most powerful group at Google Inc (GOOG.O)
used to be known simply as 'The OC,' short for
operating committee. Now, it goes by a more
telling name: L Team, short for Larry's Team. The
new members of this team are... The change is
more than a mere rebranding after Google co- founder Larry Page became chief executive nine months ago,
reclaiming a title he last held in 2001. Page has
moved quickly to remake the company in his
image, and this influential group is responsible
for plotting strategic priorities, such as social
networking and mobile computing. In the revamping of the group earlier this year,
Page swapped out several of the executives who
previously had seats at the table and brought in
managers spearheading key initiatives. Among the new members of Page's cabinet are
social networking head Vic Gundotra, Android
mobile chief Andy Rubin and YouTube head Salar
Kamangar, according to people familiar with the
matter. Page meets regularly with the team, which also
includes Google's top finance and legal executives
and is now internally called the L Team, to
discuss, evaluate and approve their plans, from
acquisitions to new products. "All major decisions flow through that group,"
said one of the people, speaking anonymously
because of the confidential nature of the topic. The new team was appointed around the time
that Page took over as CEO and reorganized the
company's management structure. In addition to
placing directors of key product groups under his
direct supervision, and giving those groups more
leeway to operate autonomously, Page transformed the operating committee into the L
Team, a move not reported until now. A Google representative declined to comment on
the changes Page made to the team. The
company also declined to make executives
available for interviews. The revamp is part of Page's efforts to make the
world's No. 1 Web search engine more nimble
and competitive amid a shifting technology
landscape in which Google is increasingly battling
heavyweights like Apple Inc (AAPL.O) and
Facebook. To make room for his new advisers, Page chose
to remove some well-known and powerful
executives from the inner circle instead of
expanding it, according to the sources. They said the executives who have left the group
include Marissa Mayer, the head of Google's local,
maps and location services business; Rachel
Whetstone, its London-based global
communications and public affairs chief; and
Shona Brown, who previously oversaw business operations and now heads the company's
philanthropic arm. Mayer's membership within the group was
particularly short-lived. The former head of
Google's flagship search product and user
experience was appointed to the operating
committee in October 2010, roughly around the
time she was assigned a new job overseeing Google's local business. But she and other executives Page moved out of
his inner circle were not completely sidelined, the
sources said. Mayer still has a "huge job," said
another person familiar with the matter.
Whetsone was promoted to senior vice president
in April. The changes to the group reflect the shifting
influence within Google's top ranks, said first
source, who added that changes were natural
with a new CEO in place. "I think Larry was thoughtful about how he
approached this, and I don't know of too many
bruised egos. Some change is expected to
happen when the power center shifts," the
source said. Page did retain some members of the original
"OC," including finance chief Patrick Pichette, Chief
Business Officer Nikesh Arora and Chief Legal
Officer David Drummond. It was unclear if Eric Schmidt, who ended his 10-
year stint as CEO to become Google's executive
chairman, and co-founder Sergey Brin have
formal roles on the L Team. Schmidt is often traveling as part of his new role,
while Brin focuses on advanced research projects
that are less directly related to the day-to-day
business. Founded by Page and Brin in 1998, Google has
grown into a corporate behemoth, with roughly
$29 billion in revenue last year and nearly $43
billion in cash and securities on its balance sheet
as of the end of September. While Google has dominated Internet searching
for a decade, the company has struggled to find
its footing in social networking, with Facebook,
Twitter and other start-ups stealing Web traffic
and engineering talent. Under Page's watch, Google has launched its
most ambitious challenge to Facebook's social
networking dominance with the Google+ social
network. In August, Google said it would acquire mobile
phone company Motorola Mobility Inc (MMI.N) for
$12.5 billion, a deal that allows Google to add
hardware capabilities to its Android smartphone
software. At the same time, Page has pruned the
company's sprawling portfolio of products,
eliminating projects involving green energy and
health among others, even as headcount has
swelled to more than 31,000 employees. "More wood behind fewer arrows" is how Page
described his approach, when speaking to
analysts on a conference call this summer. "Focus and prioritization are crucial given our
amazing opportunities," he said, noting that
Google had substantially increased its "velocity
and execution" with its new management
structure. (Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Peter
Lauria and Steve Orlofsky)
