How Google is Able to Innovate
This morning, while I was learning about Google’s webpage creator (look out MySpace), I came across an interesting note by Chris Sherman. In his article he points out that Google encourages its engineers to spend one day a week working on non-job related projects. These “20% projects†are, apparently, the origin for many of the Google gadgets. What a great system!
Creativity is the blood of a successful organization, and Google’s “20% project†policy is a prime example of how a company can motivate its employees to keep the blood flowing. By allowing their employees to break away from their routines, they are giving them a chance to create cool gadgets and gain experience that they can apply to job related projects.
SEO is our main focus at Comit Technologies, but we are always coming up with new ideas for business opportunities. These ideas can be challenging and profitable, and they usually generate good SEO material (links, articles, etc.) as a byproduct. Our schedules are normally full, but we try our best each day to get together and devote a little time to our non-SEO related projects.
It is always good to look at the policies of successful companies and compare them with your own. Setting aside a few hours every week for pet projects doesn’t sound unreasonable. It obviously works for Google.