Your Questions, Answered: Future of Work is About Culture Navigator | C2C Community

Your Questions, Answered: Future of Work is About Culture Navigator

Categories: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Interview
Your Questions, Answered: Future of Work is About Culture Navigator

Our C2C Navigator, Future of Work: Culture was bursting with questions and comments and we couldn’t cover them all in our session. But, we worked to get your questions answered and we have them ready for your below. 

Also, if you missed the discussion with Kelly Ducourty, VP, GTM Strategy and Operations in Google Cloud, Brigette McInnis-Day, VP, People Operations, Google Cloud, and Peter High, President at Metis Strategy, Strategist, Lecturer, Podcast Host, and Author, you can watch it on-demand. 

 

C2C Community Questions - Answered 

 

C2C Community:  I’d love to understand what is top of mind as you figure out how to transition to the next phase of work. It is developing and executing a hybrid model, or a full return to the office, or continuing a remote work approach?

  • What role does Google Workspace play? 
  • What about as we all consider the Future of Work, what advice would you give to other organizations thinking about a similar shift?
  • How do you see productivity and collaboration now and in the future?

Kelly Ducourty’s answer: 

Safety and flexibility are what drove our RTO strategy. We have employees who can’t wait to return to the office (I am one of them!) and some who are happy to work remotely. 
We saw how our Googler rose to the challenge, quickly adapting to new ways of working and I am sure we will see that again once we are starting to return to the office. 
It will be an adjustment for everyone, but I'm confident that we will all rise to the challenge once again.  REWS teams have been super creative in redesigning the office experience

Technology is at the core to enable us to provide this flexibility. Google Workspace empowers collaboration no matter where you are working from. At I/O last week we introduced even more solutions and features to make that collaboration even more seamless. 

Not sure I have strong advice for other companies - there is no one size fits all. As always, I think companies need to evaluate their priorities, their workflows, their culture, their employees' needs.


Brigette McInnis-Day’s answer:  

As Kelly mentioned, the pandemic has challenged all of us to create an inclusive, equitable and collaborative workplace culture outside of an organization’s physical office environments. While we were navigating how to engage in different ways within Google at the onset of the pandemic, we also had to pivot quickly to change how we engage with our customers and candidates. We didn’t slow down on hiring because we were able to shift all interviews to remove overnight, stay in line with our hiring goals. 

We’re working to improve technology tools, like Google Workspace, that better enables employees to equally participate and contribute. Not only were we able to quickly shift to virtual engagement through our own technology, we also helped our customers solve challenges of COVID-19 by adopting new ways of working, staying connected, and getting their work done  EXAMPLES: Using video to see how people are thinking and feeling during meetings, docs for true collaboration/transparency. 

Think about how your culture will need to adapt for a more hybrid work environment. The pandemic has proven that physical office space does not define an organization’s culture alone: culture is a reflection of a company’s mission, values and behaviors - but it’s important to remember it’s not just about values; but the value you bring, and the cultural add that you create in the organization.

Reflect: 
What is the one thing you want to preserve in your culture? Start there. 
Does your leadership emulate the culture you need? 
How have crises (such as the pandemic) tested your culture? 

These are unprecedented, exciting times - we are embarking on the biggest experience of work (work/career/people perspective) that all of us have ever faced. My guidance - let’s allow this to be an experiment, learn from our people, iterate as we go. None of us have all the answers, and we need to be ok with that. 


Chanel (@chanelgreco)
So WFH has made it possible to hire talents from all over the globe. But different countries have different laws, salary averages, etc. How does Google make sure that compensation is fair for everyone, no matter where they are located?

Answer: Consistent with how we compensate every employee, compensation is determined in part by the market in their location. Some may see an adjustment if they decide to move depending on the local market where they’re moving from and to. You can learn more about our methodology here.  

 

Andy (@andy.yates

Adding to what Chanel is asking, how is Google handling the immigration and taxation (etc) implications around their 'working from elsewhere' policy?

Answer: It is each employee's responsibility to ensure they hold the full and unrestricted right to work where they decide to work. For tax implications, employees will need to consult with their tax advisor.

 

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