Ravenweb Blog

A few years ago, I wrote a blog post comparing technology companies to countries . For Google, I choose Japan because both the company and country have distinctive cultures and have continuously demonstrated expert technical competency and precision. The post and the comparisons were simplistic and meant mostly to provoke thoughtful conversation, but after reading Laszlo Bock's  Work Rules , it is evident that I was right about at least one thing: Google does have a truly distinctive culture. In Work Rules , Bock summarizes the pillars of Google's culture and details how the company's People Operations function works and has evolved with the rapid growth of the company. It is fascinating as an insider's view of Google and also as a primer for other organizations. There's abundant material here that company leaders and HR specialists can use, tweak, test, and implement. As a high level summary, Bock distills key "work rules" into ten steps that can tr

On April 14, I will be participating in a University at Buffalo (UB) Career Services live webinar targeted to students about the importance of making career connections. The webinar will include an online panel discussion in which UB alumni will share their experiences of establishing career connections and networking, both online and in-person. Below are the webinar details: The Career Mentor Experience Part 2: Meeting a mentor Tuesday, April 14, 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. https://youtu.be/zfg_0a5IX-U

I was predisposed to want to read Stuart Scott's Every Day I Fight . I'd always liked what he brought to ESPN SportsCenter and how he helped evolve the brand to reach new audiences. I also respected and related to how much it meant to him to be a dad to his two girls. Still, I was a little surprised by how heartfelt, honest, and reflective he was in what would be his posthumous memoir. I think I was expecting a book mostly about ESPN and the many athletes Scott had interviewed over the years. Figures like Lebron James, Michael Jordan, and Tiger Woods. While these subjects are in the book, they are overshadowed by the larger themes that Scott wanted to leave behind: his indomitable love for his daughters and his thoughts and feelings about cancer. I appreciate Scott's willingness to bare all and be completely vulnerable about getting sick and living with cancer. I am sure many will enjoy his anecdotes about ESPN, but I suspect many more will draw inspiration from his wor

Last week, I attended a two day business meeting that was held at the Herman Miller New York City office. I had heard of Herman Miller before but had no idea how much they've been doing around innovating work spaces. A meme they've developed is Living Office and they define it as a "natural and desirable workplace that fosters greater connection, creativity, productivity, and, ultimately, greater prosperity for all". Below are a few pictures I snapped while at the office. Also check out their Living Office information online . Especially fascinating is the Modes of Work elaboration.