Google Perks Are Great, But They All Mean Business

megazoid81 writes "While there have been complaints of late, Google was recently named the best place to work according to the widely read annual Forbes survey, in its first appearance on the list. The plethora of perks at Google does make you wonder though what kind of hours the company expects its employees to keep. In the context of Google's perks, a Knowledge@Wharton article explains that there are two kinds of workers: segmentors and integrators. Segmentors want to maintain a strict separation between work and home while integrators don't mind mixing the two. The piece posits that segmentors might actually mind too many perks at their workplace and find their commitment eroding. Does Google have a disproportionate number of integrators in its workforce? What kind of worker are you — segmentor or integrator?"

Comments

Non-issue

[voice_of_all_reason]

Can you integrate sleep and work? Or sleep and pleasure? Not very well. Same with work and pleasure. You need down time to throw everything away and see to your higher-order needs, or they will come up wanted (read: affect your work).

Clock out time, that's it. Turn the machine off, leave the building, and forget about it until 9am. If your business can't handle that, they obviously need more staff.

Re:Non-issue

[Timesprout]

Or sleep and pleasure?

Someone has never had a wet dream.

Re:Non-issue

[Valdez]

I don't know about you, but my GF seems to pretty adept at integrating her sleep with my pleasure. =(

Re:Non-issue

[cayenne8]

"The occasional project over my allocated time or missing one break here or there is ok. But I will almost always make it up by leaving early one day or taking a few minutes longer break the next chance I get."

Same here...Amen.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my work....but, I only work to have money to support my free time to do what I wish (travel, buy toys, computers, women, homebrewing...etc). If I won the lottery tomorrow, I'd never work again a day in my life.

Now...that's not to say that if I didn't have to work, I'd not do some things that might appear to be work or that might earn me extra $$'s....but, that is stuff I do for myself for fun.

When the door hits me on the ass on the way out of work....my thoughts and concerns for work end THERE. I do not give it a 2nd thought in general, till I cross the threshold the next day. The worksite only has my thoughts when they pay me. I contract....so, this is the setup. I care about my work, I try my best to please the customer, and will go the extra mile when needed to get things going. But, never for free.

Like I said, I enjoy my work like many here do...but, I don't understand how so many people make the work so much of their lives, and are actually willing to sacrifice their free time to spend with families, and friends doing things that are fun and good for the soul. People who go into deep depression and the like when they get get go, are sad. I'm not saying I'm thrilled when it has happened...but, I don't feel I lost a part of ME when it happened...my main concern is finding the next gig to keep the money flowing. It is, after all...just business, and putting a face other than that on it, IMHO, is unhealthy and unrealistic. The company sees you as nothing more than an asset (or liability)....you need to see them in the same light.

But, I've realized that life IS short. Once you cross that age of realizing that you are no longer bulletproof, that you will slow down a bit...you see that spending time on you, for you is very important. There is so much to do and see in the world....and it ain't gonna get done sitting in a 3 wall cube 24/7. There is such thing as a life out there......get one.

I don't think many people will be on their deathbeds regretting that they didn't get more OT in...especially if it is unpaid.

The thing about programming/design

[MarkKnopfler]

This is the thing about programming in particular or creative engineering design in general. If you enjoy, or are into the work, it is very difficult to become a segmentor. Design and coding are very cerebral processes, and as it happens to me that I design and improve in my head whenever my brain finds a few free cycles. If I hit upon a good idea, I like to implement/try it immediately. Most of the better programmers/designers that I have seen do work in this mode. Hence having perks of this kind does help.
Most of the segmentors that I have seen end up in marketing or man-management at the end, even if they might have started in core engineering because of a simple reason they do not enjoy the process.
This of course is my opinion and there are exceptions, but exceptions are rare.

Worries me

[dmayle]

I've gotta say, each there is a story about working at Google, everyone seems to talk about how horrible the number of perks are because it must mean they expect you to work crazy hours, and I wonder how jaded we've become?

How about this as an idea, maybe the perks aren't meant to make people work crazy hours but instead just make good business sense?

• Doctors on site? Makes sure sick employees get better, and helps prevent healthy employees from getting sick
• 20% Off-project time? I know that when I have a serious problem, it's usually solved by walking away from the issue at hand and focusing on something else, letting my brain solve it in the background. What's more, all those 20% projects become a great source for potential revenues.
• Free food? By having their own cafeteria they can bring down costs, so it's less expensive than you might think for them, and they get the bonus of employees eating together, potentially discussing work, etc.

And on top of all of this, it makes their employees really happy, and gets them really good press!

I, for one, would be more than happy to talk to a recruiter at Google