Editor’s note: This article was first published in November 2013; the market capitalisation, headcount and share price it cites for Google are from that time, before the 2014 and 2022 stock splits. Google has since been restructured under Alphabet.
Working at Google is a dream for many people. The truth is that Google will probably end up being the biggest and most powerful company ever seen in history. The pay and conditions of its employees are enviable, to say the least.
A recent Quora thread is being used by current and former Google employees to talk about the most negative side of working at the company, because there is one, or at least some people feel there is. Business Insider has rounded up the best comments:
*Bear in mind that, as at any company, many negative comments may come from people whose criticism is due to personal differences, and they may not reflect the overall reality of the company, only the particular reality (or not) of the person in question.
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Everyone at Google is impressive, so great talent can be hired to do even the most mundane tasks.
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The worst part of working at Google, for many people, is that they are overqualified for their job. Google sets a very high bar for hiring because of the strength of its brand, the attractive salary it offers, the benefits and its very positive work culture. As a result, it looks for highly brilliant candidates, even for low-level positions.
(Read: Google admits its job interview model was a waste of time)
3. “Google is not just another startup, nor just another company. Google is a large corporation that keeps the same corporate policies. It’s easy to get promoted if you’ve worked on the right projects and presented your work in the right way.”
4. Many Google engineers are arrogant.
“Unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, the average level of the engineers,” according to one former employee, “is mediocre, with a lot of arrogance too. They all think they’re better than the person next to them, which makes it very hard to discuss anything unless it’s with a friend. Objective discussions are very rare, because they aren’t interested in other people’s opinions unless those people are important ‘gods’ within Google.”
5. Google is so big that you can’t have an impact on the company.
“Google is an incredible money-making machine thanks to AdWords. Unless you’re an incredibly talented person and manage to create something new, you’ll most likely end up as just another cog in the company, in charge of greasing the gears of the machine so it keeps making money.”
(Read: The first article in history to talk about Google)
6. Middle managers are mediocre.
“They don’t know how to inspire their staff and rely too much on Google’s name and reputation to lead.”
7. Google understands engineering, but not design.
“Google doesn’t focus enough on visual design. That has led to many aborted products, such as Wave, Google Video, Buzz, Google Friend Connect, etc. There’s too much emphasis on ‘pure engineering’.”
8. Office space can be too cramped.
For some employees, even though the company has giant facilities with open areas for eating, games rooms, TV and so on, the offices are too small.
“It’s not unusual to see three or four employees sharing a single cubicle, or several managers sharing one office. It’s surprisingly hard to find a quiet, private place to think.”
9. Get things in writing.
“…If you’re in the process of getting a job with Google, make sure you negotiate hard, be demanding and get everything in writing, because Google makes a lot of vague promises,” says another ex-Googler.
10. The culture is immature.
“Google is like Never Never Land. People never grow up, they drink all the time, play, and do little or no work,” says another person.
*Personally, I’d tell this person that someone must have worked to make Google the company it is today.
Google currently has a market capitalisation of $342 billion and around 53,800 employees, and its share price has passed $1,000 for the first time in its history.
Further reading
- The 6 brain-teaser questions in a Google job interview
- 7 industries Google Glass could revolutionise
Featured image: Runner1928, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
