Google is at its peak, but employees see cracks and question CEO Pichai

Employees say Google is rocked by workplace culture fights, and Pichai's attempts to lower the temperature had the opposite effect.

Sundar Pichai
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Sundar Pichai, chief executive officer of Alphabet Inc., | Photo: Bloomberg

Daisuke Wakabayashi | NYT
The seeds of a company’s downfall, it is often said in the business world, are sown when everything is going great.

It is hard to argue that things aren’t going great for Google. Revenue and profits are charting new highs every three months. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is worth $1.6 trillion. Google has rooted itself deeper and deeper into the lives of everyday Americans.

But a restive class of Google executives worry that the company is showing cracks. They say Google’s work force is increasingly outspoken. Personnel problems are spilling into the public. Decisive leadership and big ideas have given way to risk aversion and incrementalism. And some of those executives are leaving and letting everyone know exactly why.

First Published: Jun 22 2021 | 07:46 AM IST

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