Google Bought His Startup – Now This Tech Exec Is Sounding The Alarm

In his Medium post, Seshadri looked back on the time he spent at Microsoft and the issues it had, noting that the company had given him previous experience in seeing “the gradual decay of a dominant empire.” He also uses Microsoft and its partnership with OpenAI as an example of the challenges Google is about to face. However, he claims these challenges aren’t due to any technological advantages, but rather the differences in company culture, willingness to take risks, and the hunger for success the respective companies have. 

Microsoft is also used as a case study for how Google can right itself and get closer to the company it was when Seshardi first experienced it in 2005 and 2009. He uses Satya Nadella’s transformation of Microsoft’s prospects to form a checklist of what he believes the company has to do to thrive. This includes “leading with commitment to a mission,” which he describes as focusing on goals with a real-world outcome instead of just profits or technological advancements. 

He describes Google management that constantly “underpromises and underdelivers” as “peacetime generals.” These need to be ditched in favor of “motivated people who are capable of immense and uniquely valuable contributions,” according to the post. He also describes the company’s vast middle management category as “incapable of change” and a problem that builds on itself by hiring more essentially useless layers. In short, Seshardi is suggesting a vast restructuring of the company and the appointment of a leadership happy to take risks. Looking at Google’s response to the current big tech challenge, he may have a point.