Employee Motivation, Engagement, and Leadership Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of employee motivation and engagement, using Google as a prime example. It begins with an introduction to the changing business landscape and its impact on employee dynamics, emphasizing the crucial roles of managers and leaders in fostering a positive work environment. The report defines motivation and engagement, differentiating between them, and then delves into Google's key practices, including flexibility, free perks, health and happiness initiatives, the '150 ft from food' rule, feedback policies, and family coverage. It explores Google's employee engagement strategies, highlighting its culture, communication channels, employee empowerment, and the synergy between managers, leaders, and HR. The report also touches on conflict resolution and the development of employees. The report examines how Google has successfully created a motivated and engaged workforce since its inception, supported by relevant theories and practices. The report concludes by summarizing the key findings and offering insights into creating a successful work environment.

Managing Leading People
Motivation and Engagement of Employees

Table of Content
Introduction to the Report........................................................................................................................................... 3
Company Background.................................................................................................................................................... 3
Understanding Motivation and Engagement at Workplace............................................................................4
Motivation...................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Understanding Employee Engagement.............................................................................................................. 5
Key Practices of Motivation at Google..................................................................................................................... 5
Flexibility........................................................................................................................................................................ 5
Free Perks...................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Health & Happiness.................................................................................................................................................... 6
150 Ft from Food Rule.............................................................................................................................................. 6
Feedback Policy........................................................................................................................................................... 7
Family Coverage.......................................................................................................................................................... 7
Key Practices of Employee Engagement at Google............................................................................................. 8
Culture of Google......................................................................................................................................................... 8
Channels of Communications................................................................................................................................. 8
A Voice............................................................................................................................................................................. 9
Innovation Labs........................................................................................................................................................... 9
Employee Empowerment........................................................................................................................................ 9
Interlink between the Managers/ Leaders and the HR Representative..................................................10
Development of the employees- Setting up of the KPI..............................................................................10
Creating a Positive workplace environment................................................................................................. 10
Resolving Conflicts................................................................................................................................................... 11
Conclusion........................................................................................................................................................................ 11
References........................................................................................................................................................................ 12

Introduction to the Report
Globalization, Tech Revolution, Workforce Diversity and Social media revolution are the
biggest drivers behind the changing business ecosystem globally. All these are also the
big influencers behind the employee motivation, empowerment and engagement which
not only enhance their productivity in the business organization, but also help the
organization to attain its goals of sustainability (Rong et. al., 2015). Managers and
leaders are the key people who have the ones of keeping the employees motivated,
engaged in the work practices by empowering them by virtue of acknowledging their
feedback and involving them in the decision making. These can also be seen as some of
the key practices which are responsible behind creating a positive workplace
environment which in turn helps in retaining the employees (Cherbakov et. al., 2005).
The report here will analyse how Google as a company engages and motivates its
employees and the roles and responsibilities of the leaders and managers in doing so.
The same will be connected with the HR practices which enable managers and leaders
to work for the development goals of the employees. The report will describe some of
the motivation theories used by Google, best practices of engagement and how the
company has been able to keep its employee motivated and engaged since its inception.
Company Background

Google, an Internet company which changed the world for good was founded by two
visionary and innovative leaders Larry Page and Sergy Bin in the year 1998. The
company which serves ads, digital services, analytics, software and hardware products
worldwide, employees over 85, 000 People and is one of the most employee’s centric
firm on the planet earth. One of the world’s best employers receives over 2 million
applications every single year; this can be potentially seen as the success of the
company in nurturing, managing, motivating and engaging its huge workforce (Case,
2016). Google across the globe is known to be the employee friendly company, who
creates policies and procedures which revolve around its employees. Google does not
call the people working for it as employees, but it calls them Googler’s, this helps the
employees to build a deeper connect with the company, eventually leading to
motivation and engagement with the workforce. The HR team at Google is always
looking out for the best practices to keep the Googlers engaged and motivated, they
work with the aim of creating a fulfilled environment for the employees (Singer, 2017).
Understanding Motivation and Engagement at Workplace
Before moving further with the topic and understanding the insight about the best
practices of motivation and engagement, along with the role of line managers, leaders
and HR, it is first important to understand the concept at length.
Motivation
Motivation is derived from the word motive which means the desires, needs, wants or
drives within the individual. Motivation can also be understood as the mechanism

