Why I'd Never Work at Google

[corplinx]

Obama is Google-Like
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9818268-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5

Asked by Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt what the most efficient way to sort a million 32-bit integers is, Obama said the wrong way would be the "bubble sort method," which is a basic but inefficient method for sorting numbers. "You answered the question correctly," Schmidt said.


Do I smell a planted question by the CEO himself and a plausible answer that a layman like Obama might know?


"He's fresh, he's new, there's something about him that's Google-like," Nicole Resz, a 26-year-old who works in Google's advertising department, gushed to Reuters.

I hope her chair was dry when she got done gushing.


"I've never seen so many people at a Google event. We've had everybody, we've had Mikhail Gorbachev," she said.

That's right, an actual leader of the Soviet Union who is a part of history got less play at google than a lightweight political candidate without major accomplishments. They are proud of this.

Randi spoke at Google, good for him and them, but honestly I don't see what having Randi speak at the googleplex does to increase shareholder value or deliver a better experience for people using google products.

Open butt, insert head, welcome to google.

[latent aaaack]

America needs a royal family. Can we make a new post that's for the people to elect someone rock star-ish, fresh, charismatic that doesn't contain much real political power like the UK's monarchy? That was a comparable function that Diana played, but in the US we'd want to elect Diana president since we don't have a royal family to vent our neurotic personality/emperor-worshipping behavior at.

Because if America has to choose between a president with a likeable personality (like Bush circa 2000) vs someone wise and experienced they'll choose the smiling, waving plastic buffoon every time which can't be good for America.

We need someone like the Spanish king who can interject with his strong, fresh, personality once in a while as he did against Chavez making the Spanish public feel good, while leaving the work to the president.

[Dr. Fascism]

The only reason people think Obama is "fresh" and "new" is that he looks young and is black. Oh, and he's audaciously full of hope!

Obama is politics as usual. I can understand why people support Kuchinich, who is even further left... but Obama? He's so charismatic the skeptical guy would easily see him as a fake, because anyone who speaks that well spends too much time practicing, too much time looking to say the right thing instead of what's really on their mind.

All style, no substance. Makes the college kids drool though--but they're young and haven't learned much about politics, yet.

[Darth Rotor]

The only reason people think Obama is "fresh" and "new" is that he looks young and is black. Oh, and he's audaciously full of hope!

Obama is politics as usual. I can understand why people support Kuchinich, who is even further left... but Obama? He's so charismatic the skeptical guy would easily see him as a fake, because anyone who speaks that well spends too much time practicing, too much time looking to say the right thing instead of what's really on their mind.

All style, no substance. Makes the college kids drool though--but they're young and haven't learned much about politics, yet.
One of the things I like about Obama is that he might energize the black vote -- if he's "black enough" to suit Al and Jesse and friends who would be instrumental in energizing said voting bloc. I don't think that is a bad thing, all told, as he may energize said vote and in doing so help the American body politic shed the Al and Jesse Show like a lizard sheds skin. Good riddance to bad rubbish. Not sure how that would play. Perhaps my hope is too audacious. :p

As to what I am wary of, you have put your finger on most of it.

DR

[latent aaaack]

Dr. Fascism, your character is a fake sock puppet designed to look stupid but by continuing with this fake account despite everyone knowing it's a fake and by doing such a bad job of lying, what you're also showing is how dumb the person that made this account is. You can lie about your political opinions, but your real life intelligence can still be observed from this fake ridiculous account.

[ravdin]

Obama's right about bubble sort, and I admire his tough stand against the powerful pro-bubble sort lobby. Maybe I'll vote for him after all!

[skoob]

Why I'd Never Work at GoogleWell, I'm sure The Google is devastated...

[KoihimeNakamura]

Actually. It is possible for a layman to know that. If he's taken just an entry level class into programming.

[Cleon]

Randi spoke there recently as well:

MTPj9VlNzQ0

[Terry]

bah, a million 32-bit records is small potatoes these days, surely?

[geni]

That's right, an actual leader of the Soviet Union who is a part of history got less play at google than a lightweight political candidate without major accomplishments. They are proud of this.

Google is about the future. Obama might be the future Mikhail Gorbachev won't be.


Randi spoke at Google, good for him and them, but honestly I don't see what having Randi speak at the googleplex does to increase shareholder value or deliver a better experience for people using google products.

