Google

Google’s recruitment process is famously difficult, with candidates having to face multiple interviews (we’ve heard stories of ‘double figures’) while those with sound work experience have been turned down due to having less than perfect college grades. As the company continues its rapid expansion, it has been forced to streamline this process, with Google co-founder Sergey Brin acknowledging last year that the company’s high bar for hiring was holding back its expansion.

Google has increased its workforce by an average of 16 people daily, from 1,628 at the end of 2003 to 3,021 in 2004 and 5,680 at the end of last year. Candidates have had to endure interviews with various different Google staff, as well as facing aptitude tests like this one. The average number of interviews for those offered a job at Google dropped from 6. 2 at the beginning of the year to 5. 1 in June.

The company is said to be considering speeding up the process to prevent candidates from accepting other jobs while waiting for a reply from Google. Candidates shouldn’t expect an easy ride though. According to the Wall Street Journal, Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said in July that the company was” able to now, in fact, increase the standards by which we select and hire new people”. Google is said to place high importance on college grades, which can be frustrating for older candidates with a wealth of work experience

Google is no longer the prodigious child fondly looked at by the business community. It is a huge corporation that has to weigh its actions in the altered light of market realities. Google is caught between its long professed altruistic philosophy and the business compulsions of altering its business practices to enter and utilize untapped markets. The issue that creates the greatest hurdle in communicating its business decisions is the highly vocal opinion, both for and against the stance it has taken in China.

While providing an allowance for censorship is against the grain of its vision, not doing so has two repercussions. The business repercussion is that it loses an emerging market with roughly a fifth of the world population. Its philosophical repercussion is that it loses the opportunity to improve the information access and experience to a large number of information-seekers in China. Google’s inability to communicate the logic behind its actions is because of the stigma attached with information-censorship that is widely criticized as putting business interests before human rights.

It is the duty of Google Inc to effectively convince the world population that its efforts are to gain a foothold in a market that has the potential to change the metrics of any organizational balance sheet, while at the same time treating this as a first step towards wider dissemination of information in future. Where is the Company most vulnerable, from a communications standpoint? Google cannot profess to believe that China would be rid of the censorship in near future. Any utterance of such belief jeopardizes its prospects in the country under the current political set up.

At the same time it cannot effectively reconcile the concessions it has given the Chinese government with its long and dearly held philosophy. This inability to communicate its aspirations for a more relaxed atmosphere in China in the foreseeable future is the most vulnerable aspect of its organizational philosophy. Besides, the steps that it has taken to ensure that it is not used like Yahoo in any government sponsored witch hunt or human rights violations is seen as an inadequate step in the US while China views this as a clause that can be altered to suit its political realities by pressure tactics.

What are the key problems Google faces in this situation? Google’s problems in this situation are manifold. Google loses credibility in the open world for making allowance to the demands of the Chinese government. Google’s market value that is linked in great measure to the positive sentiment attached to its organizational philosophy and culture is eroded. It becomes the target of several lawmakers for violating human rights initiatives of the US Government.

Google stands to lose a large market share if China uses its tried and tested formula of copying technology with scant regard for Intellectual property rights (something it has become notorious for). Start ups in China along the lines of Google’s business model can effectively wipe out all outside presence if they can replicate the model at a small percentage of the operational cost. If Google chooses to withdraw from China, the accusations will range from poor business sense to reneging on its stated mission of organizing the world’s information and making it universally accessible.

Its competitors would use this issue irrespective of the conduct or the outcome to decrease the prestige that the brand holds in the minds of the consumers as well as the markets. What advice would you give Brin , Page, and Schmidt? This is the first time that Google has had to face a test of organizational character in its young life. It is better for the co-founders and the CEO to articulate the company’s stand in the most non-controversial yet optimistic terms and take a publicly visible stand.

Even if it affects their market value in the short term, it is better for the organization to be seen professing something strongly rather than skirt the issue. In the long term, when the obvious benefits of market expansion occur, the market can be won over. Ultimately, as it has been proven in history, government censorship as seen in China today would be lifted, and Google would have a strong presence to pursue both its philosophical interests as well as business prospects.

