According to Susan Wojcicki, Google VP of Product Management:
- Focused on a product designed for real users
- Set a strong vision about information access
- Took hiring very seriously; lots of energy into trying to hire the
right people. Most of the early hires are now VPs of major areas (of
the first 35, 6 are VPs) - Performed scientific-level analysis of what worked
I think the most important two are product and people. Get the product right and get the right people behind it. (Often, getting the product right means having the right people to define and create it.. so its a virtuous circle.)