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Work Rules!: Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead Kindle Edition

by Laszlo Bock (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
Goodreads Choice Award nominee
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From the visionary head of Google's innovative People Operations comes a groundbreaking inquiry into the philosophy of work -- and a blueprint for attracting the most spectacular talent to your business and ensuring that they succeed.

"We spend more time working than doing anything else in life. It's not right that the experience of work should be so demotivating and dehumanizing." So says Laszlo Bock, former head of People Operations at the company that transformed how the world interacts with knowledge.

This insight is the heart of Work Rules!, a compelling and surprisingly playful manifesto that offers lessons including:

  • Take away managers' power over employees
  • Learn from your best employees-and your worst
  • Hire only people who are smarter than you are, no matter how long it takes to find them
  • Pay unfairly (it's more fair!)
  • Don't trust your gut: Use data to predict and shape the future
  • Default to open-be transparent and welcome feedback
  • If you're comfortable with the amount of freedom you've given your employees, you haven't gone far enough.


Drawing on the latest research in behavioral economics and a profound grasp of human psychology, Work Rules! also provides teaching examples from a range of industries-including lauded companies that happen to be hideous places to work and little-known companies that achieve spectacular results by valuing and listening to their employees. Bock takes us inside one of history's most explosively successful businesses to reveal why Google is consistently rated one of the best places to work in the world, distilling 15 years of intensive worker R&D into principles that are easy to put into action, whether you're a team of one or a team of thousands.

Work Rules! shows how to strike a balance between creativity and structure, leading to success you can measure in quality of life as well as market share. Read it to build a better company from within rather than from above; read it to reawaken your joy in what you do.
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  1. Print length
    417 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Twelve
  5. Publication date
    April 7, 2015
  6. File size
    12873 KB
  7. Page Flip
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  8. Word Wise
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  9. Enhanced typesetting
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The book is a true masterpiece." - Forbes.com

"An intriguing profile of an innovative company that continues to shake up the world." - Kirkus Reviews

"Good guidance from the head of Google's innovative People Operations, who wants to show companies how to attract and keep the best managers...Love the read-it-two-ways title." - Library Journal

"Anecdotes about Google's founding and history mingle with discussions of management theory, psychology, and behavioral economics to create a fascinating and accessible read." - Publishers Weekly

"WORK RULES! delivers on its promise. Befitting a volume written deep within the algorithm factory, WORK RULES! is dense with data and counterintuitive conclusions for anyone looking to make the workplace a better place." - Forbes

From the visionary head of Google's innovative People Operations--a groundbreaking inquiry into the philosophy of work and a blueprint for attracting the most spectacular talent to your business and ensuring the best and brightest succeed. The praise for WORK RULES! includes the following bestselling authors and top flight executives:
Adam Grant, author of Give and Take

"WORK RULES! offers a bold, inspiring, and actionable vision that will transform the future of work. It should be mandatory reading for everyone who leads, manages, or has a job."

Daniel Coyle, author of The Talent Code
"Laszlo Bock's book is a dazzling revelation: at once an all-access backstage pass to one of the smartest organizations on the planet, and also an immensely useful blueprint for creating a culture of creativity. It should be given to every leader, every entrepreneur, every manager, every student, and every human being who wants to understand how to build a successful, cohesive, high-performing workplace."

"Dan Pink, author of Drive and To Sell Is Human

"Laszlo Bock has written a remarkable book that reveals the secrets of becoming a talent powerhouse. He shows the many benefits of a high freedom culture with a mission that matters. And along the way, he topples pillar after pillar of conventional wisdom on hiring, training, assessing, and compensating the people who power your organization. If you're looking for forehead-smacking insights along with an array of savvy new practices, WORK RULES! is an essential read."

Susan Cain, co-founder of Quiet Revolution and author of Quiet

"WORK RULES! is spectacular. I spent weeks with it, because I wanted to take such careful, detailed notes. I plan to share it with our entire Quiet Revolution team-and I'm sure that all company founders will do the same."

Ram Charan, coauthor of Execution and advisor to boards and CEOs

"WORK RULES! is an exceptional book aimed at any manager who wants great ideas for encouraging success from their team . . . an instant classic for the management shelf."