In my opinion they should clarify that they aim to give better information to the Chinese users than what they have access to now (though under the restricted parameters of governmental censorship) and declare that they hope to be a strong presence in China when unrestricted access to information is allowed at any future date. It is also pertinent to inform the public that it has no intention to rob 1/5th of the world’s population of a great search experience because it chooses to be obstinate in following its philosophy to the letter rather than the spirit.

For years, Google has , and this year’s comes with a special treat – an addictive game.

In it, a tiny adorable cat named Momo (one inspired by a Google Doodler’s own cat) tries to rid a Magic Cat Academy of mischievous ghosts — and catch the one who took her spellbook. Players draw various symbols on the screen to make different types of ghosts magically disappear. Momo mimics each symbol’s movements, showcasing intricate and excellent wandsmanship in the process.

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We’re glad for it. The magic academy was actually the designers’ second concept. In the first, Momo made a soup so good that it roused the dead. While charming, we think soupmaking falls short in the action department.

Today’s game has five levels, and players — likely already distracted by Halloween fun — can’t seem to get enough and are putting work aside.

• Today’s is just so cool we took a break from our coding work to try it out! — Kelly Iverson-Egge (@MrsIversonEgge)
• Apologies to my clients but I won’t be getting a single piece of work done today until I finish the Halloween Google Doodle game. — Serial Philler (@Philip_Ellis)
• I’m losing it over the— Danjay (@DaJMeRos)

Players can’t help but share their scores. The game is providing no small source of pride.

Beating the game in the halloween google doodle is probably my biggest accomplishment this year — Doot Howell (@danisnotonfire)

Players have been so charmed by the cat, they’ve been inspired to create their own artwork.

• Doodled a little something for Halloween. It’s Google Doodle cat! — funrin (@FUNR1N)
• The google doodle was really cute so here is a cute black cat — self-haunting boy (@lovezaku)
• Animated!! Just wanted to make it move?? — ????? (@BlueSquirrel_23)
• HAPPY HALLOWEEN ? ! — chepacabra (@cheppoly)

One fan already make a Momo Jack-o-Lantern.

• I loved the so much I…Jack-o-Lanterned it! !!! — Jodi Lane (@PiscesLynx)

Think you can resist addictive powers? Give it a try – if you dare.

A cow grazing on the banks of the River Cam in Cambridge, England, shows up in Google Street View with its face blurred for privacy.

It’s a harmless mistake, and one full of humor, especially given the amount of bovine puns that the Internet’s technorati bestowed upon it this week. But the fact that Google’s facial-recognition algorithms identified a cow — and probably many other non-human faces as well — is significant. It’s at once a lingering effect of the  that Street View faced in Europe a few years ago and a sign that Google’s artificial intelligence has a lot of room for improvement.

Great to see Google takes cow privacy seriously

— David Shariatmadari (@D_Shariatmadari)

The search giant has gone to great lengths to promote its ability to detect faces. Consumers are perhaps most aware of the technology thanks to the recently revamped , which automatically detects features in your photos grouped into People, Places and Things. The People search can organize faces from across all your images, and can even detect the same person across several years.

Using similar algorithms, the Things search can identify landmarks, even differentiating between famous landmarks and their identical copies. Did you visit the Statue of Liberty replica in Paris’s River Seine? Google knows. Snap a picture of the mini Eiffel Tower at Las Vegas’s Paris Hotel? Google will tell you.

Like all machine-learning algorithms, though, Google’s must be trained using as many examples as possible. The blurry cow on the River Cam is proof that even with an image database as massive as Street View’s to learn from, the algorithms still aren’t perfect. To help further their training, Google is  to third-party developers, who can harness the detection technology in their own websites and apps via an API.

As for the blurry cow itself, Google made light of the situation.

“We thought you were pulling the udder one when we herd the moos, but it’s clear that our automatic face-blurring technology has been a little overzealous,” a spokesperson told the . “Of course, we don’t begrudge this cow milking its five minutes of fame.”

Google and Bing are competing to be the most used and talked about search engine on the Internet. To hold this title means a great deal of wealth generated from a successful search engine. The more traffic a search engine generates, the more money It can produce In the forms of endorsements and advertisements. In reality, competition Is good for both companies as it forces both to continually make improvements and strive to develop the best possible product for the public.

