Google Informal Organization

Google has retained a start-up culture while growing at a rapid pace because its leaders have paid attention to striking the right chord between the formal and the informal. Where other companies ofGoogle’s size would emphasize formal structures and procedural policies, Google has managed to protect its greatest asset—a healthy informal organization. It has consistently stayed on the cuttingedge of technological advancement, in part because of its informally-charged collaborative energy and innovative spirit.

To foster an open environment and the free flow of ideas, Google hasarchitected its workspaces to facilitate surges of creativity and to energize workers. With open pods instead of offices, lava lamps in the lobby, and exercise balls on each floor, the Google complex is reallya kind of campus in which employees at various levels can intermingle. Complete with on-site dry cleaners, barbers, and swimming pools, the Google campus is not just a place where employees work, butalso a place where they live out many aspects of their personal lives: employees run errands, relax, and socialize with colleagues there. Known for perks like free chef-prepared cuisine available allday, Google has continually experimented with creative ways to keep its engineers energized and efficient, and to bring them together in new ways.

For example, Google began offering free commuterbus rides in 2007, ferrying employees between the Google campus and various neighborhoods in and around San Francisco. Not only has the shuttle bus program enhanced efficiency, but the buses have alsobrought together a slice of employees who share a neighborhood in common. In this manner, Google has informally linked employees in an extraordinary way, providing an opportunity to create cross-company connections that would not otherwise have been easily made.

The physical environment is not the only way in which Google cultivates its informal organization. As policy, Google employees are...