Exploring the Art of Possible with Google and Alphabet President and Chief Investment Officer Ruth Porat

Summary

Redefiners Podcast Episode Summary Title: Exploring the Art of Possible with Google and Alphabet President and Chief Investment Officer Ruth Porat
Release Date: December 4, 2024
Hosts: Hoda Tahoun & Clarke Murphy
Guest: Ruth Porat, President and Chief Investment Officer at Alphabet and Google

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1. Introduction and Guest Background

The episode begins with co-hosts Hoda Tahoun and Clarke Murphy introducing Ruth Porat, the esteemed President and Chief Investment Officer at Alphabet and Google. Ruth brings a wealth of experience from her nearly three-decade tenure at Morgan Stanley, where she held significant roles including CFO, before transitioning to Google in 2015. Her impressive career trajectory encompasses leadership in both the financial and technology sectors, board memberships at Blackstone and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and active involvement in the Council on Foreign Relations and Bloomberg Philanthropies.

2. Career Transition: From Morgan Stanley to Google

Clark Murphy [02:09]: "Our guest today is Ruth Porat, who's the president and chief investment officer at Alphabet and Google. She's responsible for Google's corporate investments and investment vehicles, including the capital arm of Google Ventures Cap G and the other Bets investment portfolio..."

Ruth discusses her pivotal decision to move from the finance industry to the tech giant Google. Inspired by a conversation with Bill Campbell, a renowned coach for tech leaders like Steve Jobs and Larry Page, Ruth realized her highest and best use lay in leveraging her financial expertise within the rapidly evolving technology landscape. Despite initial reservations about returning to a CFO role, her admiration for Google and previous involvement in its IPO made the transition appealing and seamless.

Ruth Porat [03:15]: "When he said Google, the reaction Clark just had, I kind of went, of course. And I had actually worked on the IPO of Google, admired Google immensely and so jumped when that opportunity arose."

3. Leading Through Change: Lessons from the Financial Crisis

Ruth draws parallels between her experiences during the financial crisis and her leadership at Google, emphasizing the timeless nature of effective leadership principles.

Ruth Porat [06:11]: "These lessons are relevant in good times and in bad."

She outlines three critical lessons:

1. Identify and Fortify Vulnerabilities Early: Just as liquidity was crucial during the financial crisis, recognizing and addressing vulnerabilities proactively can prevent organizational downfall.
2. Have the Will and the Means: Balancing the determination to act with the necessary resources is essential to address challenges before they escalate.
3. Develop a Robust Team: Building a diverse team with both broad vision and deep experience enables leaders to navigate complex issues effectively.

4. Advice for Leaders Transforming Their Careers

Ruth emphasizes the importance of authenticity and continuous learning for leaders aiming to pivot across industries.

Ruth Porat [09:31]: "Be authentic to what you know and be honest with oneself about what you still have to learn."

She shares personal anecdotes highlighting how leveraging her unique insights in financial institutions and technology allowed her to establish credibility and drive success in new roles.

5. Technology, AI, and Future Leadership Skills

Discussing the rapid advancements in technology and AI, Ruth highlights four primary opportunities AI presents:

1. Advancing Scientific Frontiers
2. Economic Uplift in Trillions Globally
3. Solutions to Major Social Issues (Education, Healthcare, Climate)
4. Enhancing Cybersecurity

Ruth Porat [13:00]: "Each one of us needs to radically rethink what is in the art of the possible."

She underscores the need for leaders with a growth mindset who can adapt swiftly to technological changes, ensuring their organizations remain at the forefront of innovation.

6. Personal Stories and Leadership Insights

Ruth shares her personal battle with breast cancer, detailing how it has shaped her perspective on leadership and resilience.

Ruth Porat [18:24]: "I learned to love the word manageable... I learned that you can have a good outcome even in the face of daunting challenges."

Her experiences have instilled a deep sense of optimism and a commitment to democratizing healthcare through AI, ensuring high-quality care is accessible globally.

7. Investing in the Future: Google's Strategy

Ruth delves into Google's investment philosophy, focusing on long-term growth and prioritizing high-impact areas.

Ruth Porat [25:10]: "Each of us needs to invest for long term growth. Because if you're not investing for long term growth, you're sowing the seeds of your own destruction."

She explains how Google evaluates and prioritizes investments, using examples like Google Translate and AlphaFold to illustrate the transformative potential of AI-driven projects.

8. Philanthropy and Creating Access to Opportunities

Ruth highlights Google and Alphabet's philanthropic efforts aimed at bridging the digital divide and enhancing global access to information and education.