This competition is one of the driving forces of our free market economy oday. The company’s history of Google has been around since the early 90’s. It was created and started as a search engine by two grad students at Stanford who major in computer science and the company has grown extremely large since its first days in Susan WoJcicki’s garage in Menlo Park. Today, Google controls the search engine landscape. A shared market survey carried out by Search Engine Land in March of 2012 found that Google controlled about 66. 4 percent of the market.

Never the less, this Is a enormous percentage and Google has used its success to take hance Into many different fields away from purely Just Its search engine. Some of these may Include: videos, social media, mapping, and even creating Its own operating system. As one of the biggest technology companies on the planet, Microsoft is no foreigner to adjusting to new trends in technology. Raiseing the majority of its success and resources with the uses Windows operation system, Microsoft decided to make its own search engines that have unfolded over the years.

Its current version of a search engine website is Bing. This site is a revised version f Live Search which itself came from Windows Live Search and trails all the way back to MSN search, Bing was launched in 2009, and at first it focuses on having an interactive interface with focus on searches, maps, videos, and other interactive media. Considering that this search engine Is new to the search engine world, It Is gaining prompt momentum. According to the same market share survey from Search Engine Land from March 201 2, Bing currently controls 15. percent of the search engine market. Now and days both companies now find themselves In a battle for ho can make the latest development in the battle to control the online market. Though Google owns a much higher percent of the market, Bing is gaining momentum and is now Google’s greatest competition. For the two companies that own these search engines, there are billions of dollars of resources at both the company’s fingertips for improvement, research, and development of their products.

The two companies have both attempted to make use of the social media in their continuing struggle for power, and their results are on a different path. Google has tried to start its own social media site. Google plus has linked up to Google and the company has embraced a multitude of features so the two sites can run and mesh together effectively. Microsoft went on to Join with an outside social media site. Bing has an exclusive relationship with the social media giant Facebook. The reality of this different strategy favors Bing because the popularity of Facebook Is far bigger than Google plus.

As a result of this, Bing will likely continue to grow in popularity Decause 0T I users. Another area of competition that has affected the operation of the companies is the actual power of the search engines they are promoting. Google’s search algorithm gave revolution to the search engine world. It has been the driving force to the company’s success. By Bing adopting the same search algorithm has to face an opponent with, most likely the best programming in the business. To compete the search engine, Bing launched an advertisement campaign that used the classic “taste test” strategy.

The idea of this campaign was for users to blindly use the two websites ( like in the commercials) for a search and then choose which engine produced a better result. Unfortunately for Bing, this strategy backfired. Though they xpected to see more users prefer their search engine, the power of the Google algorithm won the battle. According to the International Business Times, Google “came out ahead in both cases, winning 3:2 in the first test and 4:1 in the second,” A final area that the two search engines compete is their marketing gimmick.

Google is an oddity among companies. It has not put much of resources into its marketing. The news got around mostly by word of mouth. Bing, on the other hand, faces a different situation. As a new, emerging search engine, it will not likely gain the popularity Google has by simply word of mouth. One strategy Bing can use is to market the differences between the two companies. They can market their social media band instead of Just claiming to be a better search engine. Competition is one of the best parts about businesses in todays free market economy.

It makes companies constantly improve their products. The battle is currently wrenching between Google and Bing is another example of this fact. Both these companies are trying to make their websites constantly better than the others. The use of creative improvements to the companies has provided for continuous beneficial growth of both companies. By breaking into social media, user interfacing, videos, maps, and more, the companies are providing the public with two easy and convenient options for their search engine needs.

I believe in the future we will see a shift in the strategies from the current for both companies. Google will probably back off the social media push it has made and focus more on being a knowledge based search engine that is quick, easy, and reliable. Bing will take the route of expanding its social media connections and try to show that it is a more than a user-friendly system that is great for searching within these specific domains.

