Company values
Google’s value system is multifaceted. Among the elements in the company’s value system are leadership, integrity, passion, quality, diversity and objectivity. These elements are not explicitly stated in the company’s website but are highlighted in a section titled ‘ten things we know to be true’.
Leadership-Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin identified a gap in the market and they set out to create a product to seal it. Over time, the company has developed unique products.
Integrity-Google’s operations are guided by the principle that you can make money without doing evil. Google explains that as much as they are a business, they ensure that they meet the needs of the people first before trying to make money from them.
Passion and quality-The Company believes in the principle of doing one thing and doing it properly. Google’s core business is the search engine and the company dedicates millions of dollars and man-hours to making the system better.
Diversity-Google seeks to provide an environment where people can be themselves. The company hires people from all cultural backgrounds. In addition, the institution does not have a dress code. Google operates on the principle that you do not have to wear a suit to be serious. The company insists on teamwork and its structures encourage people to work together.
Objectivity-The Google search engine is driven by algorithms that comb through posts made around the world. All the search results found are put in one pool and then presented in a rank that takes into account a number of factors, including the popularity of the source. Google asserts that they “assess the importance of every web page using more than 200 signals and a variety of techniques, including our patented PageRank™ algorithm, which analyzes which sites have been “voted” to be the best sources of information by other pages” (“About Google” par.1).
Organizational structure
Google’s organizational structure is a cross-functional mix of vertical and horizontal frameworks (“Organizational structure of Google” par.1). The company has a well-established leadership hierarchy but the employees are invited to actively contribute in the decision-making process. Managers and employees are encouraged to work collaboratively with each other.
On the ‘management team’ page, the company groups the leaders in three groups: Executive officers, senior leadership and the board of directors. Further research shows that in all of Google’s offices around the world, there are few positions between executive leaders and junior employees (“Organizational structure of Google” par.3). This is indicative of a horizontal structure of leadership.
On the culture page, the company insists that they “strive to maintain the open culture often associated with startups, in which everyone is a hands-on contributor and feels comfortable sharing ideas and opinion” (“About Google” par.1). The company tries to make the junior-level employees feel appreciated by giving them space to present their ideas.
Company image
The image that the company wants to present to the public is that of a worldwide institution whose main interest is serving the needs of the public. From the corporate website, the company does not present itself as a business, but as a community establishment. On the page titled ‘what we do’, the company says its serves the needs of the individuals, businesses and the web. Although the company mentions advertising as its primary method of making money, it does not give the topic prominence. The company mentions that it has advertising opportunities designed to help companies gain more business without going into the details of the opportunities. This helps give readers the impression that Google is not as profit-centred as other companies in its competition.
Through its corporate website, Google also aims to present the image of a trendsetter. The company brags in having developed the first credible search engine and in making the sharing of videos easy. The success of the android platform has also been highlighted as one of the company’s key achievements. Google tries to show that its products have achieved worldwide success and that they cannot be emulated.
How the company presents the image
The company successfully presents the image it seeks to through a number of elements. For instance, on the page titled ‘what we believe’, the company says that they have been successful because they mainly focus on the user. The company explains that the search engine’s homepage is clean, simple to use and loads easily. By visiting the search engine’s homepage, the user can confirm that what the company says on its corporate page is true. This helps the company create the image of an establishment that is built on effectiveness and efficiency.
Google also wants the world to view it as a global institution rather than a California company. On the ‘locations’ page, the company says that it has 70 locations in more than 40 countries around the world (“About Google” par.1). The company says that all 70 Google offices are different, further presenting the image of a company that strives to be unique in all aspects. The locations map on its corporate page has a red pointer in all continents, emphasizing the fact that the institution has a presence everywhere.
Works Cited
About Google 2015. Web.