Prediction Markets at Google

I have to say that this is the first time I've been exposed to prediction markets, so my knowledge is somewhat limited. The case gets to be a little confusing after a while, but I think I got the general idea. Reading through this case, however, I was more intrigued by the effect of the GPM activity within the employees as compared to how Google could further use the prediction markets within the company.

I really like the idea of engaging your workforce in a company, and the use of the GPM tool with rewards was a great way in which Google had done this. I believe that there are many people in a company that only know what their current department is working on and take very little interest in the company as a whole. Through the use of GPM, Google was able to engage its workforce in ideas and projects that existed outside of an individual's work group. It was very interesting to me that the participants in the program were more interested in prestige and recognition, as compared to financial incentives. I think this goes a long way to tell companies that monetary compensation is not everything. So many companies fail to recognize employees who do a good job on more than an annual performance basis. Sure, it's nice to receive a $1,000 bonus in your paycheck, but there is also a large amount of personal satisfaction in being seen as a strong and respected employee within your company. I think managers and executives fail to understand this and think that giving employees more money will always be a solution to their dissatisfaction. I know I am starting to go off on a tanget about general employee compensation, so I will end it at that.

Moving forward, I think Google does need to work to engage more of its employees in the GPM program. Building it up through emails, signs, and countdowns would offer a great way for this to be done. I mean, most people know when NCAA March Madness is coming around for college basketball because there are communications sent out at many levels. The funny thing is.....this game isn't even related to your job! Google needs to continue promoting the GPM program as a fun way to interact between coworkers. I agree that bigger prizes might draw more people, but Google should not lose site of the value of the recognition the employees receive for making good trades. I like the idea of allowing employees to share their trading information with others, or keep it entirely confidential. That is an option that should be in the employee's hands though.

Once Goggle has developed a larger user base for its prediction markets, I think it then has the opportunity to decide how it could leveage this information to increase its bottom line. I do believe it could be a valuable tool if applied correctly.