Executive Summary

In January of 1996 an Internet search engine company initially named BackRub soon grew into what is now Google Incorporated. Partners Larry Page and Sergey Brin, along with a few investors lived on a shoestring budget. By year-end 1998 Google Inc. was handling 10,000 search queries each day. Google was also voted one of the top 100 Web Sites and Search Engines in 1998. Google was recording successes at a lighting speed pace and embarked on their Initial Public Offering on April 29, 2004. Google has found itself amidst a very competitive industry, which fundamentally competes to provide higher technology to users, low prices for advertising, and capacity to engage suppliers to subscribe to the search engine. Google, who is well known in the ever-changing search engine industry, must find a way to survive and compete. One of the biggest tasks currently at hand is to bolster forward into the mobile phone/search industry and win the significant market share it would need to survive. Google has done this thus far by making a profit, innovating, and maintaining their market position. Google focuses on the end user and all else seems to follow.

In our minds, the most important factor is that there is always more information out there. This is what keeps hope alive. Google has grown in a very gradual manner that serves as a strong foundation for years to come. Google was able to grow during the recession in 2009. Google is able to operate on a relatively low operating cost while at the same time, using state of the art technology. It is important that Google uphold its corporate philosophy guidelines. Steering away from these guidelines will result in a diminished brand image and is everything but acceptable. Google must also treat its employees, its most valuable resource, in a manner that induces productivity. Without the knowledge that rests in the minds of these employees Google would “treading in rough water”.

First and foremost, we recommend that Google continue forward with the acquisition of Motorola Mobility. This will accelerate both innovation and choice in mobile computing. Basically, consumers will get the benefit of better phones at lower prices. Also, the patent portfolio of Motorola will help protect the Android system. We feel that Google has great software, and Motorola is good at devices, therefore this combination makes sense and will result in speedier innovation. To re-iterate, Google must take advantage of this opportunity if it wants to continue on the successful path it has led thus far. Google Inc. has maintained a clear vision and thus been able to maintain a steady, yet gradual, growth rate. Most simply put, this growth stems from new ideas and innovation. We would recommend that Google continue the diversification of its products and expand further into operations in multiple markets, perhaps the mobile phone industry being most important. The introduction of innovative products like Chrome OS, Android, Google Cloud Platform, Google Glass and Google Self Driven Cars will help maintain and grow their market share.

It is essential that Google continue to invest in R&D, which will create opportunities to increase the search, and improve technology and communication. The intent of this is not to redirect their strategy. The ability of Google to launch itself into the hardware section of the mobile phone industry will ultimately result in a larger search engine market share. Google must also tap into areas that have not yet been touched by other companies. For example, the “pen computer”, which is a computer that utilizes an electronic pen rather than a keyboard for input. Conceivably, through the Project Glass research and development project started in early 2013, Google has begun to develop Google Glass. This is a wearable computer with an optical head-mounted display and acts in the same manner as a smartphone, except it’s hands free. Google should search for strategic alliances (integration and interoperability) by acquiring more financial power through teaming up with larger companies and/or acquiring smaller ones. They could seek an alliance with a company in the wireless sector and create a Google wireless network or even create an Apple/Google smart phone. The case refers to cloud computing as the next big thing in technology. Learn when the government uses censorship, it puts a limit on what?

Google needs to “take the bull by the horns” and run with this opportunity. Google should also continue to improve its web browser in a way that attracts its competitor’s clients. Why shouldn’t the users of Google be able to customize the way they search and use their information? Something as simple as the ability to save “post-it notes” on the webpage would result in more attractiveness. It is imperative that Google manage its brand well, this will help Google survive market turbulences. This relates back to Google sticking to their Corporate Philosophy. This day and age brings about the opportunity for Google to invest in Internet security. Google should strive to make it safe for a user to use the Internet without fear of attracting viruses to their personal computers or mobile devices.

Analysis

The search industry is highly based on the ability to provide higher technology to users, low prices for advertising, and capacity to engage suppliers to subscribe to the search engine. Google’s well-established market leading position in the search industry is a major factor in the company’s overall success because it has become its main competitive advantage. Currently, this competitive position in search is very strong but there are a number of competitors that are threatening the company’s position. Google is the most visited site on the Internet as it had more than 1 billion unique visitors in 2011. In terms of Internet search, Google’s main competitors are Microsoft and Yahoo. Of these two, Microsoft was the second most visited site and Yahoo the fourth most visited. In July, 65.1% of Internet search traffic went to Google, 16.1% of Internet search traffic went to Yahoo, and 14.4% of Internet search traffic went to Microsoft’s Bing (Figure 1). In addition to these sites, however, smaller competition is emerging from Ask.com, Aol.com, and Baidu. Baidu is a particularly large competitor in the industry because the company has a strong market share in China.

