Why Google is a great place to work



Prepared by Ekaterina Miller
Instructor: Michael Marcis

History

Google began in March 1996 as a research project by Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Their goal was “to develop the enabling technologies for a single, integrated and universal digital library." And was funded through the National Science Foundation among other federal agencies. Google has created some very impressive milestones of its time and continues to grow rapidly every day. The name “Google” comes from a mathematical term for the number 1 followed by 100 zero’s. The use of the term reflects their mission to organize a seemingly infinite amount of information on the web. In 1998 Google had made its mark as one off the Top 100 websites. Even at the very beginning they received only the best reviews. They then went on to become the most successful internet company ever. Early in 1999 they struck a deal with Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins for $25 million. In November 1999 Charlie Ayers joined Google as the company’s first chef. In April of 2000. Google announced the MentalPlex program, which envisages the software’s ability to read your mind as you visualize the search results you want. In June of 2000, Google partnered with Yahoo! to become their default search provider. Also in June they announced the first billion URL index, making Google become the world’s largest search engine. In September of 2000 they started offering searches in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean , bringing their total number of supported languages to 15. In December 2000 Google toolbar was released.
They have been going strong ever since, making them the largest and best search engine site today, with multiple enhancements. They will continue to be at the top of their game for years to come.

Employer of choice
In the United States, Google has offices in several states, including California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Arizona, Michigan, New York, Texas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Washington (Seattle) and Washington, DC. Google also has offices internationally. While much of the information presented here refers to Google’s US offices, they currently have hundreds of Google Openings Worldwide in areas such as Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Americas. There are openings in 57 worldwide locations, not including those in the United States.
Google has its own unique culture that differs it from other leading companies and makes it more desirable place to work. Google is a high-energy, fast paced work environment. While the dress code might be “casual” the company attracts and retains some of the brightest minds in the technology industry. There is a work hard, play hard atmosphere. The Google Mountain View, CA headquarters is a campus-like environment. There are workout facilities, a café, well stocked snack rooms, and a dorm like environment.
Google hires nine new workers a day. In less than two years, the number of employees has more than tripled to 4,989. Competition for the best and brightest is fierce. Rivals Yahoo Inc., in Sunnyvale, and Microsoft Corp., in Redmond, Wash., plus startups, are trying to reel in many of the same job applicants, igniting occasional bidding wars. Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder, has called hiring one of his firm's biggest challenges. If unable to find enough top-notch workers, he says the company's rapid growth could be hamstrung.
In addition to posting job openings in newspapers and online, Google recruits at universities, offers computer science students free pizza, hosts a software programming competition and invites technology clubs to hold their meetings at its headquarters.
Google has created its own software system for tracking job candidates that allows employees to share comments on each applicant.
They try to hire “learners” - people who want to learn, who are curious and inquisitive. Trust them, give freedom and information. Reward success, but do not penalized failure.
Google's also hiring superstars. This year, they include Vint Cerf, one of the Internet's founding fathers, as chief Internet evangelist. Kai-Fu Lee, a former Microsoft executive and expert in technology that turns speech into text, now heads operations in China. And Louis Monier, founder of the early search engine AltaVista, has an undisclosed technical role.

