In an article for thinkwithGoogle, “The Eight Pillars of Innovation,” (July 2011), Susan Wojciki examines the principles that guide and inform Google’s innovation initiatives. They also suggest affirmations of specific values, strategies, and tactics that can be of substantial assistance to leaders in any organization, whatever its size and nature may be.
Here they are:
1. Focus on the User: This stresses the importance of customer-centricity.
2. Share Everything: This affirms total transparency at all levels and in all areas.
3. Look for Ideas Everywhere: In a word, “crowdsourcing.” Some of the most valuable ideas are found in the most unlikely sources.
4. Think BIG but start small: The LEGO organization was rebuilt “one brick at a time.”
5. Never Fail to Fail: In other words, “Fail frequently, fail fast, and fail forward.”
6. Spark with Imagination, Fuel with Data: First the breakthrough insight, then data that proves that it will work…and sell.
7. Be a Platform: This is what Jack Welch had in mind when advising, “If you don’t have a competitive advantage, don’t compete.”
8. Have a Mission That Matters: How large can it grow over time? How much impact can it have? None without a compelling purpose.
Susan observes, “Our growing Google workforce comes to us from all over the world, bringing with them vastly different experiences and backgrounds. A set of strong common principles for a company makes it possible for all its employees to work as one and move forward together. We just need to continue to say ‘yes’ and resist a culture of ‘no’, accept the inevitability of failures, and continue iterating until we get things right.
“As it says on our homepage, ‘I’m feeling lucky.’ That’s certainly how I feel coming to work every day, and something I never want to take for granted.”
Memes may come and go, but her new job is to make certain YouTube profits from every one of them. Google employee No. 16 — the company started in her Menlo Park garage — now heads up the Internet’s central hub for all things video. This February Susan moved from her post as consigliore for Google’s ads and commerce (some 90% of revenue) to become CEO of the world’s largest video platform. It was a long time coming: In 2006, she championed the $1.65 billion acquisition now valued at some $20 billion with revenues projected to be $5.6 billion last year, up about 51% from the past year. With more than 1 billion UVs per month and more eyeballs among adults 18 – 34, the former ad chief is quickly focusing on new ad formats, campaigns and market share.’
I also highly recommend How Google Works co-authored by Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg (Grand Central Publishing, September 23, 2014).