Baidu and the Chinese market are major concerns for Google because of the size of the market in that region and the restrictions that China has placed on Google in terms of censorship. Currently, Baidu contains 75.9% of that market while Google contains only 18.9% of that market. After conducting a Competitive Advantages Assessment, we found that Apple ranked higher than Google overall, scoring 9.45/10 while Google scored an 8.6/10. We ranked the companies by strength measures of quality, innovation, brand image, and sync capabilities. This score is somewhat misleading because these companies are not selling the same products. While this assessment did give a visual representation of the companies’ strength measures on paper, it didn’t seem to depict an accurate measure. When considering the five competitive forces, the strongest force in the market appears to be the competitive pressures associated with rivalry among competing sellers to attract customers. Rivalry between Google and its competitors is fierce and consistent. One significant move by Google will result in a significant move from the competition. These companies are innovating and inventing new applications every day in order to have a strong competitive advantage. The fact of the matter is that “fast followers” like Microsoft, are savvy enough to trail behind key innovations and maintain its competitiveness.

The big players in the industry currently exhibit a high technology and a lot of knowledge in the industry. The least powerful competitive force in the industry is the threat of new entrants. Many products and innovations are emulated which results in similar designs arriving to the market. Designing and implementing a search engine that would truly compete with Google or other key players appears to be a nearly impossible undertaking. Although some competition has emerged, the threat of future competition is minimal. The overall attractiveness of the industry in terms of search appears highly favorable for Google as the company has a strong competitive advantage. Competitors face a significant hurdle in regard to the strong preference for Google among Internet users. Still, future growth into large new markets appears to be limited because of the Chinese government’s restrictions and Baidu’s established presence.

The search industry is changing in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most significant way that the search industry is changing is that it is more often being accessed through mobile technology. In the past, it was accessed primarily through traditional computers and laptops. More than 35% of the American public accessed the Internet through a mobile device in 2010. Around the world approximately 5 billion people own mobile phones. Google, for instance, introduced its Android mobile technology as a means of improving the company’s search traffic. Tablet technology similarly is impacting the search industry. In addition to these things, cloud technology is a major thing that is changing the search industry. Google predicted that the cloud software market would increase to $95 billion by 2013.

A number of forces seem likely to bring about major changes to the industry in the next three to five years. As stated, mobile technology will be a major force to bring about change. Between March 2011 and June 2011 the number of smartphone users in the United States grew by 10%. One can assume such growth will continue into the future and soon mobile may be the main way that people use the Internet. Tablet technology and other handheld devices are also predicted to increase in the future. The impact of this technology is that it will require search engine service providers like Google and Microsoft to make sure that their search platforms are compatible with mobile devices. This is not just true for search but will also impact the sorts of platforms that are created.

Google in the past has made a strong variety of Internet search platforms applications such as Google Earth apps that are useful for mobile technology and even tablets. In upcoming years, search engine providers will need to make more types of applications that are more useful for mobile users rather than just traditional computer users. Just like with mobile technology, the growing popularity of cloud technology will require search providers like Google to further develop applications for these platforms.

A number of key factors define success in the industry, with innovation being perhaps the most important. Innovation occurs throughout the industry most importantly in terms of developing effective search platforms. In order to maintain a strong competitive advantage companies must constantly improve their search algorithms to make sure results are fast, accurate, impartial, and easy to use. In addition to search innovation, companies must also innovate across other industries such as smartphones or tablet technologies because these things determine search access. Not only innovation, but also strategy is very important in determining which companies to purchase. For example, Google Earth came about only because Google bought a company called Keyhole, a digital mapping company. Google’s purchase of YouTube was similarly an important success factor. Google now extended its advertising capacity significantly with the addition of this video based website.

