How Google Manages Its People

The New York Times article criticising e-commerce giant Amazon’s alleged mishandling of its employees in a “bruising workplace” has once again brought people management into focus at the world’s leading corporations.

Conversely, recent research has commended fellow tech behemoth Google on its range of employee initiatives that have led to a 37% rise in staff satisfaction, but how can small and medium-sized businesses follow in Google’s path?

As discussed earlier this month by Insights, Google is one of the leading proponents of the Objective and Key Results system of employee review. Commonly referred to as OKRs, the process asks employees to set their own measurable goals and make them public to colleagues via an internal network. In practice, an employee will set an objective, such as aiming to increase website engagement by 20%, then identify three or four key results that are quantifiable and help individuals hit their target.