Indra K. Nooyi, chairman and CEO, PepsiCo

"With a clear-eyed, data-driven look into today's workplace, Bock reveals the non-traditional practices that can fundamentally transform businesses of all kinds."

Tom Gardner, founder and CEO, Motley Fool

"The finest book on organizational culture that I have ever read. WORK RULES! is the essential playbook for creating high-performance cultures that liberate people to do their most important work."

John Doerr, managing director, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

"WORK RULES! is more than a must-read business book. It's a handbook for high-performance teams that win."

Jeffrey Pfeffer, author of Leadership B.S.

"Some will think that WORK RULES! is a book about Google. It is, but mostly it is much more: a book about how to build people operating systems that permit any organization to get the smartest decisions from their workforce. Clearly written, evidence-based, with practical guidance and a cogent underlying philosophy, WORK RULES! needs to rule the world of work."

Peter H. Diamandis, chairman, XPRIZE; exec. chairman, Singularity

"WORK RULES! is a surprising, unconventional book that is required reading for anyone looking for a job in the tech sector, and for every entrepreneur seeking new modes of innovative thinking."

"Robert I. Sutton and Hayagreeva Rao, co-authors of Scaling up Excellence

"A riveting ringside view of people operations at Google. A deft marriage of research and practice that is full of practical tips. It is an indispensable book for all people managers."

Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO and author of Change By Design

"As a company renowned for questioning our assumptions, it should be no surprise that Google has developed unique and profoundly effective approaches to culture, talent and leadership. By debunking many accepted HR practices WORK RULES! establishes itself as a new testament for managing talent in modern times."

Liz Wiseman, author of Multipliers and Rookie Smarts

"Laszlo Bock has done far more than codify Google's recipe for its high-freedom, high-performance workplace, he has created the essential guide for unleashing talent in the digital age. Intelligent, playful, and practical, WORK RULES! is for all leaders who want to inspire brilliance and bring out the best of humanity in their workforce."

About the Author

Laszlo Bock led Google's people function, responsible for attracting, developing, retaining, and delighting "Googlers." Bock's earlier experience spans executive roles at the General Electric Company, management consulting at McKinsey & Company, start-ups, non-profits, and acting.

During Bock's tenure, Google was named the Best Company to Work For more than thirty times around the world and received more than 100 awards as an employer of choice. In 2010, he was named Human Resources Executive of the Year by Human Resources Executive magazine.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00MEMMVB8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Twelve; 1st edition (April 7, 2015)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 7, 2015
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 12873 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 417 pages
  • Customer Reviews:

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  1. Laszlo Bock

    Laszlo Bock

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Laszlo Bock leads Google's people function, which includes all areas related to the attraction, development, and retention of 'Googlers', of which there are more than 50,000 in seventy offices worldwide. His revolutionary methods have transformed how Silicon Valley harnesses the greatest talent on the planet. During his tenure, Google has been recognized over 100 times as an exceptional employer, including being named the #1 Best Company to work for in the US and sixteen other countries. Laszlo has advised President Obama's Economic Recovery Advisory Board and the Office of Personnel Management, and been featured in The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, PBS Newshour, and on the Today Show.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Laszlo Bock

    Laszlo Bock

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Laszlo Bock leads Google's people function, responsible for attracting, developing, retaining, and delighting "Googlers." He believes that giving people freedom and supplementing our instincts with hard science are steps on the path to making work meaningful and people happy. During Bock's tenure, Google has been named the Best Company to Work For more than 30 times around the world and received over 100 awards as an employer of choice. In 2010, he was named "Human Resources Executive of the Year" by HR Executive Magazine.

    He is the author of "WORK RULES! Insights from Inside Google to Transform How You Live and Lead", available for pre-order on Barnes & Nobles' website (at least until Amazon and Hachette resolve their dispute). He has testified before Congress on immigration reform and labor issues and been featured in The Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the PBS Newshour and on the Today Show. Bock's earlier experience spans executive roles at the General Electric Company, management consulting at McKinsey & Company, start-ups, non-profits, and acting. He (briefly) held the world record for Greek Syrtaki dance (along with 1,620 others).

