Work Rules! Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead

"Work Rules!" answers these questions and more, because it's written by a Google executive. The book explains Google's philosophy on work, shares its secrets on topics from pay to performance appraisals, and takes readers behind the scenes into its meeting rooms, coffee shops, creative hubs, and online hangouts.

It also offers insights into other successful, innovative companies, showing leaders and managers how to build happy, productive workforces, how to hire and keep the best talent, and how to create profitable businesses.

So who's this book for? "Work Rules!" is for anyone who wants to build better teams and more successful organizations, on whatever scale. Leaders and managers in the fast-moving technology sector will get the most from this book – they'll probably relate best to Google's innovative culture – but the author's tips are relevant to all industries. Those working in human resources, recruitment, organizational development, and talent management will particularly love this book.

Leaders of more traditional, hierarchical companies may balk at some of the author's suggestions, viewing them as suitable for tech-savvy, 20-somethings, and not for more experienced workers. But Bock tackles issues that all companies struggle with. He also points out that the world of work is changing, as are employees' needs, and organizations need to keep up.

Laszlo Bock is Senior Vice President of People Operations at Google, in charge of all areas related to attracting, developing and retaining Google employees, or Googlers, as they're known. He joined the company in 2006 and has seen its workforce grow from 6,000 to almost 60,000 people. Google has been recognized as an exceptional employer more than 100 times during his tenure.

Previously, Bock worked as Vice President of Human Resources at General Electric and as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company. He's been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and numerous other media outlets. This is his first book, written before the creation of Google's new holding company, Alphabet.

So keep listening to hear how to make brilliant hiring decisions, why paying unfairly is the best policy, and how to create a Google-like environment without breaking the bank.

The core message of "Work Rules!" is that your people are key to your success. If you treat them like grown-ups, engage them in something meaningful, compensate them well, and give them freedom and flexibility, they'll return the favor with excellent work and great ideas. The maxim that people matter isn't new but, given that Google gets this so right, Bock's thoughts on the topic are hugely relevant.

His most important message is to make sure you hire the right people in the first place, so they can get on doing great work straight away, rather than needing costly training. So let's take a closer look at how Google does this.

All companies will have different hiring practices and selection criteria for candidates. Maybe you've found something that works well for your organization. But chances are, mistakes are made – costly, time-consuming mistakes.

Google spends more than double the average amount on recruiting, as a percentage of its people budget. It hires slowly, taking time to find exceptional candidates, and the company's mantra is: Only hire people who are better than you.

But where does Google find talent? The company's learned that the most talented individuals aren't scouring job boards or ringing recruitment agencies. They're happily working elsewhere, and being handsomely rewarded for it. So Google seeks out its employees. It has an in-house recruiting team that headhunts people, often cultivating them for years until they're ready to join. The company also relies on referrals from employees – every Googler is a potential recruiter.

Once selected, candidates go through a rigorous interview process led by dedicated, in-house recruiters. Managers don't hire for their own teams – professional recruiters do.

Bock notes ways in which Google's screening process stands out from the average company.

Firstly, someone who's familiar with all Google jobs – not just the one on offer – looks at a candidate's résumé. This is in case the applicant would be a better match for a different role.

Next, there's a phone interview, or preferably a video chat, where the candidate is assessed for general cognitive ability. This includes problem-solving skills and an ability to adapt and learn. If successful, the candidate has a face-to-face interview with the hiring manager and future colleagues. Also present are lower-level team members, who can judge whether the candidate would make a good boss, and an interviewer from an unrelated department, who brings a fresh perspective.

At this stage, interviewers are also looking for signs of conscientiousness, which would suggest the candidate is a starter-finisher who's a good team player. They're also looking for leadership skills, indications that the candidate would thrive in Google's culture, and role-related knowledge.

Questions are pre-formulated and consistent across all candidates, and applicants are scored on their responses.

Next, the interviewers' feedback is compiled in a structured way, with candidates rated against set criteria. All feedback carries the same weight, so a potential team member has just as much say as a hiring manager – the average score is the one that matters. Google believes the "wisdom of the crowds" trumps individual opinions.

Finally, a package of information on the candidate is sent to a hiring committee, made up of directors from other teams. This package can be 40 to 60 pages long and it includes feedback, interview scores, and references.

If the committee approves the candidate, senior executives then review the application and the CEO Larry Page makes a final decision. This process usually takes about six weeks, although it can move faster if a prime candidate has another offer.

You may be thinking your organization doesn't have the time or the manpower to follow such drawn-out hiring procedures. But even if that's the case, we think everyone can learn something from Google's methods.

Why not include a team member in the interview room, or bring in someone from a different department to give an outsider's perspective? And even if you don't have the funds to set up a recruitment unit, it's a good idea to ask top employees to recommend peers or former colleagues when opportunities come up.

