Google Project Oxygen

1. GOOGLE’S PROJECT OXYGEN: DO MANAGERS MATTER? 1
Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?
By: Roman Yakhin
Management and Organizational Behavior

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
 Executive Summary------------------------------------------------------------------------3
 Case Synopsis-------------------------------------------------------------------------------4
 Google’s Overview-------------------------------------------------------------------------4
 People Operations and the Formation of PiLab-----------------------------------------6
 Assessment-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------8
 8 Behaviors of Effective Managers-------------------------------------------------------9
 3 Major Management Pitfalls-------------------------------------------------------------10
 Implementation-----------------------------------------------------------------------------12
 Impact and Reflection of the Project----------------------------------------------------12
 Priorities Moving Forward----------------------------------------------------------------14
 References-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------15

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Executive Summary
The paper presents the analysis of Project Oxygen, which was developed at Google. This
case paper’s objective is to discuss the details and conclusions of Project Oxygen and to answer
the question: “Do Managers Matter?” The paper describes Google’s culture and attitude towards
management. It provides results of the study done by the PiLab team of People Operations at
Google. The paper shows the effectiveness of implementation of programs based on Project
Oxygen’s findings, and it also discusses the future plans of members of PiLab on improving
management in Google based on the finding of Project Oxygen. (David A. Garvin, Alison
Berkley Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? HBC)
Keywords: Project Oxygen

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Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?
Case Synopsis
Executives at Google tried to find the answer to a fundamental question: “Do managers
matter?” Three members of People Operations in Google formed PiLab to work on this project.
They started actively analyzing data about Google’s managers in early 2009. This was the
beginning of Project Oxygen.
Their research finds the difference between the top 25% and the bottom 25% of managers
according to surveys and performance reviews. The research found some surprising patterns
common to successful managers in Google. The paper listed these 8 traits and discussed the steps
Google took to improve performance of management, based on the findings of Project Oxygen.
The paper discussed the implementation of Project Oxygen and how it improved the quality of
management within Google. Additionally, they reviewed the future plans and challenges for the
members of PiLab.
Google’s Overview
Google was founded in 1998 by two Ph.D. students from Stanford: Sergey Brin and Larry
Page. The company organized the world’s information and made it universally accessible and
useful. To date they have raised over $26 million dollars in investments. In 2000, Google started
offering AdWords, a keyword-targeted advertising program. Former Novell CEO, Eric Schmidt

5. GOOGLE’S PROJECT OXYGEN: DO MANAGERS MATTER? 5
was hired as CEO of Google in 2001. By 2012, Google’s market capitalization was $250 billion
and it employed 35,000 people.
Google provides the leading search engine. The company’s mission is to make the world
more accessible amongst everyone in all aspects of life. Google has multiple programs,
promotions, and campaigns to make human life easier.
Google is number three among the world’s most valuable companies. It is an
extraordinary result for a such a young company. It has been less than a decade since
Google’s initial public offering (IPO). Google has more than 2 million applications every
year. Each Google’s employee on average produce about 1.2 million dollars in revenue.
The success of Google is exceptional and in many ways it can be attributed to the
companies use of scientific data to drive HR decisions. (David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley
Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? HBC)
Google’s Culture and Attitude to Management.
Back in 2002, Google’s founders tried to create a totally flat organization, with no
management. This experiment failed after a couple of months. Google prides themselves on
talent acquisition, they embrace a data-driven hiring process and offer substantial compensation
package. This helps Google to hire the top talent. Candidates in addition to great resumes must
have initiative, flexibility, collaborative spirit and be well-rounded. Executives believe that
Google’s hiring filter was a critical component of the company accomplishments. Google has a