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
3,000 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book very interesting, real, and insightful about Google's HR approaches. They also say it's useful and practical, with well organized check lists. Customers describe the writing style as reader-friendly and well organized.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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ContentInsightfulnessWriting styleReadability
139 customers mention "Content"139 positive0 negative

Customers find the book very interesting, engaging, and well worth the time. They also say it provides a worthy road map for progressive companies, with good summaries and encouragement to experiment. Readers also appreciate the refreshing tone and honest tone.

"...operations field and this was very helpful, quite lengthy but a great read...." Read more

"...Very well organized presentation with good summaries and lots of encouragement to experiment with your organization to help employees feel more..." Read more

"...A very good, solid business read." Read more

"...That said, it's a fun read with a decent amount of useful advice, which makes it a very solid four stars." Read more

126 customers mention "Insightfulness"121 positive5 negative

Customers find the book insightful, handy, and fascinating. They also appreciate the fantastic examples and first-person account. Readers also say the book provides an interesting take on managing HR operations. They say it's the best leadership book they've read so far.

"...Tons of fantastic examples which other companies can use, and a very good explanation of how to experiment and use analytics to create great people..." Read more

"...compelled me to share my opinion because I think it gives an extraordinary first person (Laszlo Block) account of how a company (Google) excel with..." Read more

"I am in the people operations field and this was very helpful, quite lengthy but a great read...." Read more

"...Very well organized presentation with good summaries and lots of encouragement to experiment with your organization to help employees feel more..." Read more

38 customers mention "Writing style"33 positive5 negative

Customers find the writing style reader-friendly, clear, and fluid. They also appreciate the well organized presentation and good summaries.

"...Very well organized presentation with good summaries and lots of encouragement to experiment with your organization to help employees feel more..." Read more

"Decent read for managers." Read more

"...This is a great book, and easy read. I am sure most people can knock it out in a few days." Read more

"...Engaging and easy to read. Well worth the time! Thanks" Read more

7 customers mention "Readability"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book well-told, engaging, and fast-paced.

"...I think this one is much better in terms of the content being actionable and thoughtful and, to my knowledge, reflecting how things..." Read more

"...Engaging and easy to read. Well worth the time! Thanks" Read more

"An extremely interesting read for anyone leading a team or a company...." Read more

"...It almost feels like a play book for success, but is also entertaining to read...." Read more

My Workplace Bible
4 out of 5 stars
My Workplace Bible
Work Rules is the workplace bible for anyone passionate about talent acquisition & organizational behavior.
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Top reviews from the United States

Jeremey Donovan
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent complement to "How Google Works"
Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
While Eric Schmidt's book "How Google Works" is better, Work Rules adds considerable depth on Google's People Operations practices. Here are my key takeaways:

- Operate on the belief that people are fundamentally good
- Use groups of peers or independent teams for: hiring, promotions, salary increases, awards, and firing (often excluding the direct manager)
- Managers exist to: (a) make tie-breaking decisions (b) coach/train to develop employees (c) care about people's well-being (d) set vision/strategy (e) provide technical advice (f) empower by clearing roadblocks
- Conduct 2x-per-year performance reviews on a 5-point scale and then calibrate (which are separate from continuous feedback); get 360 feedback on ‘do more of’ and ‘do differently’ 1x per year
- Make all goals (objectives and key results) public
- Design physical spaces to encourage interaction across departments
- Help employees meet the people they are helping
- Ensure transparency (in all matters unless unlawful)
- Only hire people who are better than you, who will be successful in the context of your organization, and who will make everyone around them more successful
- Referrals from existing employees are the best source of candidates
- Couple assessments of cognitive/problem-solving/learning ability, conscientiousness, and emergent leadership/fit with structured interviews that are job related: (a) Tell me about a time..? (b) What would you do if…? Note: 4 interviews are sufficient
- Eliminate status symbols
- Pay bonuses based on the median salary of all people in a job
- Have people who are the best at something train everyone else (share principles, role-play, discuss, review video of role-play)
- Make pay commensurate with contribution (following a power law rather than a normal distribution)
- Provide experiential rewards (as a complement to monetary awards)
- Celebrate accomplishment with public recognition
- Reward smart failure and make sure to conduct “what did we learn?” post-mortem sessions
- Provide nudges to influence, not dictate, choice
- Uphold the obligation to dissent (a McKinsey core value)
- Treasure the weird
- Put more wood behind fewer arrows
- Building a great culture requires constant experimentation and renewal

