????帕特里克?基恩在谷歌公司（Google）上班的時候接到過各路招募官打來的許多電話。有一陣子，身為銷售戰(zhàn)略和區(qū)域營銷主管的基恩每周都會接到一份新的工作邀請。用基恩自己的話說，這些招募人員差不多是在用乞求的口吻邀請他出任CEO，掌管某一家“怪異的，還未確定標識的技術初創(chuàng)公司”。

????基恩最終選擇了離開谷歌，由此成為數(shù)百位投入外部技術世界熱情懷抱的前谷歌人之一（這家位于加州山景城的公司神話般的崛起讓許多技術公司大為嘆服）。自2004年上市以來，谷歌從人力資源部幾乎沒有正確答案的腦筋急轉彎問題，到公司進行決策時對數(shù)據的狂熱追求，谷歌的DNA已經賦予其工程師一種或許讓硅谷其他公司無法比擬的特質，使他們成為炙手可熱的香餑餑。那么，谷歌的銷售和營銷人員的情況怎么樣？這個問題沒有并沒有統(tǒng)一的答案。

????離開谷歌的人士中，最有名氣的或許是謝麗爾?桑德伯格。曾經擔任谷歌全球網絡銷售與運營副總裁的桑德伯格現(xiàn)在是Facebook公司首席運營官，她是一位無可置疑的商業(yè)巨星。此外還有曾任谷歌亞太和拉美地區(qū)運營總裁的蘇克辛德?辛格?卡西迪。在擔任了一段時間加速合伙公司（Accel Partners）的常駐CEO和社交購物網站Polyvore的CEO之后，她創(chuàng)辦了購物網站Joyus.com。富有魅力的中東地區(qū)營銷總裁瓦伊勒?高尼姆從谷歌辭別，參與策動了埃及革命。與此同時，基恩成了網絡出版公司Associated Content的CEO，并于去年夏天將這家公司以1億美元的價格賣給了雅虎公司（Yahoo）。

????但沒有取得斐然成績的前谷歌人也有很多。蒂姆?阿姆斯特朗也許是從谷歌畢業(yè)的最有名氣的“差生”了。迄今為止，這位前谷歌銷售總裁還沒有為陷入持久困境的美國在線公司（AOL）找到止血之策。他招募然后解雇了一些前谷歌人，比如廣告銷售主管杰夫?利維克和媒體主管大衛(wèi)?恩。前期采用谷歌式專注數(shù)據的經營手法失敗之后，這家公司已經踉踉蹌蹌地換了一個又一個戰(zhàn)略。

????其他人或許僅僅只是因為選錯了東家。谷歌公司前全球銷售副總裁馬戈?喬治艾迪斯僅僅在團購網站Groupon擔任了5個月的首席運營官之后，又重返這家搜索巨頭，出任美洲區(qū)廣告銷售和運營業(yè)務總裁。2008年，谷歌東南亞區(qū)銷售業(yè)務總裁理查德?金柏成為Friendster公司的CEO，盡管這家交友網站在美國本土的聲名不佳，但后來還是被賣給了馬來西亞電子支付公司MOL global，現(xiàn)在已經成了一家游戲網站。在其他地方，有些博客對一些前谷歌營銷高管的評價一直都不太友善，一些初創(chuàng)公司的最終結局也差強人意。

????鑒于在其他地方工作有可能面臨的挑戰(zhàn)（既沒有免費食物，又沒有攀巖墻），谷歌的員工為什么要離職呢？要知道，谷歌可一直是《財富》雜志（Fortune）最佳雇主排行榜中位列前5名的公司，而且為了遏制公司的人才外流到Facebook這樣的競爭者那里，谷歌最近還大幅提高了員工薪酬（該公司拒絕接受本文作者的采訪）。

????原因之一是，這家公司的非工程師員工面臨獨特的發(fā)展障礙。谷歌根據數(shù)據來進行決策的做法是出了名的，而且公司領導層歷來不太重視廣告。在這種強烈的定量文化中，銷售人員（或其他非工程師員工）可能很難有出頭之日。

????此外就是初創(chuàng)公司的吸引力了。許多谷歌人僅僅是覺得如果離開山景城，他們或許能更快地為自己贏得更大的聲譽。市場對于谷歌銷售和營銷員工的需求是很高的。“在谷歌營銷部門有過幾年工作資歷的人都備受追捧，”硅谷獵頭公司Foxhunt首席運營官大衛(wèi)?沃斯說?！爱斎?，我說的是最頂級的1%?！?/p>