Google are working on the basis that if you get a lot of smart people together any throw a lot of ideas at them something useful should result from time to time. Think smaller version of bell labs crossed with elements of nerd culture.

[Cain]

Obama is Google-Like
Randi spoke at Google, good for him and them, but honestly I don't see what having Randi speak at the googleplex does to increase shareholder value or deliver a better experience for people using google products.

Or maybe it's a way to make work more interesting and hospitable.

[Cleon]

Randi spoke at Google, good for him and them, but honestly I don't see what having Randi speak at the googleplex does to increase shareholder value or deliver a better experience for people using google products.

An attitude like that is why you shouldn't be working at Google.

Speaking as an IT professional myself, I wish more companies had Google's attitude towards employee enrichment and development.

[e-sabbath]

I should point out that Obama was doing podcasts back in '06, or earlier. Only member of Congress to do so. He's on the right side of net neutrality, too. He may not be that tech-savvy, but I can't name anyone besides Rep Boucher who knows more about tech and is in Congress.

[Puppycow]

Do I smell a planted question by the CEO himself and a plausible answer that a layman like Obama might know?

Yer just jealous cuz democrats invented the Interweb.

And cuz you don't work at Google or own stock in it. ;)

[Puppycow]

And another thing: I refuse to entertain any offers from the Yankees to play center field. So there Steinbrenner! Eat your heart out. :D

[corplinx]

Or maybe it's a way to make work more interesting and hospitable.

Here you go, take the money they wasted flying in a speaker only a thimble of the google-ites heard and give everyone a bonus check from it.

I've never see the incentive value of rah rah meetings, tshirt giveaways, guest speakers, and special achievement awards compared to the money you could just give directly to a worker either as a split or as direct compensation in the case of an "employee of the month" or special recognition versus some dumb plaque. Pay me what the plaque cost.

[corplinx]

I should point out that Obama was doing podcasts back in '06, or earlier. Only member of Congress to do so. He's on the right side of net neutrality, too. He may not be that tech-savvy, but I can't name anyone besides Rep Boucher who knows more about tech and is in Congress.

I agree with Obama's tech positions. I just think its funny the guy can walk into the place with the supposed best and brightest and when he leaves there isn't a dry seat in the house.

[Cain]

Here you go, take the money they wasted flying in a speaker only a thimble of the google-ites heard and give everyone a bonus check from it.

I've never see the incentive value of rah rah meetings, tshirt giveaways, guest speakers, and special achievement awards compared to the money you could just give directly to a worker either as a split or as direct compensation in the case of an "employee of the month" or special recognition versus some dumb plaque. Pay me what the plaque cost.

I agree with your second paragraph, which I think distinguishes what most companies do versus this guest speaker program. I regularly hear about the people who come to Google and talk about interesting and important things -- a far cry from clumsy efforts to boast morale with t-shirts and empty praise.

[corplinx]

I agree with your second paragraph, which I think distinguishes what most companies do versus this guest speaker program. I regularly hear about the people who come to Google and talk about interesting and important things -- a far cry from clumsy efforts to boast morale with t-shirts and empty praise.

Someone might like and the tshirt. Someone might not want to hear the speaker and think its dumb. What is the speaker program but another giveaway? Not only that, its yet another meeting on your calendar.

[UserGoogol]

"I've never seen so many people at a Google event. We've had everybody, we've had Mikhail Gorbachev," she said.

This quote sort-of implies that the meetings are optional things to my ears, and thus are more comparable to the lectures people might have access to if they worked in academia rather than being "Oh, and remember: next Friday... is Hawaiian shirt day" meetings.

I mean, my impression of the Google corporate environment, in particular with the "20% of your time should be spent on independent projects" thing, is that it's sort of a cross between the archetypal dotcom business and academia, and both of those things would fit well with that.

[corplinx]

Yes, but what do they really learn from Barak Obama if we say this a is an academic lecture? If its really academic pursuit by these sophisticates, why does someone who made history like Gorbachev gets so many fewer people that someone who is essentially an unremarkable politician at this point in their career.

I'm not fooled. This was a non-fundraising campaign event.