Various programs and processes:
- TGIF: weekly all company meeting to share updates plus 30 minutes of Q&A
- Dogfooding: Have employees test new products and provide feedback before piloting with customer
- Bureaucracy Busters: annual program to identify and fix biggest frustrations
- Upward Feedback Survey: 2x per year survey about manager quality
- 20 Percent time: time for people to engage in side-projects (often 120% time)
- Googlegeist: Annual survey focused heavily on innovation, execution, and retention
- Tech Advisor: network of experienced leaders offering confidential, one-on-one office hours
- Random Lunches: set people up with others they don’t yet know
- Tech Talks: Employees sharing work (and non-work) expertise
- Talks at Google: Outsider (ex: authors, business leaders, entertainers, etc.) sharing their wisdom
349 people found this helpful
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Josh
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book. Very inspiring.
Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2015
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Amazing book.

Google is not as unusual or hard to understand as people think - this book clearly shows that a unique philosophy, creativity, and lots of hard work prevail. Tons of fantastic examples which other companies can use, and a very good explanation of how to experiment and use analytics to create great people strategies.

I particularly found the discussions of people philosophy and the concepts of "nudges" powerful in today's business climate. Rather than tell people what to do (or not to do), Google has learned to "encourage" the right behavior without getting in people's space. And with such an intelligent and outspoken workforce, this alone is an amazing feat.

It's easy to dismiss Google as a company that makes a lot of money, so they can get away with anything. This book clearly shows that Google's success is BECAUSE of the way they recruit and treat people. While the company definitely focuses on engineering and intelligence as criteria for hiring, I think it shows how the work environment (and it's far more than the on-site bowling alley) that really makes Google succesful.

I found the book inspiring and very complimentary to research we have done in many other industries. Hats off to Laszlo for a very educational and important book for HR and business leaders in every industry !
One person found this helpful
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H. Le
4.0 out of 5 stars Hire The Best and Free Tibet Goji-Chocolate Creme Pie
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2015
Verified Purchase
It takes a conscious effort for me to choose a book and to spend the time read it through. It is especially rare for me to write a review because that is a dedication of couple of uninterrupted hours (almost an impossible feat in my family with a relentless toddler). With that being said, this book compelled me to share my opinion because I think it gives an extraordinary first person (Laszlo Block) account of how a company (Google) excel with its talent acquisition, retainment, development, and sometimes termination. And most importantly, its continuous improvement to anticipate the needs of an ever-expanding company.

I believe the book itself attracts three primary types of audience;
(1) Managers and Executives who are looking to build a stronger team/company
(2) Human Resource personnel looking to develop themselves and their organization
(3) And finally, people who are interested in innovation/new ideas
I happen to fall into both the first and last category.

I really like this book because it helps explain why I felt connected to some companies versus others regardless of the company size, team dynamic, or manager style. I have spent time at companies that value their employee, others less so. I have seen very strong/cohesive and very poisonous departments operating at the same time within the same company. Right now I am a consultant working for a great company partnering with a not so great company that is riddled with bureaucratic mumbo jumbo.

In short what this book helps me realize is that culture is most important in a company. From the founders to the janitor, everyone at Google seems to be free from the typical corporate constrains, as a result gains and produce much more. It is that foundation and ongoing system that this book attempt to give outsiders a glimpse of the inner workings of the People Operations at Google (HR in most companies).
Google as a whole seems to be a big university lab and encourages people to think, not just to work, as a result it spurs further innovation and the process becomes a chain reaction replicating onto itself. The normal Plan, Do, Study, Act model of performance improvement seem to be taken with a twist, it appears that they apply the scientific method to the process; Realizing/anticipating the need/problem, formulating the options, designing experiments on a small sample size, collecting data and interpreting the results, and most importantly putting it into action for the whole population of Googlers (employees).