The key resources and capabilities of successful search engine companies are the ability to provide effective and efficient search technologies. These resources are very critical because by providing such effective search options companies are able to command very high dollars in advertising revenue, which is the most primary way that the companies make profits. In addition, companies also benefit by expanding into different industries. For example, Google has ventured into the television and smartphone industry. Entering into the smartphone industry is a very important resource because it allows the companies to stay on top of changing trends. If Google did not have the capability of entering into the smartphone industry then a company like Microsoft could eventually beat Google in search because Microsoft’s smartphones or tablets could be made so that they are only compatible with Microsoft’s search.

These key success factors compare to the key success factors of the smartphone industry. Innovation is important in the smartphone industry, however different things must be innovated. One of the major factors in the smartphone industry is for companies to be able to develop applications for the smart phones. Smartphone technology must be able to be used with other search technology platforms. Finally, brand identity is more important in the smartphone industry. Many people purchase smartphones partially as a social statement, so owning an Apple phone to them is better than a Microsoft phone. This is not as true in search where people are more concerned that the search is effective.

Larry Page stated, “The perfect search engine is something that understands exactly what you mean and gives you back exactly what you want.”(asahitechnologies.wordpress.com) Google’s customer value proposition and profit formula are linked to its business model. Google’s business model is partly seen by examining the company’s philosophy. Google’s success in the search industry alone can prove that these ideas are indeed working. Google has significantly improved its market share in the search industry through their emergence into mobile search. Google’s commitment to ethics and not being evil is also reflected in the company’s strong brand name. Though a hiccup occurred when Google was tied to allegations that the company violated federal wiretapping statutes. This approach has resulted in the company being able to present strong customer value propositions in the form of advertising options to other businesses. This advertising business model occurs in the form of Google Search Appliance, Google AdWords, and Google AdSense. The advertising is both highly efficient and a good value for businesses.

Google has relied upon a number of strategies to build competitive advantage in the industry. Google’s business model is essentially upholding a reliable pricing system, leveraging a disruptive business model and maintaining efficient ads. This strategy was highly successful in establishing competitive advantage for the company because after Google established itself as a leader in search it was able to leverage this to make revenue from advertising. In addition to this strategy Google has also entered into different industries to expand its competitive advantage. The largest such example of this was Google’s entrance into the mobile search industry. Google produced the Android mobile technology, an operating system, and made it open source. The strategy was that by doing this they could make sure that its search engine remained the compatible with the growing mobile industry. Google has used this strategy of entering into new technologies to gain a competitive advantage to advance its search platforms also in terms of things like cloud computing and Google TV. With cloud computing Google developed Google Apps to improve its position in this industry.

Google’s business model and strategy have proven to be extremely successful. Today the company is the world’s leading provider of Internet search services. In 2011, nearly 5 billion unique users visited the company’s website. Google’s advertising platforms, such as Google AdSense, have resulted in a significant amount of profits for the company. The company’s 29.01 profit margin percentage also demonstrated that the company was making a strong profit from this business model (Table 2). The company’s strategy in innovating and purchasing companies has also been successful, as it has
allowed the company to maintain a strong competitive advantage.

Investors should definitely be impressed with the company’s financial performance. The main reason investors should be impressed is not because the company has made a significant amount of money but because the company has been able to do so while dealing with heavy competition. Google has consistently demonstrated its ability to innovate and move into new territories as a means of allowing the company to maintain its strong advantage in search. Today this advantage is so strong that it is very difficult for new entrants to enter into the industry. Google’s continued success has been reflected in its rising stock price. Since 2006 Google’s stock has steadily increased even during the 2008 recession. The company’s financial ratios are strong. In 2010 Google had an 18.39 return on equity ratio and a price to earnings ratio of 20.36, which is relatively conservative for a technology company.

The company’s financial performance is not as strong as Apple’s in terms of smartphones, but this make sense due to the fact that Google is primarily concerned with the search traffic on these mobile devices and not the device itself. In 2011, Apple was the industry leader in smartphones. However, Google’s markets share in this field steadily grew throughout the year. Google’s total revenue compared to Apple was not as strong. The company’s greatest strengths are its strong competitive advantage in the search industry.

