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by mike_d 759 days ago
Google was always better than Yahoo/Bing at dealing with webspam (whether Google can continue to beat current webspam is a different debate). Bing is happily traning on the things they don't know are bad results. Garbage in garbage out.

The only competition Google needs to worry about is Google's leadership. Once Cloud brought in TK and they started actively recruiting from Microsoft and Oracle it was like an infection of stupid they haven't been able to fight.
1 comments
shooker435 759 days ago
Not sure if it's strictly the recruiting pool that made things break down, but I see it more as a result of COVID/WFH + the recruiting pool. Google's strong in-office culture once helped new joiners learn the culture and challenge others in a respectful way - now it's a political minefield.

Remote work is great, but it probably accelerated Google's culture decline. If you've been there a while, you'll notice the wild difference in employee attitudes when comparing pre-2019 employees to post 2020 employees.

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yterdy 759 days ago
Depending on who you ask, Google's search issues started as early as 2010 (Instant) or 2016 ("brands"). Many of the things people complain about regarding Google's culture - shuttering projects arbitrarily, hiring issues (the interview gauntlet, anti-competitive practices, etc.), the slow erosion of Don't Be Evil - are 2010s products, also. I don't think this is WFH, at its root.
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mike_d 759 days ago
> Remote work is great, but it probably accelerated Google's culture decline.

Absolutely agree. A lot of the top talent bailed when they started demanding return to office. Google played the "if you don't X we will fire you" with a bunch of L7+ that ... surprise, could easily get jobs elsewhere or had enough GSUs to flat out retire.

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shooker435 759 days ago
Yeah, I left to start my own company (which I was already contemplating) but some of the changes in early 2023 were the catalyst that I needed to make the jump. I made sure to give the best feedback that I could in my exit interview, but I doubt it has much of an impact at a company that large.
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