which urges people to behave in a certain manner, or it is the force which pushes a
person to work tirelessly towards his own set SMART goals. Motivation is simply
putting People into action, organization do this by stimulating people to take actions in
order to accomplish the goals (Deci & Ryan, 2014). The importance of motivation lies
with the fact that if people are motivated, they would work with enhanced productivity
and be committed to the business organization they are working with. The underlying
factor behind motivation arises from understanding the employee on a deeper level and
identifying his motivation needs. Plethora of motivational theories such as Maslow Need
Hierarchy, Two Factor Theory, McClelland Need analysis and many more are used for
motivating the individual. Thus, motivation is critical for the development and growth
of the employees and the organization (Reeve, 2014).
Understanding Employee Engagement
Employee engagement is a critical step and process which explains and defines the
extent to which an employee feels passionate, committed and dedicated about his/her
job. People often confused employee engagement with employee satisfaction; however,
both are very different terms (Anthony-McMann et. al., 2017). Employee engagement
goes beyond the normal scope of fun activities, games and other recreational
performances and is driven by performance. Employee engagement entails the
engagement they have with other employees, line managers, leaders and with the HR
people in the organization. It is by virtue of engagement that employees connect
strongly with the organization work towards the accomplishment of organizational
goals (Aryee et. al., 2016).
Key Practices of Motivation at Google
Google by all means and reason is one of the best companies to work with in the given
business organization. Candidates keep their eyes always open on the job opening of
Google with the aim of landing a job in the company. Every single year the company
receives over 2 Million applications of candidates with the desired skill sets and the
competencies. This section will explore how Google manages to keep its employees
motivated at all times.

Flexibility
Google with the aim of keeping its staff motivated allows them to dedicate 20% of their
time to work on the projects of their own choice. This in turn gives the staff the kind of
freedom they envisioned and ability to expand their horizons beyond the normal order
of the day. This helps to explore creativity from a different angle and become an
innovator. In a way, it is good for Google as well, as the company gets to shed off the
workload from the shoulders of the employees and keep them motivated at the same
time. Flexibility is thus one key practice which ensures that the employees stay
motivated. This can be seen as an extrinsic motivation technique which sets of the tune
in the hearts of the employees intrinsically (Albrecht et. al., 2015).
Free Perks
There is a fascinating thing about Google; the company gives the same amount of time to
its employees as it gives time in creating products for the customers worldwide. Some
of the free perks which a lot of large corporation do not offer include; free haircuts, Gym
Membership, Shuttles to and fro from and many other such as time off to new parents.
Another big motivation practice of the company is that it 100% reimburses any cost
incurred towards a class or a program which might help the employee with his job
duties (Dash & Mahapatra, 2016).
Health & Happiness
Google believes that it is an extremely important step to ensure the well-being of its
employees. Google removes all kind of barriers that Goolgers face in their lives, or which
are stressors. The company replaces the same with work enhancer or enablers which
motivates the person to work happily and motivated at Google. The company with the
aim of ensuring the health and safety of its employees has in-house physicians, medical
officers and nurses; additionally the company provides a comprehensive health care
program for the staff and their entire family (Street, 2017).
150 Ft from Food Rule
Free food is one of the biggest motivations for the employees, especially the employees
who are working the midnight all to make the world a better place and give consumers