Compensation and benefits
Most workers at Google have base salaries that are on the lower end of normal for the markets they operate in. The base salaries are supplemented by stock options, challenging work and extensive benefits.
Historically, Google has paid workers less than the industry standard and showered them with stock options. That paid off for approximately 1,000 Google employees in 2004, when the company's high-profile initial stock offering made them instant millionaires. Although the firm's present pay structure is a closely guarded secret, one can assume hundreds, if not thousands, more have become worth seven figures, at least on paper, considering that Google's stock is now hovering above the $400 mark, a nearly five-fold increase from its premiere. Following its initial public offering last year, the company has had to offer more money up front because options aren't as valuable, according to compensation experts. Many competing firms claim Google has driven up salaries for software programmers by nearly 50 percent in recent years. On the flip side, low-end workers such as customer service representatives start at around $45,000.
In addition to the normal health and welfare benefits that most larger companies offer, Google provides its employees with the following cutting-edge benefits:
Health care for you and your family, plus on-site physician and dental care at headquarters in Mountain View, California and engineering center in Seattle, Washington. There 3 carriers: Blue Shield, CIGNA, Kaiser. Comprehensive coverage through Delta Dental.
401 (K) Plan. Employees may contribute up to 60% and receive a Google match of up to the greater of (a) 100% of employee’s contribution up to $3,000 or (b) 50% of employee’s contribution up to $8,250 per year with no vesting schedule. They offer a variety of investment options to choose from through Vanguard, their 401(k) Plan Administrator. To help with those tough investment decisions, employees can access Financial Engines to receive personalized investment advice.
Vacation days and holidays, and flexible work hours. Vocation days vary depending on length of work. Engineers can devote 20 percent of their time to projects of their choice. What's not mentioned is that much of the largesse is designed to keep workers at their desks longer.
Maternity and parental leave. Up to 12 weeks off at approximately 100% pay. Plus new moms and dads are able to expense up to $500 for take-out meals during the first four weeks that they are home with their new baby. Adoption assistance.
Google Child Care Center, just five minutes from Google headquarters in Mountain View. Provide with 5 free days of childcare per year through Children’s Creative Learning Center.
Back-up child care helps California parents when their regularly scheduled child care falls through.
Free shuttle service to several San Francisco, East Bay, and South Bay locations.
Tuition reimbursement. Employee has to receive grades of “B” or better. Tuition reimbursement up to $12,000 per calendar year.
Fuel Efficiency Vehicle Incentive Program.
Employee discounts.
Onsite dry cleaning, plus a coin-free laundry room in the Mountain View office.
On-site gym, swimming pools, ping pong, billiards or foosball. There is also room with video games.
On-site doctor.
Other benefits. Halloween & holiday party, health fair, credit union, roller hockey, outdoor volleyball court, discounts for products and local attractions.
Most of the Googleplex's facilities and programs continue to attract potential employees. The Googleplex and its programs help put Google at the top of Fortune magazine's 100 Best Companies to Work For list in 2008 There is no shortage of people wanting to join Google's ranks. And once they get there, they might discover that they do not want to leave. That is just how Google likes it.
Conclusion
Google has given all of its employees $1,000 cash "holiday bonuses" and 2011 salary increases of at least 10%, a loyal reader tells us.
The 10% company-wide raise will take effect on January 1, 2011.
In addition, Google will also give each employee an additional raise equivalent to 1X the employee's target bonus for the year. And employees will be eligible for additional "merit increases" based on their individual performance.
In another nice gesture, Google will pay the taxes on the $1,000 holiday cash bonuses, thus allowing employees to keep the whole thing.
$1,000 is not much, but it is a lot more than nothing, and spread across 20,000 employees, it is costing the company $20 million. A 10+% raise on a total cost base of $20 billion, meanwhile, will probably cost the company $1 billion a year, assuming a third of those costs are compensation. Judging from an internal memo, the new salary costs will be somewhat offset by reduced bonuses and stock option grants.
And it is just another evidence that Google is a great place to work. Creating a great workplace requires more than a specific set of programs and practices - there is no set of required benefits, resources or perks that works for all. Best Companies develop their own unique cultures. Google receives about 3,000 applications every month and this number keep growing. In the beginning it might seem that employees are too happy there, but at the end of this research study I understand why.

Bibliography
1. 100 best companies to work for money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2008/index.html
2. Desda Moss. How Google searches for success. http://www.shrm.org/Publications/HRNews/Pages/HowGoogleSearches.aspx
3. Laura Shneider. Top reasons to work for Google. www.about.com
4. Verne Kopytoff. How Google woos the best and brightest. www.sfgate.com