Why Your Company Should Stop Trying To Be Like Google

There have been a lot of articles written about Google’s amazing workplace culture. Many organizations today are seeing the press and fanfare regarding how great the organization is and are trying to copy it. Google has an open floor plan? We want an open floor plan! Google lets you bring your dog to work? We have to do that to? Google has unlimited meals and on-site dry-cleaning? We must have that to! It doesn't always have to be Google though, it can be Netflix, Facebook, Linkedin, or any other "cool" company out there. The thing to remember is that these other organizations aren't investing in these things for fun or because they wan all the media attention. They are doing it because these things fit within their corporate culture, values, mission, vision, and strategic direction. These are thought out and planned efforts not some investments made on a whim to make the company look like Pinocchio's island.