a range of product which could make their lives easier and simpler. At Google, food is
discussed everywhere, and people are seen indulging in the different cuisines of food in
the entire office. Google has ensured that food is always in access of 150 ft. from the
Googlers. By all means, food serves as a big motivation for the Googlers as Great quality
food most definitely satisfies their hunger and keeps them motivated towards their
goals (Sayed, 2014).
Feedback Policy
At Google, the management is of the opinion that the best way to learn, develop and
grow is by becoming self-aware about oneself. In order to do aid its employees the
company follows a 360 degree performance management practice under which the
employees are always under inspection. This is one of the most helpful exercises which
help the employees to stay focussed on their goals and also to get feedback from the line
managers or leaders whenever required. Feedback thus helps the employees to gauge
their standing in the organization and comparison of their performances. Feedback also
helps the employees to find lacunae or gap in their working
practices/skills/competencies, working on which the employees can perform with
enhanced productivity (Manish & Sutter, 2016).
Family Coverage
As explained earlier, different people have different motivation needs, which is the
responsibility of the management to figure out so that they can present the same to the
employee. One such solution which came out of the need analysis is the safety of the
family. Google has recently created a policy where it will give salary to the family of the
deceased employee. This certainly takes off the burden of fear from the employees that
what will happen after they are gone. Noticing Google is helping them in taking care of
their deep rooted concerns; it serves the purpose of motivation for the employees who
in turn show deep respect and commitment towards their jobs.
These are some of the specific practices which are used by Google to motivate its
employees, the company uses plethora of motivational theories and all the
managers/leaders and HR team are working hard to keep the employees motivated and
committed towards their work. The company’s motivation is a combination of both

intrinsic and extrinsic factors of motivation for its employees (Knies, Leisink & Thijssen,
2015).
Key Practices of Employee Engagement at Google
As mentioned earlier, Google is considered as one of the best places to work on planet
earth. The company’s reviews on Glass door are filled with some great reviews and the
employees have painted a great picture of the company. One striking observation from
the reviews is that as much the people in the reviews are talking about the perks at
Google such as the Chef Prepared food, Gym Memberships, Nap Pods, Salon and many
others. People have been equally talking about the culture at Google, Work-life balance,
growth opportunities which is an indication of the fact that the company values
employee engagement the same as employee motivation. The section here will discuss
some of the practices which is a harbinger of exceptional employee engagement at
Google by the combined efforts of the managers/leaders and the HR Team (Albrecht et.
al., 2015).
Culture of Google
The first thing which comes in the mind of an employee working at Google is, its Culture,
the second one is obviously Culture. This is a very shocking revelation, as despite having
so many tangible options, employees preferred to go forward with intangible element
which is the culture. The culture of Google is filled with elements of positivity, fun,
consistent learning, innovation and creation. It is the culture of Google which keeps the
employees engaged at any given point in time. The culture of Google thus can be seen as
empowering, motivating, challenging and respectful towards the employees (Gould-
Williams, 2016).
Channels of Communications
Google is one of the largest internet, tech and software companies which have been
serving the customers worldwide for over 2 decades by now. The company which
follows an open door policy using plethora of communication channels to build
engagement with its employees. The company majorly relies on social media and online
channels of communication to establish communication with the clients. These engaging

and two ways communication platforms help in establishing and building better
relationships with the managers and the leaders. The company by virtue of using
Chatbots, Google+ and other social media platforms brings a high degree of engagement
with the employees (Gould-Williams, 2016).
A Voice
Google has a Google-o-Meter in place which plays an important role in setting up of the
culture and measuring the engagement levels of the employees. The company’s charting
tool takes a survey on the popular suggestion of the employees on various policies such
as housing more doctors, what kind of food to be put on the floor and many other
things. The idea here is to make the employees give something in return in the form of
reward and empowerment to the employees by virtue of engaging them with the
Google-o-Meter (Larsson, Eriksson & Pesamaa, 2018).
Innovation Labs
Google by all standards is one of the biggest creators and innovators of its times, which
by the virtue of its innovation labs engages the employees with thousands of projects
they do in their office hours. Google believes that every employee has a creative side,
which if can be harnessed will be beneficial for the people, society, community and the
whole nation. Thus, the company by allowing the teams or the employees to work on
their own projects or by giving them challenging tasks sets a culture of innovation and
creativity, in turn engaging them in the activities of the organization(Rajabi et. al.,
2018).
Employee Empowerment
Employee empowerment can be understood as the process of engaging the employees
in the process, procedures, change management and other decision making which is
critical to the employees. Employee empowerment is a form of engagement which also
helps in motivating them. The employee certainly feels empowered and they feel that
the organization values their time, efforts, energy and their skill set, which is why their
suggestions are considered to be so important (Mishra, Boynton & Mishra, 2014).

