Everyone wants to work at Google

It is no secret that Google is considered one of the most sought-after companies to work for. Being ranked first, six years in a row, in Fortune’s list of top companies to work for, Google is every employee dream workplace. Furthermore, and rightly boasted about it in the 2013 American comedy “the internship”. Hybrid working models, open working space, annual perks and 20% allocation of the employees’ time to work on their personal passion, are among few of the advantages of working at Google. After all, who wouldn’t want to work with an A-list team members in the most productivity-inducing environment? Indeed, everyone wants to work at Google!?

However, with 3.29 billion employees around the world in around 195 countries, we all can’t be employees of Google! So why can’t all other companies be like Google? Part of what made Google a success is its nurturing work environment that allowed creativity and development. Replicating such work environment and fostering one’s employees and their talent could propel the company favorably forward. If you actually look at it closely, what Google is doing is no rocket science or a secret formula. In essence it is just conveying the idea that employees are important and that their well-being is part of the company’s well-being. Can’t all companies create a relaxed open office space? Can’t they add employees’ benefits that spans more than the mandated annual ticket and health insurance? Is it so impossible to allow for open channels of communications and exchanging of feedback and suggestions??

So why don’t companies do that? Simply it’s the lack of respect. To simplify the idea, let’s say you have guests over at your house. You would put out the best crockery, serve the best food, entertain and serve to make it the best experience ever. You trust that if you put your best out there, they will in return speak well about you and return the favor by hosting you at their too well-put-together party. Hence, creating a strong relationship that would benefit both parties. In essence you respect the guests, the person. Contrary to what you would do if you were to host a kids play date. You would use plastic don’t-care-if-they-break items, confine them in one room to minimize damage and probably no entertainment is required as you would just let them be. Why is that? It’s because you care about the outcome (the favor of hosting a kids play date) and not the guests themselves as they don’t possess any special value to you.?

Similarly, is the relationship between a companies and its employees. The company cares about the outcome, the profit. They do not care if X does it or Y does it. All they care about is that it’s done with the least amount of cost in the shortest period possible. It’s those companies that hire solely based on salary that is the candidate that’s willing to accept the least salary gets selected. Therefore, they don’t care whether you are working in a creative environment, if you are given opportunity to grow, your feedback and suggestions to improve work or that you have a clear career path to follow. They know what’s best for the company, and you are to execute without questioning their directives. The audacity is when those companies demand the same level of loyalty, creativity and efficiency from their employees! Had they provided them with the right tools and environment, selected the A-list candidates, only then they are entitled to be demanding. We all want to work at Google, so why not “Google-lize” our companies to achieve the same rich work environment? And if we won’t well, then don’t expect the same outcome or achievements as other employee-centric companies. For they have selected the right candidates and provided them with all that’s needed to achieve success. And rest assured that your company is just a steppingstone to another company that’s more Google-like. What kind of company do you want yours to be is your decision.?