The company has been able to leverage its position in search by expanding into a variety of different industries. The company has also been very effective in innovating a substantial amount of product lines. The company’s business model also offers highly efficient means of targeted advertising that are more efficient than advertising in many other venues or mediums. In terms of weaknesses, the company’s greatest weakness is the challenges it will face growing into the future. While the Chinese market poses a potentially strong area where Google can grow, the company faces significant threats from Baidu. Also, the Chinese government’s restrictions and censorship may greatly limit the success Google can gain in the area. While China is a potential weakness, it may also be a potential opportunity. If Google were able to enter the Chinese market, the country’s extremely large population size would result in the company being able to grow to substantial new levels. If Google’s Android smartphones are able to continue to grow then they will be able to use this to help their search platform. Google TV may also be another opportunity for Google to embark on.

Finally, Google’s development of applications for cloud technology is another opportunity for future growth. The company faces threats from both mobile and tablet technology. These are threats because if Google is not able to innovate in these fields to a great level then they risk having other companies do so. These other companies could then use their position in these fields to direct customers to their own search platforms. Another threat Google faces is from Baidu in the Chinese market. Baidu is uniquely made for China and it may be more effective in meeting the demands of the Chinese government. Finally, Google faces consistent threats from Microsoft and Yahoo as these companies are trying to improve their market share in terms of search platforms and mobile technologies. Google must face what their competition is doing and counter it. Google’s employees are by far their most important resource. Competition is very high but Google survives on innovation and diversification of its products. The search engine market has endless opportunities and new applications are being introduced and integrated. Some examples of this are the Android (OS for smartphones), Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Google TV.

Specific Strategic Statement

Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful in a socially responsible way. The company’s goals are to continue to be a world leader in search and to innovate across a variety of different platforms and industries. The company’s competitive advantage is in search and it is maintained through offering high quality services and entering into a variety of different industries to maintain the company’s leverage. The company’s growth direction is in terms of the current market but in different industries like smartphones. Additionally, the company is attempting to expand abroad into the Chinese market.

Functional Strategies

Google’s functional strategies are to provide high quality products and services in a socially responsible way. This approach involve innovating new products and within new industries. It also involves purchasing companies that hold the potential to allow Google to maintain its competitive advantage.

Critical Assumptions

The critical assumptions of the functional strategies are that they will aid the company in maintaining its competitive strength in search. The strategies accomplish this in a variety of ways. By providing high quality products, Google is able to gain customer support over its competitors and maintain the company’s strong brand. The company’s emphasis on social responsibility also helps contribute to making sure that the company’s brand remains very strong in the eyes of the public. In terms of innovation and buying other companies, the assumption in this is that it will make sure that Google is able to make its search platform effective across lots of different mediums. This will make sure that Google maintains its existing amount of search and also gains new users from people using the Internet in ways that it was not before used in.

References

1. John E. Gamble, A. A. (2013). essentials of Strategic Management (third ed.). (P. Ducham, Ed.) New York, New York, USA: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

A Google self-driving Lexus was involved in a crash in Mountain View, Calif. on Friday afternoon. Fortunately, no one was injured.

According to a report from local TV station , the Google car was, indeed, driving autonomously at the time of the crash, but was not at fault. The incident happened at around 1:30 p.m. near El Camino Real and Phyllis Avenue, when another vehicle ran a red light and hit the passenger side of Google’s car.

Google did not immediately respond to PCMag‘s request for comment but confirmed the incident to . “A Google vehicle was traveling northbound on Phyllis Ave. in Mountain View when a car heading westbound on El Camino Real ran a red light and collided with the right side of our vehicle,” the statement reads. “Our light was green for at least six seconds before our car entered the intersection.”

The tech giant also used this opportunity to remind everyone why it’s developing self-driving cars.

“Thousands of crashes happen everyday on U.S. roads, and red-light running is the leading cause of urban crashes in the U.S. Human error plays a role in 94 percent of these crashes, which is why we’re developing fully self-driving technology to make our roads safer,” Google said.

According to KRON, a human was behind the wheel of Google’s car at the time of the incident. The Google vehicle (and presumably the human behind the wheel) sensed the other car crossing the intersection, at which point the human took over and applied the brakes, but the crash was unavoidable.

Images captured by bystanders show that the Google car with a huge dent on the passenger side, as you can see above.

The incident comes after a Google self-driving Lexus in February . That time, the Google car was at least partially responsible for the collision.