[Diamond]

America needs a royal family. Can we make a new post that's for the people to elect someone rock star-ish, fresh, charismatic that doesn't contain much real political power like the UK's monarchy? That was a comparable function that Diana played, but in the US we'd want to elect Diana president since we don't have a royal family to vent our neurotic personality/emperor-worshipping behavior at.

Because if America has to choose between a president with a likeable personality (like Bush circa 2000) vs someone wise and experienced they'll choose the smiling, waving plastic buffoon every time which can't be good for America.

We need someone like the Spanish king who can interject with his strong, fresh, personality once in a while as he did against Chavez making the Spanish public feel good, while leaving the work to the president.

In order to do that, you'd have to change America's system of governance, making the leader of the House of Representatives into the Prime Minister and stripping the President of many of his powers, reducing it to defending the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

You wouldn't want hereditary power of any kind.

[m_huber]

Yes, but what do they really learn from Barak Obama if we say this a is an academic lecture? If its really academic pursuit by these sophisticates, why does someone who made history like Gorbachev gets so many fewer people that someone who is essentially an unremarkable politician at this point in their career.

I'm not fooled. This was a non-fundraising campaign event.

Hopefully, within the US government, there are numerous people who have relevant information to share with intelligent people. I personally find it very hard to believe that the people who manage to get office really are morons. As Richard Dawkins said of president Bush, "He must be more intelligent than he seems."

Particularly, though, Barack Obama went to Google as a part of their Candidates@Google speaker series. Nothing unique about him going there; they just happened to like him more.

[m_huber]

The video of Obama is on YouTube
http://youtube.com/watch?v=m4yVlPqeZwo

He makes a good speech, and then he handles an interview very well. Starting with the joke question, cited in the OP.

[e-sabbath]

You will note that colleges have people like Ashcroft speaking. And even James Randi. It's about education. Google has people like Dr. Bussard and Mr. Barack. Also about education. Honestly, it's not that different at all.

[Cain]

Someone might like and the tshirt. Someone might not want to hear the speaker and think its dumb. What is the speaker program but another giveaway? Not only that, its yet another meeting on your calendar.

You know what I think? I think this thread is about Rs and Ds, and you're all worked up because you see a D.

[GreNME]

Here you go, take the money they wasted flying in a speaker only a thimble of the google-ites heard and give everyone a bonus check from it.

I've never see the incentive value of rah rah meetings, tshirt giveaways, guest speakers, and special achievement awards compared to the money you could just give directly to a worker either as a split or as direct compensation in the case of an "employee of the month" or special recognition versus some dumb plaque. Pay me what the plaque cost.

You really don't understand how far Google goes to provide a comfortable, educational, and fiscally rewarding work environment. I find that hillarious. Nevermind that for a lot of the types of work there, after working at Google you can practically choose your next job instead of your next job choosing you.

You know what I think? I think this thread is about Rs and Ds, and you're all worked up because you see a D.

Pre-cisely.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

bah, a million 32-bit records is small potatoes these days, surely?

Even Windows could handle that, with a minimal number of reboots.

[NobbyNobbs]

The only reason people think Obama is "fresh" and "new" is that he looks young and is black. Oh, and he's audaciously full of hope!

Obama is politics as usual. I can understand why people support Kuchinich, who is even further left... but Obama? He's so charismatic the skeptical guy would easily see him as a fake, because anyone who speaks that well spends too much time practicing, too much time looking to say the right thing instead of what's really on their mind.

All style, no substance. Makes the college kids drool though--but they're young and haven't learned much about politics, yet.

Amazing. It seems you'd rather have a president who ahs, ers, and ums his way to the stage. One who stumbles through a speech and doesn't know the meaning of some of the words he uses. One who makes up words when he can't figure out the right ones.

Oh, wait. We already have one of those.

As far as "anyone who speaks that well spends too much time practicing, too much time looking to say the right thing instead of what's really on their mind", some great speakers who come to mind include JFK, Martin Luther King Jr., Winston Churchill, and Abraham Lincoln.

Communication is key. It's not just what you say; it's also how you say it.

[corplinx]

You know what I think? I think this thread is about Rs and Ds, and you're all worked up because you see a D.

I think you want that to be the answer. Is the problem a love of google or Obama?

I pointed out that real history makers don't do as well as this neophyte. I did it in a sarcastic way. I'm not really worked up about it, I don't own google stock.