6. GOOGLE’S PROJECT OXYGEN: DO MANAGERS MATTER? 6
culture in which good ideas are celebrated, and authority is derived from peer respect. Google
gives their employees an unprecedented amount of freedom. Engineers are encouraged to think
on their pet projects. They can spend up to 20% of their work week working on these special
projects. The company is able to attract the best talent because of its very competitive pay and
incredible benefits. Googles employees have access to free buffet, excellent health insurance, and
life insurance that guarantee 50% yearly pay for a decade to the survivor of an employee.
Google has many young, high achievers who crave independence. Therefore, managers fail if
they rely only on the authority of their position. (David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld
(2016). Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? HBC)
People Operations and the Formation of PiLab
The most important idea of Google’s science based human resource management is that
personal management choices are the most important for any organization. It is impossible to
create great enterprise results if the leadership does not make accurate, scientifically based
employees management choices. Some people would think that other departments in the
organization can make the most valuable decisions. They can say the marketing
department deserves more focus, or maybe because Google is high tech company R&D
department must take larger priority. But ultimately all of these departments rely on
people. If people are not the best possible candidates for the job, and if they are not
properly motivated by their management, the quality of work by all the company’s
departments will be less than desirable.
For many company’s employees are the largest variable cost and therefore it is very
important to use analytical and scientific methods to manage these companies most

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valuable resource. All the decisions in other departments in modern companies are based
on studies and a lot of data, but so many firms at the same time still make their important
personal decisions mostly by relying on feelings and relationships. This kind of approach
is totally not acceptable for such innovative and data driven company like Google.
Human Resources within Google is called People Operations. At the center of it is a
sophisticated employee-data tracking program. The people analytics team reports directly to
the Vice President. People Analytics tried to find the correlations and recommend
necessary actions for improvement. The purpose of People Operations was to replace
opinion based employee management decision with data and analytics based decisions,
and therefore dramatically increase the quality of the decisions being made.
People Operations helped manage the performance review process, which included
regular response to managers as well as an annual 360 degree reviews. In 2007, Laszlo Bock,
head of People Operations hired Prasad Setty as the leader of the group “People Analytics”
inside People Operations.
Initially, Google’s leadership tried to make all people decisions by using data, but later it
was changed so that all people decisions should be informed by data and analytics. The purpose
of this was to remove bias in decision-making, but at the same time data had not to completely
erase the role of personal judgment. Three PhD members of People Analytics formed People &
Innovation Lab (PiLab). It consisted out of Jennifer Kurkoski (leader), Brian Welle, Neal Patel.
In 2009, the PiLab started working on the question: “Do managers matter? What would be the
results if everyone had an amazing manager?” (Brad Hall (2014). Google's Project Oxygen
Pumps Fresh Air into Management. The Street)

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Assessment
The broad research project under code name Project Oxygen started in late 2009. The
Project got it name, because “good managers are the lifeblood of Google, helping it grow and
innovate.” Google had high standards of proof. Google’s People Operation department used
science based HR. Therefore, the team was using scientific methods. One of these methods was
the Proof by Contradiction. This is a form of indirect proof, that establishes, that the truth of the
statement by disproving the opposite statement. So, the team tried to prove the opposite case;
that managers did not matter, but they ultimately failed to do so.
Project Oxygen was a conglomerate of surveys, feedbacks, observations and analysis.
The main goal of the project was to find out the most important traits that employees perceived
to be critical in making an excellent manager. Dr. Patel studied a cross-section of high-scoring
and low-scoring people managers based on a combination of Googlegeist ratings and
performance review scores. “High-scoring” managers were those in the top quartile on both
measures, and “low-scoring” managers were in the bottom quartile of both. Even a small
increase in management quality had a powerful effect. Supplementary research proved that the
difference between low-scoring and high-scoring managers impacted job satisfaction, retention,
and performance. Better managers had higher performance teams. Google employees with
higher-scoring managers had steadily higher scores on all Googlegeist dimensions. Based on this
data the PiLab team was able to conclude that managers do matter. PiLab members asked next
question: “What do our best managers do?” (Meghan Casserly, (2013). "Google's Failed Quest to
Prove Managers Are Evil -- And Why You Should Care”. Forbes.)

