Former Google marketing manager Claire Stapleton reflects on her 12-year career, the 2018 employee walkout, and her new memoir, 'Don’t Be Evil'.
Key facts
- •Claire Stapleton worked at Google for 12 years, starting in 2007.
- •The 2018 Google Walkout involved more than 20,000 employees protesting the handling of sexual harassment allegations.
- •Stapleton describes her book as a coming-of-age story rather than a traditional whistleblower memoir.
- •She cites books such as 'From Counterculture to Cyberculture' by Fred Turner and 'Private Government' as inspirations for her writing.
- •Stapleton concludes that institutions lack a conscience and behave according to their own incentive structures when threatened.
Claire Stapleton, a former marketing manager at Google, has released a memoir titled 'Don’t Be Evil: Bad Bosses, Fake Promises, and My Escape from Big Tech.' The book details her 12-year tenure at the company, including her role in organizing the 2018 Google Walkout for Real Change, which saw over 20,000 employees protest the company’s handling of sexual harassment allegations.
Reflecting on Google's Culture
Stapleton describes her early years at Google as a period where she internalized corporate rhetoric regarding accountability and the company's mission to improve the world. However, she notes that her perspective shifted as she observed a growing gap between the company's moralistic language and its actual practices as an advertising business. She highlights her time in the Creative Lab department as a turning point where she began to feel destabilized by difficult management and the disconnect between her role as a spokesperson and her personal experiences.
The Walkout and Institutional Power
The 2018 walkout served as a pivotal moment for Stapleton, representing a collective effort by employees to challenge leadership rather than blindly trusting the company's stated values. She argues that the experience taught her that institutions prioritize incentive structures over stated ideals. Stapleton asserts that while she does not believe corporations are inherently evil, they are subject to growth incentives that can lead to exploitative systems and moral compromises.
Timeline
- 2004Google went public with a mission statement emphasizing values and a commitment to not being a conventional company.
- 2007Claire Stapleton began her 12-year career at Google.
- November 2018More than 20,000 Google employees participated in the Google Walkout for Real Change.
Advertisement
This article was independently rewritten by ManyPress editorial AI from reporting originally published by Vogue.
