Google's first Thailand boss explains the 'Googley' way

First of all, says Ariya, Google's culture is "bottom up". "My boss in Singapore hasn't told me what to do. And this is the same everywhere in the world. It's the way we work."

Everything at Google has been created by the engineers and people at Google, who come up with innovations daily, he said. There is also the so-called "dog food" concept, which means staff will be the first to trial every product before it is launched to consumers.

Ariya also shared his own experience in going through the "very meticulous" recruitment process, which included no less than five interview sessions.

"They spent a lot of time getting to know who I was as an individual, not as a professional or [about my] career. Obviously they want to recruit the best talents. [But] the reason is Google is a very flat organisation. Half of staff at my office don't report to me, but report directly to [their bosses] in Singapore. And we still have to be able to work together as a team."

This "no frame" work culture explains why Google has given importance to knowing its job candidate as an individual, he said.

Second, Google embraces a very open culture. "We don't care what's a problem. We care what's a solution."

Third, Google believes in team players. Ariya said he had never found an overconfident person at Google.

Fourth, Google looks for people who are "Googley". The new media company works in a very casual environment. At the Sydney office where Ariya took an orientation course, some staff wore shorts or sales people wore diapers to meet their clients at a consumer product goods company.

The 37-year-old executive explains some of his "Googley" side that might have convinced Google to choose him.

"The interviewer asked me, 'Do you know how many people are making phone calls to each other at this moment?' I replied, I would use the search engine [to find out the answer]. This was, perhaps, the reason why they hired me," said Ariya, smiling.

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