Google’s Happiness Culture is Making Potential Employees Smile from the Start

The digital transformation we are witnessing in the workplace today began with first desktops in the seventies, which at the time, only the elite few could afford. Back then, being able to conveniently send and receive emails was a revelation. Today, technology drives an incessant need to have the most detailed information at hand, and we take for granted that it will be available within a split second. In the words of Google’s former CEO Eric Schmidt, “We are going in a single lifetime from a small elite having access to information to essentially everyone in the world having access to all the world’s information.”

Leaders in Happiness

When talking about Google, you can’t escape mentioning that the company has held its position of being ‘the best place to work’, for years . This has been the case ever since Glassdoor initiated their survey back in 2007. Of course, the reasons for this are countless, including the unparalleled pay scale and smart perks, as well as the community’s desire to inculcate happiness, flexibility, and peace of mind.

Many business leaders have spoken about employee happiness being a cornerstone to the success of an organisation, due to the fact that happiness is inarguably intertwined with engagement. Employee engagement and the consequent happiness it evokes depends heavily upon allocating the right job to the right person. This is where recruitment can make or break an organisation.

The recruitment process has witnessed a series of transformations over the past few years with a string of technological upgrades. It’s no longer restricted to manual screening of candidate profiles, and today it has evolved into a function that’s increasingly driven by data and analytics.

The data driven recruitment approach raises the bar for potential candidates, and although the candidate search has reached new levels of efficiency, there remains a lot of data which is yet to be optimally leveraged when connecting with the right candidate.

Setting the Trend

Google employees take pride in stating that their work is of benefit to the masses - a clear indication that staff are passionate about what they do. Certainly, the organisation must be doing something right to bring in suitable candidates who can’t help but become natural ambassadors for their company.

Google believes that the initial round of communications plays a critical role in determining whether a candidate will accept or reject an offer. 80% of those interviewed with Google and were subsequently rejected for the role, mentioned during a survey that would still recommend friends apply for open positions. The figure confirms Google’s advocacy on employee engagement which starts right form the beginning of a candidate’s interactions with the company, in the recruitment stages.

The Google team consistently focuses on making the recruitment process as comfortable and seamless as possible, with regular updates and transparent communications. This stage creates a lasting impression on candidates who can picture how the journey with Google is likely to look. The hiring team always lays emphasis on establishing a personal connection with the candidates to make sure candidates don’t get the impression that a recruiter is simply rattling off a list of questions from the system.

Time is of the essence

Interview logistics matter and planning well in advance makes the interview easier for recruiters and interviewees alike. Google’s hiring team makes a special effort to acquaint candidates with entire process, and plan their day accordingly. If a candidate expects a two hour process which stretches up to five or six, the schedule is jeopardised.

To avoid this, Google’s hiring team sends a consolidated email listing their agenda for the day, along with clear instructions such as, where to report to, who to contact, what to wear, how many rounds of interviews will take place, the names of interviewers and when breaks will be scheduled. Additionally, interview preparation material is shared, allowing candidates to understand the hiring mindset of the company. Research reveals that such kind of preparatory efforts taken by the recruiting firm lead candidates to believe that the process is fair and certainly serves as an encouragement.

It does not stop there though, as Google makes sure to share a feedback form with candidates. This is shared almost at the same time as the hiring decision so that the experience is still fresh in candidates’ minds. For Google it’s not just a formality but a strategy to improve on the existing course of actions.

Google’s accolade of being ‘the best place to work’ is often attributed to its free bowling facility, snooker tables, and world class gym, but the real picture has slightly more to it. In the words of Karen May, the VP, “It’s less about the aspiration to be number one in the world, and more that we want our employees and future employees to love it here, because that’s what’s going to make us successful”.