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8 Behaviors of Effective Managers
After reviewing data PiLab members identified 8 behaviors that were common among
high scoring managers throughout the corporation. (Mike Morrison (2012). Google’s Project
Oxygen – 8-point plan to help managers Improve. RapidBi.)
1 Be a coach Find out what matters to
each of your team members.
Agree on development
priorities. Check in with
them regularly
2 Empower the team. Do not
micromanage
Break obstacles down to
help team work more
effectively.
3 Show interest in your team
member life
Show your team you care.
4 Productive and goal
oriented
Keep your eye on the prize
and focus on priority results
and deliverables.
5 Very good communicator
and listener
Set the stage for open
dialogue.
6 Helping team members in
career development
Talk about career
development. Help your
team grow skills they want
to develop.
7 Have a clear vision and
strategy
Develop and share your
vision for the team.
8 Technical skills in order to
advice people
Roll up your own sleeves to
help your team get things
done.

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Google used to believe that to be an engineering manager you needed to have as much, if
not more, technical expertise on the subject as the people who worked for you. However, as the
head of people Operations in Google said, “It turns out that that is absolutely the least important
thing. It is important, but pales in comparison. Much more important is just making that
connection and being accessible.” (David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s
Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? Harvard Business Case.)
This idea is seeming to be very simple; however, it is very deferent from the way Google
and many other high tech companies traditionally used to see the role of management. (David A.
Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?
HBC)
3 Major Management Pitfalls
Project Oxygen has also helped to identify some major pitfalls mangers can have. Here
are three of the most important and common obstacles in the path of being successful in leading
a team.
First, managers had trouble making a transition to the team. Some new manager can
come onboard to an established working unit and fail to make a connection with people or fall in
synch with the established team environment. This can occur with either young or experienced
managers. For example, even with a seasoned manager, they may fail to transition after being
relocated to a brand new assignment.

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Second, managers lacked a consistent approach to performance management and career
development. Each manager throughout the company could have his or her own performance
matrix for judging the performance of workers. Such kinds of inconstancy can confuse and
discourage people. They cannot understand what exactly is expected of them and also they can
feel like they are being treated unjustly and unfair. For example, when people working at one
team or one particular location of a company got promoted more often than others it can
seriously discourage the rest of company’s employees and make them feel underappreciated.
(Adam Bryant (2011). Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss. The NY Times)
They can think that their personal performance has very little with their chances for
promotion inside the company. It can lead to the loss of some top talents.
Third, managers do not do enough time management and communicating. Some
managers can spend almost all their time inside their offices, barely talking with their
subordinates. They do not explain the big picture and do not tell to team members why they have
to do something. If people are not told why they must do their job, they are often not very
enthusiastic about it and their performance tends to suffer. Managers must ask their subordinates
questions about their feelings and ideas. Sometimes people have some good ideas that can
benefit the company, and also by talking with people managers make people feel like their boss
is caring about them. This acts to improve the worker’s morale and therefore it improves their
performance.

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Implementation
To measure the eight attributes, the Project Oxygen team partnered with People
Operations to create two variations of the survey. The Upward Feedback Survey (UFS) was
developed for employees in global business organization, and the Tech Managers Survey (TMS)
was developed for members of the engineering group. Both surveys had 16 statements, spread
across the attributes. By the end of 2010, a group within People Operations started to build
management training courses around Project Oxygen findings. Coaching classes offered detailed
recommendations on how to deliver personalized, balanced feedback. In 2011, the People
Operations group built and launched the “Start Right” class, a two-hour introductory course for
new people managers that was built around the Project Oxygen attributes. The Great Manager
Award was established by Google in 2009. About 20 managers were nominated for this award by
employees who had been selected each year. Since 2010 criteria of the award reflected eight
Project Oxygen attributes, and the recipients of the award must be role models for the company.
(Adam Bryant (2011). Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss. The NY Times)
Impact and Reflection of the Project
A comparison of UFS and TMS scores from 2010 to 2012 indicates that median scores
rose from 83% favorable to 88% favorable. The least effective mangers improved the most over
that time. In an environment of top achievers, low UFS scores tended to inspire action. Nearly all
managers saw value in Project Oxygen. People who work at Google today realize the importance
of management and want to invest in it. The composition of the company has changed. Managers
in Google do not just direct work, but actually help improve others. (Meghan Casserly, (2013).
"Google's Failed Quest to Prove Managers Are Evil -- And Why You Should Care”. Forbes.)

