How far is Google Cloud from the dream of the world’s top two cloud computing vendors?
Editor’s note: This article is from the micro-channel public number “HyperAI super nervous” (ID: HyperAI) , Author: Nerve knife.
Content at a glance: Recently, Google Cloud Computing Department reported news of layoffs, called adjusting the focus on the international market, and will make small-scale personnel adjustments. Although the exact number has not been announced, informed sources revealed that about 50 people will be affected. Behind the first layoffs in 2020, how does Google reflect in the cloud computing market?
Keywords: Google Cloud layoffs cloud computing
Google ’s first layoffs came in 2020, and this time it was hit by Google ’s cloud computing division.
According to the Wall Street Journal reported on February 14th, Google Cloud is planning to reduce some jobs and adjust Google Cloud’s focus on the international market in order to gain greater competitiveness in the cloud computing market.
At the same time, Google also said that this is a small number of layoffs and will provide other job opportunities for the affected people.
Redundancy: Part of Cloud Business Restructuring
Google said that the small-scale layoffs are part of the company’s cloud business restructuring plan.
In an email to the media, the person in charge of Google wrote:
“Recently, we have communicated a notice of staff reorganization to a few teams. This will improve the way we market, collaborate, and engage with our customers across industries worldwide.”
It also gives instructions and follow-up measures:
“We made a difficult but necessary decision and had to notify a few employees that their positions would be cut. But we are also consulting with other teams within the company to help affected employees obtain new positions.” < / p>
It is reported that this layoff is only a small-scale adjustment, and about 50 people will be affected.
I do n’t want to be the third child, Google Cloud has issued a “military warrant”
Behind this operation, people can’t help but think of Google Cloud’s previous determination.
In the cloud computing market share, Google Cloud has always been left behind by Amazon AWS and Microsoft’s Azure.
In the annual report released by Google not long ago, the cloud computing department’s annual revenue in 2019 was $ 8.9 billion, a 53% increase from 2018 and double the total sales in 2017.
But compared to the other two, it is still inferior.
Three industry leaders in the cloud computing market
Amazon’s cloud computing division had revenues of more than $ 35 billion last year, almost four times that of Google Cloud.
Microsoft’s total cloud computing business revenue in the fourth quarter of 2019 alone reached $ 11.9 billion.
For more details, you can post our previous article ” Finance report is coming, AWS last year’s revenue was 3 Azure, 4 Google Cloud “.
Larry Page revealed during his tenure that he was dissatisfied with the third position in the cloud computing business, which is far from the top two.
Gartner cloud computing market landscape released in July 2019
Google also specifically discussed the development and persistence of the cloud computing department, and even had the idea of completely exiting the cloud computing market, but this somewhat grumpy idea was rejected.
Finally, management has developed an ambitious plan for Google Cloud. By 2023, Google Cloud business will beat Azure or AWS, at least guaranteeing to enter the top two markets.
If Google cloud computing business develops less than expected, it will be cut down on investment.
The dilemma and way out of Google Cloud
This personnel change is just a small aspect. In fact, for a long time in the past, Google Cloud has been constantly seeking change and trying to find opportunities for development breakthroughs.
Because “cloud computing” is a concept that Google first proposed in 2006, it is unwilling to disclose its performance for a period of time due to its own development strategy and other reasons, and latecomers such as Alibaba Cloud have a tendency to catch up .
Google’s parent company Alphabet 2019 fourth quarter earnings report
It is also the first time that Google Cloud ’s performance has been made public
Some people have analyzed that the decline of Google Cloud is related to its internal addiction to technology. The shortcomings of marketing and ecological loss caused by Google’s engineer culture have been continuously enlarged in the expansion of cloud computing.
A Google employee once said, “Google sells its own technology and sells what it thinks customers need, not what customers think they need.”
The only way to break it all is through constant change.
Last year, Google Cloud hired Thomas Kurian from Oracle to take over as CEO, and subsequently increased the bargaining power of the cloud business, trying to improve the overall plan and make more sales investments for it.
Thomas Kurian was an Oracle executive
Thomas Kurian started some strategies, such as increasing the number of employees in the department, digging in some heavyweight executives, and setting out to adjust the way cloud computing products are sold.
Thomas Kurian also said that the areas where the cloud computing business is focused are focused on five areas: retail, healthcare, financial services, media and entertainment, and manufacturing.
In this way, everything seems to be moving towards the goal of 2023, but whether Google Cloud can achieve that, there may be no answer.