????前谷歌人基恩說：“谷歌是銷售行業(yè)挖墻腳的的好地方。這是一個非常好的培訓機構?！鼻肮雀枞藞?zhí)掌的公司往往可以獲得媒體和投資者更多的關注。此外，在一家迅速成長的公司擔任老大的機會是很難拒絕的，即使這家公司不具備如谷歌那般崇高的地位?！皳碛凶罡邫嗤母杏X非常美好，”基恩說。

????當然，許多前谷歌人還沒有經歷過大的成敗。有些前谷歌營銷或銷售員工在諸如個人信息聚合網站FriendFeed, 社交廣告公司Media6Degrees, 百科知識網站Factual以及數(shù)字和移動營銷解決方案供應商Edo Interactive這樣一些（但不限于此)頗有潛力的初創(chuàng)公司任職。還有一些銷售員工去了LimeWire和網絡視頻公司Veoh這樣的公司，后者在瀕臨破產之際被投資者收購。就目前而言，這些前谷歌人最終會成為下一個謝麗爾?桑德伯格，還是蒂姆?阿姆斯特朗，誰都說不準。

????譯者：任文科

????When he worked at Google, Patrick Keane got a lot of calls from recruiters. For a while, as director of sales strategy and field marketing, Keane would get a new offer every week practically begging him to sign on as the CEO of a "weird-undefined-logo tech startup," as he puts it.

????Keane eventually left, joining the ranks of hundreds of ex-Googlers (GOOG) who have jumped into the eager embrace of a tech world wowed by the fabulous rise of the Mountain View, California-based company. Since it went public in 2004, Google's DNA -- from HR's impossible brain teasers to the rabid focus on data in its decision-making -- has conferred on its engineers a desirability that may be unparalleled in Silicon Valley. What about Google's sales and marketing people? Results have been mixed.

????The best-known Google expat is likely Sheryl Sandberg. Formerly the company's global online sales and operations VP, Sandberg is now COO of Facebook and a bone fide business superstar. There's also Suhkinder Singh Cassidy, formerly Google's top sales executive for Asia-Pacific and Latin America. She founded shopping site Joyus.com after a stint as CEO-in-residence of Accel Partners and CEO of Polyvore. Google's charismatic Middle Eastern marketing head Wael Ghonim took leave from his job to help catalyze the Egyptian revolution. And Keane, meanwhile, became the CEO of web publishing company Associated Content before selling it to Yahoo (YHOO) for $100 million last summer.

????There are plenty of less-than-stellar performances, though. Tim Armstrong is perhaps the company's best-known flameout. The former Google sales boss has so far failed to stem the bleeding at the perpetually struggling AOL (AOL). He brought in and then canned former Googlers like head of ad sales Jeff Levick and head of media David Eun. The company has sputtered from strategy to strategy after early efforts to apply a Google-like focus on data failed.

????Others might have just picked the wrong company. Margo Georgiadis, Google's former VP of global sales, spent just five months as the COO of Groupon (GRPN) before returning to the search giant as the head of ad sales and operations in the America's. In 2008 Southeast Asia sales chief Richard Kimber became the CEO of Friendster – which despite its tarnished reputation stateside -- was later sold to Malaysian company MOL global, and is now a gaming site. Elsewhere, some blogs have been less than kind to some former marketing execs, and some startups end poorly.

????Given the challenges of working elsewhere -- no free food, no climbing wall -- why would an employee leave at all? Google is consistently in Fortune's top 5 best companies to work for ranking, and the company has recently been hiking salaries in an effort to stem brain drain to competitors like Facebook. (The company declined to comment for this story.)

????Non-engineers at the company face unique roadblocks, for one. Decision-making is famously numbers-based, and the leadership has traditionally disdained advertising. An intensely quantitative culture can make it difficult for sales staff (or any non-engineer) to get noticed.

????And then there's the draw of the startup. Many simply feel they can make a bigger name for themselves faster by leaving Mountain View. There's a high demand for sales folk as well as marketing employees. "People that have been with Google for a few years on the marketing side are highly sought after," says David Voss, COO of Silicon Valley executive staffing firm Foxhunt. "I'd say in the top 1%."

????Says former Googler Keane, "Google's a good place to poach sales talent. There's a good farm club." Ex-Googlers led enterprises tend to command more attention from the media and investors alike. Plus, it's hard to pass up the chance to be the top dog at a growing company, even one not as iconic as Google. "There's something very satisfying about having the ultimate authority," Keane says.

????Of course, many ex-Google employees have yet to meet success or failure. There are former Google marketing or sales employees at promising startups including (but not limited to) FriendFeed, Media6Degrees, Factual and Edo Interactive. Other sales staffers left for spots at the likes of LimeWire and web video startup Veoh, which was bought while on the brink of bankruptcy. For now, whether they turn out more like Sheryl Sandberg or Tim Armstrong is anyone's guess.