EPISODE 78

Claire Stapleton spent twelve years at Google and YouTube writing the company's story, from ghostwriting for Larry Page to running YouTube's social media, before she co-organized the 2018 Google Walkout, when 20,000 employees walked out over how the company handled sexual harassment. Kevin and Jason, who started at Google a year before Claire, talk with her about her new memoir, Don't Be Evil. They cover what happens when a company that sells meaning as a perk discovers that meaning is expensive, how Google+ got tied to everyone's bonus, why YouTube's marketing org ended up marketing to its own executives, and why tech workers who once petitioned and walked out have gone quiet. Claire also shares a story that didn't make the book, describes the subway ride home after leaving, explains what it was like to read talking points written about herself, and tells us why she still calls Google a "low key greatest company."

CHAPTERS

00:00 – Cold open

00:41 – Is culture load-bearing or just marketing?

04:07 – Selling meaning as a perk

05:42 – Ghostwriting Larry Page and the cure-death era

08:35 – Google+ and the corporate bonus

10:29 – When the story cracked: Creative Lab

13:18 – YouTube and the brand vulnerability briefing

15:54 – Was advertising the real mission all along?

18:10 – Marketing to executives instead of the public

21:31 – Maven, the walkout, and why workers went quiet

25:21 – Would she organize the walkout again?

28:08 – The subway ride home

32:06 – Where to find Claire and Don't Be Evil

33:13 – The Founder Mode Five

LINKS

Connect with Claire Stapleton

Don't Be Evil • Tech Support • LinkedIn • X/Twitter • Instagram

Stay Connected with Founder Mode

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Connect with Kevin

LinkedIn • X/Twitter

Connect with Jason

LinkedIn • X/Twitter