13. GOOGLE’S PROJECT OXYGEN: DO MANAGERS MATTER? 13
Project Oxygen got recognized by academics and experts in the field of management and
leadership. For example, the “Corporate Leadership Council” of the “Corporate Executive
Board”, an organization that has a great perspective on what executives at more than 1,000
companies are up to, praised Google for being at the leading edge. (Brad Hall (2014). Google's
Project Oxygen Pumps Fresh Air into Management. The Street)
The Project had impact way beyond Google. Results from Project Oxygen have
forced many organizations to rethink the way they do HR. Many preconceived and
outdated notions about the role of managers had to be revisited. Because Google is an
incredibly successful company, many other companies tried emulate its practices and
methods. Engineering organizations used to think that the role of manager was to be some
sort of super engineer and a technical advisor for a team. However, they had to realize that
any manger, including an engineering managers, first of all has to be able to be a great
communicator and motivator rather than a technical expert.
Annual performance is viewed by many manages as necessary routine and a useful
and effective tool. Managers must be trained to correctly engage with direct reports in
ways that are less official and more instructional and open. Mangers should constantly
communicate with their team members. They most focus on performance improvement,
direction, and motivation. (Adam Bryant (2011). “Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss”. The
New York)

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Priorities Moving Forward
When the Project Oxygen started the data suggested wide variance of managers and
management skills. The average has been significantly improved, particularly for the bottom
quartile. The goal was to raise it to a very high average level. PiLab start looking at managers by
personality traits to see which ones had the greatest improvements in their scores. Google was
inspired to grow the leaders that the world needed. Dr. Setty from PiLab greatest fear was that
Project Oxygen is constraining. The Project Oxygen attributes are very important, but not
aspirational. Dr. Setty desired to find out how to create truly amazing managers. Project
Oxygen’s goal was to find out if managers matter, and to determine what makes a great manager.
Head Google’s People Operations head said, “the successor to that is trying to figure out what
makes teams great.” (David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s Project
Oxygen: Do Managers Matter? HBC)

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References
 David A. Garvin, Alison Berkley Wagonfeld (2016). Google’s Project Oxygen: Do
Managers Matter? Harvard Business Case.
 Adam Bryant (2011). Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss. The New York Times.
 Brad Hall (2014). Google's Project Oxygen Pumps Fresh Air into Management. The
Street.
 Judith Aquino (2011). 8 Traits of Stellar Managers, Defined by Googlers. Business
Insider
 Mike Morrison (2012). Google’s Project Oxygen – 8-point plan to help managers
Improve. RapidBi.
 John Warren (2013). Copy of Google: Project Oxygen. Prezi.
 Andrew R. McIlvaine (2010). Project Oxygen, Human resource Executives Online,
http://www.hreonline.com/HRE/view/story.jhtml?id=462021921
 Meghan Casserly, (2013). "Google's Failed Quest to Prove Managers Are Evil -- And
Why You Should Care”. Forbes.
 Ernie A. Cevallos (2011). Project Oxygen: Building Better Bosses, biz-think,
http://biz-think.blogspot.com/2011/04/project-oxygen-building-better-bosses.html
 Adam Bryant (2011). “Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss”. The New York