Google - Post IPO...reflections

After the most watched IPO (for vaious reasons!) gets over, it's time to reflect on some points:

1. As Rob the Businesspundit points out, could going public destroy Google's culture?
   
2. Was the innovation of the Dutch auction worth it?
   
3. And the realisation, that upstarts/arrogance/innovators will always be sought to be "beaten" by the establishment (Wall Street, Big Money etc)
   

As the old Japanese saying goes "Any nail that stands up, will be hammered down"

I fervently hope not!

Listened to a talk by John Seely Brown (ex- Xerox PARC, cheif scientist) in which he talked about the need to start looking at the 'periphery' for innovation. (you can find JSB's slides here)Google was a truly peripherial start-up (in 'garage' mode like Dave & Bill) and even as they moved centrestage their outlook continued to be 'peripherial'. I hope they don't lose that in the post IPO era.

As JSB pointed out "The better you get at doing something, the more difficult it gets to see/do anything new"