Abstract

The case study “Mindfulness Training at Google” aims to bring to light the growing importance of emotion regulation trainings in organizations. In 2007, Chade Meng Tan, a software engineer at Google, started the “Search Inside Yourself” (SIY) program at the company in collaboration with experts in the fields of neuroscience and emotional intelligence (EI). The program aims to teach EI to Googlers through the mindfulness meditative technique. The two-day program teaches Google employees the methods of mindfulness, self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, and empathy and leadership skills. The SIY program at Google has been very successful, with many employees registering for the program that generally has a long waiting period. Numerous Googlers have attributed their new found calmness, resilience to demanding situations, empathy, and attentive listening skills to the SIY program. The SIY team went on to set up the “The Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute,” in 2012 as an independent nonprofit organization to offer EI courses to Googlers and non-Googlers. Many multinational companies, including AT&T, Philips Electronics, and Autodesk conduct EI workshops on a regular basis for their employees. Aetna, a US-based health insurance company; General Mills, a global consumer goods company; and computer chip maker Intel have also implemented mindfulness courses for their employees.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Understand the impact of future workplace on employee wellbeing .
• Learn the benefits of emotional regulation techniques.
• Understand the importance of empathy, mindfulness, and compassion in modern day workplaces.
• Learn how to create training programs for an ethnically diverse audience in a secular way.

Keywords

Employee Productivity; Stress Management, Emotional Intelligence; Mindfulness Training; Employee wellbeing; Experiential Training; Employee Productivity; Creativity and Innovation; Search Inside Yourself