These are some of the best practices by which Google engages its employees, certain
other things such as learning program, Leadership and other training programs also
helps in building engagement with the workforce. The idea here is to constructively and
productively use the time of the employees whilst keeping them happy, satisfied,
engaged, motivated and committed towards the goals of the organization.
Interlink between the Managers/ Leaders and the HR Representative
Managers can be seen as the link or the middle men between the top management and
the employees, thus there role in managing the performance of the people becomes
extremely critical. In the similar lines, the HR representative who is responsible for the
recruitment, selection, motivation, induction, creating HR policies and other such
functions has a very important role to play as well. The first and the most important role
are to correctly ascertain the manpower requirement and the skill sets or the
competency to look forward in the individual. This is fulfilled by the leaders or the
managers who give the HR team a clear cut list of the things they are looking for in a
candidate. Thus, neither of the two can’t perform effectively and efficiently towards the
welfare of the employees without working closely with each other (Mone & London,
2018). Some of the ways by which this relationship can be understood in better insights
are:
Development of the employees- Setting up of the KPI
Key performance indicator for set for each and every employee in the organization so
that they know the path they have to follow to achieve their goals. KPI provides them
with this path and gives them a clear indication of their work goals and duties. The KPI
for the employees are developed by conducting a joint meeting with the line manager,
HR and the employees. It is the cumulative work of all the three people which helps in
the overall development of the employees (Shuck & Reio, 2014).
Creating a Positive workplace environment
Google is known for its great culture which comprises of free chef cooked food, amazing
interactive and engaging activities, motivation, flexibility and other many reasons. All
these perks, benefits, adding tangibility to the reward and other is done by the leaders.

It is the leader who is always looking at the surface and consistently thinking on how to
make the lives of employees better at Google. The leader discusses the ideas with the
managers; he then takes it over to the HR team, as they are responsible for the
implementation of such policies. It is after a thorough discussion around all the ideas
that managers, leaders and the HR teams bring to the table, the benefits and the policies
for the employees are laid out. Hence, the inter dependence between managers. Leaders
and the HR team are high, and it is the level of association which makes the employees
appreciate and encourage the effort of the organization (Eisenberger, Malone &
Presson, 2016).
Resolving Conflicts
Conflicts are a natural occurring phenomenon in business organization, the difference
lies in how people or the organization views the conflicts. Google, by all means, looks
towards the conflict as an opportunity; the company always aims to extract something
positive out of the conflict. The first person to become aware of the conflict in the
Manager, he knows that members in the team or inter teams who are the loggerheads
with each other. The next person to become privy to such information is the HR and
then comes the leader. However, it is the combined synergies of all these three which
helps in resolving the conflict in an amicable way, ensuring that it does not crop ever
again. It is the cogency of manager, leader and the HR representative which helps in
resolving conflicts at Google (Slack, Corlett & Morris, 2015).
It can be clearly said that, it is extremely necessary for every large corporate
organization to ensure a high degree of cooperation and support from the managers,
leaders and the HR representative to create policies and procedures for the engagement
and motivation of the employees.
Conclusion
Annually, Google receives over 2 lakh application every year; this is an indication how
successful the company has been over the years in motivating, encouraging and
engaging its employees that the company has such a positive brand image in the market.
Google motivation efforts are a culmination of variety of factors which are both intrinsic

and extrinsic in nature. The company does not shy away from giving its employees
plenty of handsome benefits monetarily, but also by providing them with a rich culture
to learn and grow. Google certain believes that its employees are its greatest asset and
thus the company does everything possible to provide its hard working employee a
culture which is rich in motivation and engagement. A big share of Google’s crafted
motivation and engagement practices goes to its impeccable leadership, managers and
the HR team.

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A look into the World of Google