SemiEarlyGoogle

Wow, the Google Developer's Advocate blog post (https://medinathoughts.com/2018/01/29/wordpress-google/) sounds like Google is very serious about Wordpress.

Hopefully it leads to great stuff. Historically, there's been near zero interest in php/wordpress amongst the engineering ranks. Everyone wants to learn the Next Big Language/Library/Framework, which is understandable.

Many current/former Googlers have been interested in helping out with a project I'm involved in (GXJam.com), but the conversation ends quickly when I tell them it's WP/php/MySQL.

A fun, different, but effective way to find creative Googlers and Xooglers to chat with is at https://gxjam.com

GXJam prolly wasn't designed for that purpose in mind, but that's how I use it :)

100% agree with this, as do several of my friends. Curated correctly (pretty easy to do), Instagram becomes a place of respite and solace. And for some, a pleasant peaceful channel before going to sleep for the night. Kind of ironically :)

I like to look at what I think are more authentic, indirect indicators, even though very imperfect, too.

For startups specifically, I used to analyze the startups that VCs tweeted the most. Uber dominated for a long time. And Zenefits was tops too, until they dropped fast in mentions a few weeks before their turn of fortune. Yeah, some tea leaf reading and eye of newt stuff, but interesting nonetheless and some job seekers found it helpful.

Your point about departing/departed employees and hellscape made me think about how the recent negative news about Google contrasts with one indicator (again, imperfect) of how happy people are to be Nooglers and Googlers -- their public exultation in Instagram posts: https://gxjam.com/ig-gallery/noogler-instagrams-by-googlers-...

Edit: Of course, neither of the above approaches are as broadly applicable as Glassdoor's approach

Yet another ex-Googler here. "Working for the greatest company in existence" was the mindset since Google's earliest days, well before reaching that pedestal in the public eye. They made tough offers to candidates back then, too, e.g., job titles taken down 1-2 levels, even when the job market was hot. Though practice started when job market was cold.

Many stories have been written about how their early hiring practices made for Google's huge success. I largely agree.

And related to your comment, groupthink or not, they do overall look pretty happy, even if you dial back for the social media factor: https://gxjam.com/ig-gallery/googler-instagrams-by-googlers-...