What I find fascinating about the way the People Operation follows Google's mission statement of "...organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful". They have the capability, capacity, and ability to collect data, understanding it, and make use of it to "Nudge" Googlers to do more beneficial acts such as eating healthier, adapting to the on-boarding process quicker, or saving more on retirement.

One of the resounding topic is Google's hiring process, which essentially is a way for them to hedge the hiring risk by systematically spending enormous amount of time and resources at the beginning of the hiring process to hire the very best. This way, they spend far less time/resources developing an average pool of employees. Rather, they focus on improving the lagging and rewarding "Unfairly" (enormously) to the leading employees.

One of the stories that was most memorable to me is the one about the "Free Tibet Goji-Chocolate Creme Pie". Essentially it was a new lunch item at the Google cafe, however because of the name "Free Tibet...", it was a very sensitive subject amongst Googlers, thus creating an email storm with thousands of responses. The chef who came up with the name was suspended as a result. In the end, the suspension was reversed by Laszlo because he realized that this was an opportunity to reinforce the company culture. Such that if a trivial matter such as a name of a pie causing an uproar, suspending the chef would cause enormous harm to the culture because people will be afraid to express their opinions, and thus stifle future innovation within the company.

So...after my review, you must be wondering why I am only giving this book a four star? It's because I am an iOS user...Actually it's not because of that, but rather it is because Laszlo believes that any company can do what google has done (in terms of its People Operations). I on the other hand think that is not the case. I cannot see how an established company (medium business and up) can achieve all or even most of these cultural changes. I would equate that a typical HR department is like an average person, and operating like google is like competing (and finishing) the Ironman Triathlon. Like most people, putting in real effort will get them through a 10k run, training really hard will get them through a marathon, and giving their all and training every day may allow them to finish that Triathlon. But is it possible for an established company to do that even with all their dedication? I don't think it is possible because of the existing gene pool. Established organizations already have an "average" gene (talent) pool, so the question is can they remove everyone who are below average like the town of Lake Wobegon (where everyone is above average)? That's for you to judge if you choose to read this book, thus my four stars on an otherwise great book.
53 people found this helpful
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Chantell
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read!
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2023
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I am in the people operations field and this was very helpful, quite lengthy but a great read. I will probably re-read some parts to be able to implement it into my work.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Uzan Ayse
5.0 out of 5 stars 👌👌👌
Reviewed in Germany on May 7, 2024
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👍👍🎁
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Livre très intéressant.
Reviewed in Canada on July 8, 2021
Verified Purchase
Une façon très agréable de revoir l'embauche, le travail. Beaucoup de compagnies devraient s'en inspirer.
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Rahul Ambekar
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best book
Reviewed in India on January 14, 2024
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Every leader, manager, employee must read this. This is simply awesome book to read.
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oolis
5.0 out of 5 stars Reinventing HR: a toolbox from Google to increase freedom and innovation
Reviewed in France on August 18, 2023
Verified Purchase
Inspiring book on how people operations have evolved at Google over the years.
Globally, a nice toolbox of actionable insights to inject more freedom into the corporate culture to replicate Google's successes.
I fully share the focus on recruitment, even if Google is taking it really far.
The paid unfairly approach is clearly relevant for software developers (maybe not so easy to apply in real life), but can't be as ambitious for other professions.
It's no surprise, it's Google, but I really like to see Product Management principles applied outside of software development, here to people management: experiment a lot, communicate a lot, have a problem-solving mindset, capture feedback, use DATA. The size of Google obviously gives more data, enough to do frequent A/B testing.
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Larissa
5.0 out of 5 stars Interessante!
Reviewed in Brazil on March 20, 2021
Verified Purchase
O livro é incrível e apesar de desatualizado com a cultura atual, tem pontos bastante relevantes que servem de referência para novas empresas e até mesmo aquelas que estão passando por mudança de cultura. Além de pessoas que querem trabalhar no Google. Muito bom!
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