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Google is the new IBM (www.businessinsider.com)
submitted 9 months ago by L4s to c/technology
 

Google is the new IBM::Years of being one-upped on AI and cracking down on innovation turned the poster child for Silicon Valley cool into a dinosaur.

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[–] [email protected] 134 points 9 months ago (9 children)

If you've ever interviewed at Google, you know why this is happening. They hire people who are as much like the people they already employ as possible, to the point that employees don't know who they're interviewing or even for what. The person getting hired is pre-screened for all sorts of "desirable traits" before being matched with a team. The people who succeeded there all think the same, and so they all end up having the same ideas, and the number of novel ideas nose dives.

IBM has an internal motto that they really push when you get hired there: "Treasure wild ducks". Beyond the regular buzz word bingo of 'think different ' and 'move fast break things' it means "when someone else has a crazy idea that might just work, fucking listen to them", and it's what's kept them in business for literally a century. I don't think Google has that fundamental non-self-centered DNA. Every product they've ever put out was a result of their intellectual monoculture and the hyper competitive mire of sameness it breeds.

[–] dakial 20 points 9 months ago (1 children)

I’m an ex-IBMer (For 3 years, recent years) and never heard of this motto. Not saying it is a lie, just that it might not be as widespread.

But I agree with the commenter. My opinion is that IBM went from being run by engineers to be run by “used car salesmen” that care little for the tech and much more for the end of year bonus. I’ve seen leadership pushing fron clear multi million undeliverable projects just to get their signing bonus and bail.

Google seems to be in the same direction and this is a consequence of its own size.

I think there is a research opportunity on those big tech companies to generate another excellent theory like “Innovator’s Dilemma “

[–] sleepmode 6 points 9 months ago

Never heard that phrase used there either. But uh... can confirm the rest. It's a bummer to say the least.

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