The tour continues! Today Will and I as guests of Rhys made our way to the Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park, a bit north of Mountain View.
I’ve covered off a fair amount in a post over at Sanders Technology, so I won’t repeat that content again here.
In fact, I had to split the article in two, as there was too much to write about in a single article.
I’ll post a bit more here about my own views, and some of the insights I had from visiting today.
The Facebook HQ is impressive. Directly comparing Facebook and Google is hard, but in some ways inevitable. The major difference, I think, between the two is that Google felt a bit more like a large university campus; it was spread out and directly accessible by public thoroughfare. Facebook is a more of a closed complex, it’s not possible to access the common spaces without a pass (or escort), however, once you are inside it is very similar to Google – but perhaps even more open, courtesy of the massive open planned office environment.
Artwork near the Cafeteria / Rooftop Park
What does come across very clearly is the slight difference in cultures. Google seems more compartmentalized, partly owing to the distributed nature of its offices, cafes and facilities. Facebook feels more centralized, with the majority of business and social functions occurring in-house inside the complex. How this affects the corporate chemistry is not clear, however what is clear to me is that the majority of people I saw working at both companies looked very engaged, motivated and content. It’s hard to ignore the overwhelming sense that everyone working in the area is cut from a similar cloth. This could be my next life goal..
Nerd/Geek Culture at Facebook / Inside the “Classic” buildings
What stands out from my visit to Facebook is just how counter-corporate the entire place felt. The main thoroughfare in the “Classic” buildings reminded me of “Main Street USA” at Disneyland, but entirely crafted to appeal to a techie audience. Even the facilities inspired interest:
A Pirate flag flies high / “Hand Coded Burgers”
This is a place designed to appeal to a specific audience, and I believe it succeeds well. There is a lot of focus in hiring people to relocate and live here, and until you’ve actually visited, I strongly suspect the reasoning behind co-locating so many talented people here will be lost on most. In other words, you have to see it to believe it.
I’ll continue this article later today, at the moment I’m focusing on the mundane tasks, washing clothes and writing blog entries.
To be continued..