Google Layoffs: A Sign of the Times
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We knew the recession was hitting pretty bad, but we didn't think it would be this bad. Layoffs at Google are almost unheard of, but they're happening. What does this mean for the company's future? Keep reading to find out.
Google’s Success
Everybody with a computer has heard of the Internet giant, Google. Google has made its success in Silicon Valley as a search engine-based company. The vast majority of their revenues are derived through the advertisements that they host on their widely popular search engine.
Google was incorporated in 1998, and in just 6 years, by 2004, made its IPO at $1.67 billion, making it worth $23 billion. At the time, many people thought that Google's stock was artificially high and there was just a lot of hype surrounding the company. However, these people were proven quite wrong as the stock price doubled, tripled, and eventually settled at a value over six times higher than its initial offering.
Over the years, Google has released a full suite of products and services to complement its search engine. It owns the most successful map service on the Internet, the first major online document management suite, and even a new operating system for a phone to combat the iPhone.
In short, Google is doing absolutely everything it can to ensure that it is on the top of the Internet world. It has done quite well, as it forced Microsoft to make a desperate, albeit ill-advised, attempt to take over Yahoo to compete with Google. Google has become renowned for its stellar products that provide novel functionality with none of the defects that have traditionally plagued new technologies over the past twenty years.
Part of Google’s mystique has been its reputation for how it treats its employees. They are rumored to ride around lush campuses on scooters, take advantage of free drinks from vending machines and free gourmet lunches from numerous cafeterias. In fact, most of these rumors are true: Google does offer a great number of perks to its employees. In addition to compensating them well, the Internet giant believes in treating them well with lots of perks and bonuses.
Unfortunately for Google, the economy has just not been agreeable over the past two years. Although it has performed admirably in comparison with many other companies, the times are finally catching up and, for the first time in history, Google is having to cut back.
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