I am a founder, CEO, advisor, investor, best-selling author, and former member of Alphabet/Google’s executive management group.

I co-founded and was the former CEO of Humu, which was acquired by Perceptyx in 2023. Humu closed the gap between employee insights and actions. I am also the co-founder and Chair of Gretel.ai, a leading synthetic data platform for developers. I’ve had the privilege of being an advisor, investor, and Board member to incredible companies, including Addepar, BetterUp, Carbon, Guardant Health (NASDAQ: GH), Heidrick & Struggles (NASDAQ: HSII), Maven Clinic, Neeva (acquired by Snowflake), Ninjatech, Taboola (NASDAQ: TBLA), and Uber (NYSE: UBER).

From 2006 to 2016, I served as the Senior Vice President of People Operations (CHRO) at Google/Alphabet, where I was a member of the company's Executive Management Group. During my time there, I saw the company's revenues grow 15x to $90B and its employee base expand by 12x, all while navigating two CEO transitions. I oversaw acquisitions such as YouTube, Motorola, Nest, and hundreds of other companies. I testified before Congress on immigration and employment and provided advice to various federal government departments. Under my leadership, Google was recognized over 150 times as an exceptional employer, including being named the #1 Best Company to Work for in the United States seven times. I co-founded the field of “People Analytics,” which brought academic-quality rigor and Google-paced innovation to people management. Additionally, I co-led the development of what is now the Google Jobs API and search product, the only technology developed outside the engineering function to be integrated into core Google Search.

I wrote the New York Times best-selling book WORK RULES! Insights from Inside Google to Transform How You Live and Lead, which has been published in more than 25 languages, won numerous “book of the year” honors, and sold over 750,000 copies. I’ve donated 100% of the proceeds to charities supporting immigrants, education, and veterans. I serve on the Advisory Council of the Tent Partnership for Refugees and was previously a Trustee of Pomona College.

Earlier in my career, I worked as an executive at General Electric, a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, and even as a professional actor. I was briefly ranked #1 in the world in the video game Assassin’s Creed. I earned my bachelor’s degree in international relations from Pomona College, graduating in three years, and an MBA from the Yale School of Management. I came to the United States as a refugee, emigrating from communist Romania in the 1970s.