Moreover, I think the "gushing" is pretty funny. The emotional response of google which is supposed to have the best and the brightest is funny to me as a professional player hater. I would love to see a Project Alpha type hoax pulled on the smartest guys in the biz.

Also, my BS detector thinks the question pitched by the CEO (which is a question that was used in the google interview for engineers) was probably discussed with Obama before hand. The CEO of the company wouldn't have asked Obama this question unless he knew that he could answer it. This was a rah rah meeting and not a interview.

[Dustin Kesselberg]

Clearly planted. Obama isn't a computer engineer and even if he took some class when he was in his 20's, I doubt he would remember it now anyway. He probably either knew a few days before hand what the question would be or else he was told the answer.

[e-sabbath]

No question it was planted. It was, as you note, a question asked to people being interviewed. Thus, it's an in-joke. You've heard of 'em, right? This isn't quite the same thing as a serious planted question on policy.

[corplinx]

No question it was planted. It was, as you note, a question asked to people being interviewed. Thus, it's an in-joke. You've heard of 'em, right? This isn't quite the same thing as a serious planted question on policy.

Okay, yeah, I saw this when I got home in the video. The news.com article didn't make this clear. My bad.

[BPSCG]

The only reason people think Obama is "fresh" and "new" is that he looks young and is black. Oh, and he's audaciously full of hope!

(...snip...)

All style, no substance. He has a wonderful speaking voice. Really. The first time I heard him speak, it occurred to me he could be reading a telephone book and it would sound wonderful.

[corplinx]

Obama could read a transcript of the Tom Snyder show and make it compelling.

[Dustin Kesselberg]

Too bad the actual content of what he's saying isn't compelling. Not to mention his total lack of vigor during speeches and debates. He needs more aggression and he needs to answer questions directly. He talks too slow.

[hgc]

Randi spoke at Google, good for him and them, but honestly I don't see what having Randi speak at the googleplex does to increase shareholder value or deliver a better experience for people using google products.


For that matter, I don't see what giving employees comfortable chairs to sit in does for shareholder value either.

Open butt, insert head, welcome to google.


Open butt, insert head, welcome to the JREF forums.

[GreNME]

Too bad the actual content of what he's saying isn't compelling. Not to mention his total lack of vigor during speeches and debates. He needs more aggression and he needs to answer questions directly. He talks too slow.

And don't forget that his full name is Barack Hussein Obama. Can America withstand a presidency with Barack Hussein Obama, who went to school at an Islamic madrassa? Ask yourself that, America.



9/11. Tur`riss. Nookular. 9/11.

[corplinx]

Open butt, insert head, welcome to the JREF forums.

That's me in a nutshell. I'm also a self admitted big fat hypocrit.

[rocketdodger]

Here you go, take the money they wasted flying in a speaker only a thimble of the google-ites heard and give everyone a bonus check from it.

I've never see the incentive value of rah rah meetings, tshirt giveaways, guest speakers, and special achievement awards compared to the money you could just give directly to a worker either as a split or as direct compensation in the case of an "employee of the month" or special recognition versus some dumb plaque. Pay me what the plaque cost.

Ordinarily you would be right, corplinx, but as far as I know the bonus situation at google is better than any other company in the world. I think this is more of a situation like "our employees are sick of all the cash we give em, lets change it up a bit."

[egslim]

You wouldn't want hereditary power of any kind.
I agree, but an hereditary symbol is quite useful for deflecting non-political attention from the head of government. That increases governing efficiency.

[Geckko]

An attitude like that is why you shouldn't be working at Google.

Speaking as an IT professional myself, I wish more companies had Google's attitude towards employee enrichment and development.

As with most things, not everyone would agree:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/biztech/old-fuddyduddy-fights-back/2007/10/09/1191695903315.html

Reid, who is a devout Anglican and a leading member of a society dedicated to using the internet to promote unity among Christians, also suffers from type two diabetes.

As a result, his doctor advised him not to miss meals. "If I was in a meeting that needed to extend into the lunch hour I had to get up and leave the meeting," he said.

For health reasons and also because he valued his family life Reid said he would generally leave the office at 7pm - a habit not widely observed in a workplace where employees often worked late.

Well known Google workaholics include vice president Marissa Mayer who turns up for work at 9am and often doesn't leave the office until after midnight.