in their faces, by being very solicitous of the partners need to do great client service work. The edge for your question is with Matt David, who was the leader of the consulting business, who had to create a narrative in his organization of we’re going to do the old kind of work, traditional consulting work better than anybody in the planet, and we’re going to go do this new work because the future is not the past and we’re going to experiment into the future. That’s the challenge of my ambidextrous leader, who is Matt David, who is pushing the organization that can celebrate the past, and can own the future, and they’re contradictory. That’s what the Matt Davids of the world have to bring to the party. And one of the things we’ve learned, and it’s a big part of my work with Charles O’Reilly and with Andy Binns, is one of the roles of the Matt Davids is to help create an identity for their firm or my friend, Ranjay Gulati, talks about purpose, as we aspire to be the world’s greatest consulting firm. This is my words, not theirs.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: And if you’re Matt David with that kind of aspiration, or Srikant at HBS, we’re here to create leaders who make a difference in the world. Well, we can do that through Advanced Management Program (AMP) on campus and we can do that through AMP online.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: And yeah, they’re completely different architectures, and structures, and cultures, but that’s what we’re all about, creating leaders who make a difference in the world. That kind of overarching purpose or identity helped Matt David at Deloitte with a narrative to his powerful partners to say, “Hey everybody, we’re going to embrace the future, and we’re going to embrace the past, and yes, it’s contradictory. We’re going to do it together to be the world’s greatest consulting firm.”

BRIAN KENNY: Yeah. And that takes leadership that is not just visionary, but also really client centric so that they’re not going to let the politics, the internal politics of the firm prevent them from pushing this forward because they know it’s the right thing in the end for client service.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: When you have that kind of aspiration, world class client service, or the work I did with one of my doctoral students, Hila Lifshitz, on NASA. One of the things they found is that the scientists at NASA rejected open innovation, open research. And as soon as the leader said, “Hey, we’re here not to do great research, we’re here to keep astronauts safe in space,” that new coding permitted these scientists to do research the old fashioned way and the new way.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: So, that passion, that identity, that strategic intent is a real important piece of my research of structural ambidexterity and how to make that work and is a big part of this Deloitte Pixel case.

BRIAN KENNY: Do you think… This is probably a question with no singular answer, but I’m going to ask it anyway. Do you think it’s harder to be an entrepreneur within a firm or to be an entrepreneur who’s starting your own thing and kind of putting it all together on your own?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: I think it’s both really difficult, Brian. The challenge for the corporate explorer is less the capital markets, because the reason he’s going to do it at Deloitte is because Deloitte has the cash to fund it. But the risk is much more, can you get an organization to change?

BRIAN KENNY: Mm-hmm (affirmative).

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Can you create a social movement? And the research is really clear, exploit kills explore. The better you are at doing what you’re currently doing, the worse you are at exploring. And the challenge for the corporate explorer is to create a social movement, when the powerful actors don’t want to do it. So, you can’t do it on your own, you have to do it both top down and bottom up. And the big aha for me in this research over the past 10 years, it’s not just top down, because we have many examples of top down leaders that get stuck because they’re no corporate explorers. So, it’s a combination of top down and bottom up that creates this social movement around change.

BRIAN KENNY: Let’s say we’ve got some senior executives that are listening to this podcast right now and they’re thinking, wow, I better get on this, how do they identify a corporate explorer within their midst? Do you advertise that as a new job? Or how do you think about that?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Wow. Great question. Our most successful corporate explorers are those individuals who have legitimacy and credibility inside your firm.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: The combination of credibility, this individual has the technical capability, has the social networks in the firm, and they have an edge about them, an entrepreneurial edge around the future, those are the corporate explorers that work. What we know from our research, Brian, is the extent to which you go out and hire someone like that and bring them in, they’ll almost always fail.

BRIAN KENNY: Why is that?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Because they don’t have the social networks, they don’t have the credibility, they don’t have the legitimacy inside the firm. The beauty of Balaji at Deloitte is he was known quantity. People knew him and trusted him and he had the degrees of freedom to play this exploration game and then build these networks.

BRIAN KENNY: Okay. Let me ask the same question in the inverse. If I feel like I am that person that you just described and I’m listening to this podcast, how do I create that sense of urgency, create that burning platform to my leadership team so that they know we got to do this?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Yeah. Yeah, really great.

BRIAN KENNY: This is what I call a cold call, Mike. I’m putting you on the hot seat.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: Yeah. Yeah, no, this is a great, great question. For those explorers who have a potentially great idea, and again, ideation and incubation circa 2022, I think is relatively easy to do. It’s relatively easy to get ideas, it’s relatively easy to incubate either inside a firm or outside a firm. It’s really hard to pivot to scale whether you’re an entrepreneur on your own or an entrepreneur inside the firm.

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: So, to me, it’s the, of the Balajis of the world, the possible set of corporate explorers, can you find an organization that has the cash, the willingness, and has the identity of playing multiple games well simultaneously? They’re comfortable with today, but they’re really, really uncomfortable with the uncertainty of tomorrow and therefore they want to create it. If I can find those kinds of leaders in incumbent firms, those are the ones I want to work with if I’m a corporate explorer. If I can’t find them, I’ll stick on my own.

BRIAN KENNY: Mike, this has been a great conversation. I can’t let you go without asking one more question, which is, if you want our listeners to remember one thing about the “Deloitte” case and about Corporate Explorers, what would that be?

MICHAEL TUSHMAN: You cannot get to the future by doing what you have done in the past. It’s imperative that you excel in what you’re currently doing and create the future and that’s what the role of corporate explorers are. They help you create the future and to do that, it’s the structural ambidexterity, which is pretty straightforward, structure is structure, but that link to a purpose and identity that permits contradiction to exist in your organizations. That’s my sort of long-winded answer to your short question, Brian.

BRIAN KENNY: Mike Tushman, thanks so much for being here today to talk about the case.

That was Harvard Business School professor Mike Tushman – in conversation with Brian Kenny on Cold Call . Tushman is coauthor of the book Corporate Explorer: How Corporations Beat Startups at the Innovation Game.

We’ll be back next Wednesday with another hand-picked conversation about leadership from the Harvard Business Review. If you found this episode helpful, share it with your friends and colleagues, and follow our show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. While you’re there, be sure to leave us a review. When you’re ready for more podcasts, articles, case studies, books, and videos with the world’s top business and management experts, you’ll find it all at HBR.org.

This episode was produced by Anne Saini, and me, Hannah Bates. Ian Fox is our editor. Music by Coma Media. Special thanks to Maureen Hoch, Erica Truxler, Ramsey Khabbaz, Nicole Smith, Anne Bartholomew, and you – our listener. See you next week.

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