Understanding H.R Management at Google

This report provides insights into the organizational structure, culture, management style, and importance of training and development at Google. It discusses the cross-functional structure, task culture, laissez-faire management style, and training methods used by Google. The report highlights the benefits of a flat structure, the importance of empowering employees, and the need for continuous training and development.

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UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
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UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
Table of Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................2
2. Organizational structure.........................................................................................................2
3. Organizational culture............................................................................................................3
4. Management style..................................................................................................................3
5. Importance of training and development...............................................................................4
6. Conclusion and Recommendations........................................................................................5
7. References:.............................................................................................................................6

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
1. Introduction
Google is a multinational company in America which deals with technology and
specializes in products and services which are related to the internet. Their products and
services constitute search engines, technologies for online advertising, cloud computing,
hardware and software (Google.com 2018). The company Google was founded by Sergey
Brin and Larry Page who were students at Stanford University at the time pursuing their
Ph.D. in the year 1998. The company has gone through an extensive growth and developed
many products and services which has contributed to the same. The report will consist of the
organizational structure of Google followed by the culture of the organization using Charles
Handy model. The report will also discuss the management style adopted in the organization
and the importance that is given to training and development in Google. The way that the
training method is used in the company will be explained in the report.
2. Organizational structure
The organizational structure of Google is cross-functional. This means that the
structure is a kind of matrix, however, Google likes to maintain their flatness through which
they can influence their functions on the structure of the organization. There are certain
characteristics of this structure which are function based, product based and flatness.
Function-based means that the resources and the different processes of the organization are
based on the function of the business and the way they operate (Foss, Woll and Moilanen
2013). Product based means that the products of the organizations are developed with the
help of groups that are product oriented. Flatness means that the vertical hierarchical
communication lines are minimized in spite of the groups being function based. The
organizational structure of Google has always been cross-functional which has its own
advantages that have been beneficial for the staff. A flat structure enables innovation and

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
motivates the staff to show their own creativity to develop something new for the company.
When the employees are left open to their own creativity then there are many different
results, which, when combined together form an excellent product or service which helps the
organization to a great extent (Steiber and Alänge 2013). Therefore, the cross-functional
organizational structure has been beneficial for Google.
3. Organizational culture
According to Charles Handy model of the organizational culture, there are four kinds
of culture that is mentioned which are Role, Person, Power and Task (Janićijević 2013).
Power culture is where the power of the organisation is in the hands of the leader and a
selected few individuals whose performance would be the reason for the success of the
organisation. Person culture is where a group of non-cooperating people work together in a
cluster and hence the organization has no real structure in this culture. They are mainly based
on individuals grouping together without any link. Role culture is where the power comes
from the position that the individual is in and the structure is based more on the roles than the
individuals working in the organization. Task culture is where the structure if the
organization is like a matrix and the individuals who perform the task with expertise are
given more power than the individual who holds superior roles. The organization culture of
Google follows the tasks culture (Cacciattolo 2014). This means that they believe that power
should be given to those employees who give their best performance and find ways to
improve upon their skills for the benefit of the organization. This culture helps in the
motivation and retention of the employees of the organization.
4. Management style
The management style followed by Google is Laissez-faire. This is because Google
allows their employees to take their own decisions and gives them the freedom to work on

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
their own without interfering at every step. The management at Google feels that giving the
employees the freedom to work would be profitable since the employees would be able to
race their minds and make decisions which would encourage innovation and creativity, both
of which is important for any new change or successful venture in the organization. Risk
taking is a major part of any Laissez-faire organizational culture (Yang 2015). The risk taken
by the employees is a major part of their innovative ideas. This kind of organizational culture
in Google has helped them to grow and expand in their technology and services and connect
with people for many years. Employees are motivated in a culture which encourages freedom
and is motivated to work harder.
5. Importance of training and development
Training and development are important for every organization, in the same way,
Google puts a lot of emphasis on the training and development of their staff. In Google,
training is a way to increase the knowledge that is present to a staff and expand their horizon
so that they are able to learn new things which they can apply for innovation of new products
and services (Jehanzeb and Bashir 2013). Proper training and development improve the
performance of the staff and this helps to increase the motivation level and thereby the
satisfaction level of every employee. Providing training to an employee makes them feel
valued and supportive and this creates an atmosphere of absolute reliance and healthy
competition. Moreover, training helps to understand and address the weakness that is present
in the employees and overcome them in a much better way (Sung and Choi 2014). There are
four steps which Google uses to train their employees. The steps are followed as need
analysis, program design, delivery and evaluating. Need analysis is understanding the need of
every individual employee and their area for improvement, program design is the step where
the training program is designed according to the need determined, delivery is the actual

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
delivery of the training programs and evaluating is determining the success and the results of
the training program.
6. Conclusion and Recommendations
Hence, it can be said that the organizational culture and structure of Google has
always been to support their employees and motivate them to work harder and encourage
creativity. The management style followed by Google is also one of encouragement and
freedom. These factors help the employees to grow within the organization and give their
best. However, Google can focus more on their training and development section as this is
the sector which can take out the best of the abilities of the employees.

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT
7. References:
Cacciattolo, K., 2014. Understanding organisational cultures. European Scientific Journal,
ESJ, 10(10).
Foss, L., Woll, K., and Moilanen, M., 2013. Creativity and implementations of new ideas: do
organizational structure, work environment, and gender matter?. International Journal of
Gender and Entrepreneurship, 5(3), pp.298-322.
Google.com (2018). About | Google. [online] Google.com. Available at:
https://www.google.com/about/ [Accessed 19 Nov. 2018].
Janićijević, N., 2013. The mutual impact of organizational culture and structure. Economic
annals, 58(198), pp.35-60.
Jehanzeb, K. and Bashir, N.A., 2013. Training and development program and its benefits to
employee and organization: A conceptual study. European Journal of business and
management, 5(2).
Steiber, A. and Alänge, S., 2013. Do TQM principles need to change? Learning from a
comparison to Google Inc. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 24(1-2),
pp.48-61.
Sung, S.Y. and Choi, J.N., 2014. Do organizations spend wisely on employees? Effects of
training and development investments in learning and innovation in organizations. Journal of
organizational behavior, 35(3), pp.393-412.
Yang, I., 2015. Positive effects of laissez-faire leadership: conceptual exploration. Journal of
Management Development, 34(10), pp.1246-1261.

UNDERSTANDING H.R MANAGEMENT