It's worked pretty well for Google, wouldn't you say? ;) Ultimately it depends about who works for you. Some people need a well defined framework to perform we

It's worked pretty well for Google, wouldn't you say? ;) Ultimately it depends about who works for you. Some people need a well defined framework to perform well, and for those people the "Siebel approach" makes perfect sense. On the other hand, some people absolutely hate rules and conventions that seem silly to them, and need to be free from artificial constraints to perform at their maximum (that includes playing foosball after spending hours fixing a complex algorithm). This is likely the kind of person that works at Google. One category of people isn't inherently "better" than the other— it's just different. I have friends who went to some of the top businesses schools in the world and perform very well in renowned firms, but they'd be completely lost and unproductive if they had a Google environment. On the other hand, I have brilliant CS friends from undergrad who would be extremely frustrated and unproductive if they had to show up to work in a "formal attire" at 9am and had to follow strict rules and hierarchy. As an employer, know the kind of people you employ. As an employee, know who you are and how you perform best.