Google as company tries to establish an "engineering-driven" culture where how things get done matter.
Years ago, they tried to temper the bias-toward launches with a need for actual "impact" -- this led to a common saying of "Landings, not launches."
We end up with an amalgamation of technical complexity and launches as demonstrations of impact instead.
The problem is... The visibility and measurement of "landings" usually takes time, and the amount of time needed can be well-beyond the horizon of when a regular-level employee needs to be able to have their performance and promotion assessed. The effects of some things may take a year or longer to see. And as said above, measuring actual impact isn't always easy.
Years ago, they tried to temper the bias-toward launches with a need for actual "impact" -- this led to a common saying of "Landings, not launches."
We end up with an amalgamation of technical complexity and launches as demonstrations of impact instead.
The problem is... The visibility and measurement of "landings" usually takes time, and the amount of time needed can be well-beyond the horizon of when a regular-level employee needs to be able to have their performance and promotion assessed. The effects of some things may take a year or longer to see. And as said above, measuring actual impact isn't always easy.