The Cool Gig at Google

The Charlotte Observer

The Cool Gig at Google

By Jen Aronoff
Feb. 8, 2009

LENOIR- It has twentysomething guys in jeans and T-shirts playing pool and video games within view of a beer tap, abundant racing-themed decor and some of the tightest security imaginable.

Is it a bar? Someone's top-secret man cave? Nope. It's a workplace: Google's data center here in the N.C. foothills, about 70 miles northwest of Charlotte.

And amid economic upheaval, it's evidence that distinctive workplace cultures and perks can persist, even as a range of companies sacrifice benefits and look to cut costs.

“We are very cognizant of the economy, and we have done a bit of scaling down,” data center manager Tom Jacobik said. “But it hasn't prevented us from giving employees the right tools to do their jobs.”

In Google's culture, that goes beyond a desk and a computer, as a recent visit to the Lenoir workspace made clear. It marked the first time the Mountain View, Calif.-based Internet search giant had opened one of its highly private data centers to a media tour.

That's partly because of an ongoing effort to be more open, and also because the Lenoir work area was not completed until December, said Matt Dunne, the company's U.S. manager for public affairs. The warehouse-sized hall of computers processing search requests and other data remained strictly off-limits, in a burly-guys-in-polo-shirts-guarding-the-doors kind of way.

The center, which was announced in January 2007 and held an opening ceremony in May, is expected to eventually employ about 200 people. The company declined to say how many work there now. It's one of at least four rural centers Google has and was lured with more than $250 million in state and local incentives.

The bright, open work area is located on the building's second floor, with large windows offering a view of the Blue Ridge mountains. It's accented in red, blue, green and yellow, and has a racing theme in homage to Carolinas heritage – think checkered flags, race car pieces on the wall and conference rooms named for NASCAR tracks. The setting is a far cry from the furniture and textile plants that long formed the economic backbone of the area, which has struggled with high unemployment most of this decade.

Employees can play Rock Band on an Xbox and 46-inch flat-screen television, shoot pool at a locally made custom table, play pingpong and foosball, shoot Nerf guns or sit in a black leather massaging chair. Free snacks, drinks and coffee are always available, and lunch from a different local restaurant arrives around 1 p.m. On Friday afternoons after work, Googlers can gather at a bar area and chat with colleagues over company-provided beer.

Employees say the laid-back atmosphere offers stress relief and socialization. For the company, it leads to workers that are devoted and focused during long hours, keeping hundreds or possibly thousands of computers humming with hardware, software, ventilation and electrical acumen.

Such a tradeoff gained favor in the dot-com boom of the late 1990s, but in years since some firms have winnowed their perks. Google has kept them, with officials noting the upfront costs of buying games and decor and the recurring food and drink expenses are small compared to the long-term payoff.

The benefits encourage the creativity that will keep the company moving forward, Jacobik said. “That's what has gotten us to where we are now,” he said. “We didn't want to lose that startup feel.”
Google has been comparatively spared by the recession. Its revenue increased 31 percent to $21.8 billion in 2008. Earnings were roughly flat at $4.2 billion.

But it isn't immune. The company's stock is down about 26 percent in the last year, compared with 30 percent for the Nasdaq as a whole. The company has also reined in hiring, laid off members of its recruiting staff and delayed the opening of a data center in Oklahoma. It's also trimmed some lightly used perks such as the 4 p.m. tea at its New York office and the high-end video production studio at its headquarters, Dunne said.

More dramatic cuts, however, would alter Google's identity and not help it survive in the long run, Dunne said.

Companies across the country are grappling with the same dilemma, trying to hold onto what defines them while also weathering the economy. Often, they have little choice but to cut: 92 percent of human resources executives surveyed last month by placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said their companies were initiating cost reductions.

Several other local companies known for distinctive workplace cultures said they, too, were trying to preserve their amenities.

Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, a Taylorsville furniture manufacturer, continues to offer a chef-run cafeteria, free gym and indoor walking track, and a concierge-like center that offers services such as car service drop-off, cards, gifts and DVD rentals for its more than 650 employees. The on-site day care just celebrated its 10th anniversary, spokeswoman Eloise Goldman said.

The benefits have helped attract and retain high-quality workers, she said, and remain worthwhile even as the home furnishings industry has been hit hard and people might be willing to accept lesser working conditions.

“If you started stripping away some of those things, it would take away who we really are,” Goldman said.

Tech-oriented companies have led the way with relaxed workplaces. Those such as LendingTree and Microsoft, both of which have local offices, say that remains a key part of their culture. Neither plans changes right now: LendingTree's bean bag chairs, pool and foosball remain, spokeswoman Allison Vail said, though employment at its Ballantyne office is down to 450, from a peak of about 1,200.

Back at Google, a Boston terrier belonging to data center technician Jennifer Crump rocketed by – yep, dogs are allowed here – while employees gathered for lunch. Among them was systems administrator Aaron Joyner, who had just wrapped up a videoconference with three other offices.

Joyner, 30, a Kernersville native, has worked for Google about four years, including at its headquarters in California. In addition to analyzing software problems, he's developed formidable foosball skills (“to the point that no one will play me,” he notes).

Googlers get plenty of free T-shirts, and his feeling about the atmosphere, he said, is best summarized by one he wore when recruiting employees for another data center. “When,” it says, “was the last time you wanted to jump out of bed and go to work?”
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*Photo credit: Technicians Logan Anderson (shooting) and John Hall (left) play a game of pool to unwind and refresh during work at the Google Data Center in Lenoir. Google employees' workspace is littered with toys and diversions. The goal is to foster creative discussions among the technicians. PHOTOS BY JEFF WILLHELM