Let's now look at Google's compensation policy, and why Bock thinks it's a good idea to pay two people different amounts for doing the same job.

The author begins this chapter with a caveat – not all companies can afford to reward employees like Google can. But it's not so much about the numbers. It's more about the principles behind the pay policy.

Most companies have pay structures that ultimately lead their top performers to leave, Bock says. They offer pay increases to their best people but, after a series of annual raises, they start hitting a pay ceiling and their salaries increase by the same percentage as that of an average performer. Management believes pay must stay within set boundaries, tied to market rates. But this policy prompts the best people to quit.

Google believes exceptional performers should be rewarded in exceptional ways, and it pays people according to their impact, not according to market norms. So one person can receive a stock award that's 10 times the award of another person working in the same area. Or a top-performing junior worker can receive twice as much pay as a senior worker who's viewed as average.

Of course, you need a sound way of assessing impact if you're going to compensate people in this way. How much of a particular success was down to skill, luck or timing? Was it a team or individual effort? Was this a short- or long-term achievement? You also need to stay within budget, meaning poorer performers receive a much smaller part of the pot. This won't be easy at the start, Bock says, but it's better than watching your top performers walk away.

Google has also learned that people prefer experiential awards over cash, despite saying in surveys they'd rather have money. Googlers who receive trips to Hawaii, luxury spa weekends, or Google TVs for their homes are happier than those who receive money and they stay happier for longer.

Another guiding principle at Google is to make it easy to "spread the love" – or reward fellow employees. Googlers can send each other thank-you notes that are broadcast companywide and any employee can give another a cash award with no need for a manager's sign-off.

Even without Google's huge resources, we think there are valuable lessons here for leaders and managers about rewarding exceptional work, giving top-performing employees memorable experiences, and providing platforms for people to showcase one another's achievements.

Finally, let's look at how to create a working environment that sparks innovation and keeps people happy, without breaking the bank.

Google's well known for its focus on interior design. If you do an online search for the company's offices, you'll see hammocks, cushions, sleep pods, and oddly-shaped sofas in bright reds, greens and yellows. There's color, comfort and creativity everywhere.

The company's ethos is that great ideas happen away from the desk – in the snack areas, in the changing rooms after yoga classes, on the basketball courts, or in one of the many employee groups or culture clubs. Here, teams from diverse departments mix, chat and share ideas.

Google also tries to make life easier for its employees, by having ATM machines, dry cleaning outlets, hair salons, and bike repair stations on site. Skeptics may argue these benefits, along with free food, are designed to keep people at work longer. But Bock says he doesn't care about the hours people put in or where they work, he cares about output. So anything that encourages creativity and makes life easier is a plus.

Bock accepts Google is in a privileged position, but you don't need acres of space or lots of money to replicate some of its magic. Maybe all you need is a well-positioned table-tennis table, or an area where people can cook and eat their own food.

Maybe you can encourage employees to start a lunchtime running club, organize meditation classes, host a book or film club, or facilitate a grocery delivery service – all at limited cost to your company. The point is to make your people feel loved, give them a sense of community, and provide them with conditions that encourage them to do their best work. We like the way Bock includes suggestions that would work for companies with much smaller budgets than Google's.

Some of Bock's ideas for creating a fulfilled, productive workforce won't be new to readers. But the fact is, Google leads the way in many areas. For example, it has semi-annual Upward Feedback Surveys, through which teams give anonymous feedback to their managers. The managers aren't rewarded or punished on the basis of these comments, but they're encouraged to share their results with their teams and discuss how they can improve. In the book, Bock shares the low scores he got as a manager and what he did to perform better.

The author comes across as incredibly upbeat and optimistic, but he does admit some of Google's imperfections – poor decisions, painfully slow hiring processes in the early days, and products and programs that flopped. Ultimately, though, it's clear he loves working at Google and is delighted that the data seems to confirm most Googlers feel the same.

As you heard earlier, "Work Rules!" isn't just about Google. Bock mentions companies with great working practices in Mexico, Sri Lanka, and the United States, as well as organizations and leaders from history who laid the foundations for the kind of policies Google has in place.

The author also weaves in interesting statistics, studies and expert views that support his theories and make this book a lively, comprehensive read, even if Bock takes a long time to get to the main point of his chapters. But it's Google – its founders, leaders, top performers, surveys, and employee initiatives – that's really the star of "Work Rules!"

Google is a phenomenon that's evolved over time. It'd be impossible for any company to replicate what it's achieved. But we think leaders and managers will get a lot from this insiders' guide to the company, and will be able to apply some, if not all, of Bock's ideas.

"Work Rules!" by Laszlo Bock is published by John Murray Publishers, an imprint of Hachette UK.

That's the end of this episode of Book Insights. Thanks for listening.