How did Google become a way of thinking or a worldview?
In this crisis, we are witnessing more than the failure of mortgages, derivatives, banks, and regulation. We are also seeing the dawn of a new economy; one best viewed and understood through the lens of Google, the one company that – by design or by luck – is built for the emerging world order.
Google manifests the business of trust in its famous decree, "don't be evil." Etch that over doors on Wall Street. If enough people had asked whether getting and issuing toxic mortgages, and making and selling toxic assets was evil — instead of someone else's problem — I wonder whether we'd be in this mess. Our meltdown was not inevitable. But the transition to a Google economy is.
- Jeff Jarvis, November 2008
Google has been described as an entirely new way of thinking. Google has already defined a generation and a worldview. For these reasons and others, I believe Google represents fundamental changes in our world that will affect charitable giving and the fundraising profession both on and off-line.
Larry Page describes Google as "part of people's lives, like brushing their teeth."
Ken Auletta says "The planet has been Googled."
A recent Wall Street Journal headline called Google "the Great Disruption."
Ken Auletta observes that the "Google wave has crashed into entire industries: advertising, newspapers, book publishing, television, telephones, movies, software or hardware makers." This impact has forced companies to make difficult choices. One response has been to try to emulate Google, redrawing business plans to emphasize online advertising—although few other companies have so far managed to build a large, profitable business from it. Source
Douglas LaBier of the Washington Post writes: The traits you most need today are to be transparent, flexible, focused and collaborative… You need to adopt the psychology of Google.
LaBier writes: If Google were a person, it would be the model of a psychologically healthy adult. Its corporate culture and management practices depend upon cooperation, collaboration, non-defensiveness, informality, a creative mind-set, flexibility and nimbleness, all aimed at competing aggressively for clear goals within a constantly changing environment.
Sterling Speirn, Anne Mosle and Tom Reis write:
New technologies are changing the social sector. Emerging technological tools give us new options for how we connect with others, share information, and do our work. Technology literally is changing how we think.
Question: How did Google become a way of thinking or a worldview? Why did this happen?
In his book, The Innovation Acid Test, Andrew Jones details some of the principles behind Google’s ability to consistently develop innovative solutions:
• Get everyone involved. Google expects everyone in the company to innovate, even administrative and finance staff. The source of the innovation matters less than the innovation itself.
• Promote creative time. Employees are given “20 percent time” to pursue “pet” projects, unrelated to their core work, that they find interesting. Half of the new launches at Google emerged from this sanctioned time for innovation.
• Encourage volume, speed, and iteration. Google pilots products early and often, in small beta tests. This allows people to test out ideas with others, and to iterate and refine the ideas, before launching them more broadly.
• Embrace failure. Google staff are encouraged not to worry if an “experiment in innovation” fails. There is often something that can be learned or salvaged from any attempt.
Why should the fundraising profession pay attention to Google?
There are plenty of companies out there that we could use as a lens through which to look at th future of fundraising and yet I chose Google; why? Simply put, I let the numbers speak for themselves. And I trust fundraisers are all about the numbers. Check this out.
According to Interbrand, Google ranks 7th among the most valuable international brands. Among the top ten, it was the only brand to have a double-digit increase (25%).
According to Millward Brown’s brand valuation, Google has ranked the top of the list for three years in a row; repeatedly described as the world’s most powerful brand in the world.
According to Fast Company, Google is the 4th most innovative company in the world; losing its number-two spot this year to Facebook, Amazon, and Apple. That’s where we can look for next year’s presentation.
YouTube is the top Web video site, with more than 1 billion daily views. Commands 86% of mobile-search market.
This company is only 12-years old. Founded in 1998.
2009 $23.6 Billion in revenue and its stock price was up 106%
Its search engine is so dominant that Merriam-Webster lists "google" as a verb.
Google answers an estimated 40% of the 375 million queries thrown out on the Net each day.
And of course, we would not be professional fundraisers if we did not note that Mr. Brin and Mr. Page were the youngest among Forbes list of the richest Americans; the two of them shared the number eleven spot in 2009. Source
This project will be presented at the upcoming Emerging Philanthropy Conference in Pittsburgh on March 25-25, 2010. For more information, please visit The Generous Life