Ruth Porat [27:15]: "Everyone deserves the opportunity to have a shot at the best life they can lead... Infrastructure and investments in a resilient workforce with the digital skilling that's needed."

She articulates a holistic approach, combining technological infrastructure with education and workforce development to foster inclusive growth.

9. Navigating Regulatory Landscapes

Drawing from her financial crisis experience, Ruth discusses the importance of constructive engagement with regulators to balance technological advancement with societal safeguards.

Ruth Porat [29:15]: "We need to be clear eyed about the art of the possible and fortify to make sure that we're being responsible, collectively responsible in everything we can do."

Her approach emphasizes collaboration and responsible innovation, ensuring technology serves as a positive force for global development.

10. Rapid Fire: Personal Insights from Ruth Porat

The episode concludes with a rapid-fire segment, offering personal glimpses into Ruth's life and leadership philosophy.

• Essential Apps: Maps and YouTube for music and podcasts.
• Expertise Wish: Becoming a concert pianist.
• Motivation: "Feeling like I'm having an impact, doing something valuable, learning."
• Philanthropic Cause: Addressing the opportunity gap through education and skills development.
• Book Recommendation: "Maniac" by [Author], highlighting the life of physicist von Neumann and Demis Hassabis.
• Advice for Aspiring Leaders: "Keep learning and being open to new ideas. Ask what's your highest and best use?"

11. Conclusion and Key Takeaways

Clarke Murphy [37:43]: "What is my highest and best use? And when the world changed, you changed. But you knew what those opportunities were and you took advantage of them."

Key themes from the episode include:

• Adaptability: Embracing change and continuously seeking growth opportunities.
• Optimism and Resilience: Maintaining a positive outlook in the face of personal and professional challenges.
• Strategic Investing: Prioritizing long-term growth and innovation to stay ahead.
• Responsible Leadership: Balancing technological advancements with societal responsibilities.

Ruth Porat's insights provide a blueprint for leaders aiming to drive transformative change within their organizations while navigating the complexities of a rapidly evolving global landscape.

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For more insights and discussions with visionary leaders, listen to Redefiners wherever you get your podcasts.

Transcript

[Hoda Tahun]

Call them change makers, call them rule breakers. We call them Redefiners.

[Clark Murphy]

Join us in conversation with daring leaders who are creating extraordinary impact and driving change from around the globe.

[Hoda Tahun]

Each episode gives you a fresh perspective on your leadership and career journey. I'm Hoda Tahun, a leadership advisor at Russell Reynolds.

[Clark Murphy]

I'm Clark Murphy, the former chief Executive officer and a leadership advisor. And this is Redefiners.

[Hoda Tahun]

Hi everyone and welcome back to Redefiners. I'm Hoda Tahun, a leadership advisor at Russell Reynolds Associates, and I'm here with my very esteemed co host, Clark Murphy.

[Clark Murphy]

Hoda, great to be here. Appreciate it.

[Hoda Tahun]

So, Clark, before we get started, just a quick reminder to all of our listeners that you can find every episode of Redefiners and the Leadership Lounge on YouTube. If you're currently watching Redefiners on YouTube, just go ahead and hit that subscribe button below so you don't miss an episode. And for our audio listeners, don't forget to rate redefiners wherever you get your podcasts. We would love your feedback, Clark. Technology has been changing pretty rapidly in every facet of our lives and sometimes technology redefines our careers.

[Clark Murphy]

I agree. I think we we have adapted to how we work and live and it never ends. It's only accelerated. And as we talk about today, is leading in a world that's changing so rapidly also changes how leaders lead. Our guest today, we're very excited. She has redefined her own career inside a world that's redefining itself. So not only will we talk about technology and how it affects how we lead, but how did she make the changes that she has to lead, having gone from Wall street to Silicon Valley? So it's a double Redefiners. How do we think about the changing world and how do we think about leading a changing world?

[Hoda Tahun]

And today's guest can hopefully also think about the topic of redefining our careers in an ever changing world of technology, as she has been one of the most powerful people in both financial and technology industries over the past two decades.

[Clark Murphy]

Well, our guest today, who is too modest to have agreed with that last statement, I can tell you in advance, our guest today is Ruth Peratt, who's the president and chief investment officer at Alphabet and Google. She's responsible for Google's corporate investments and investment vehicles, including the capital arm of Google Ventures Cap G and the other Betts investment portfolio, which we'll come back to in a little bit. She was previously CFO of Google and prior to joining she was CFO of Morgan Stanley and had a number of roles there, which included the co head of Tech Banking Global Head of the FIG Group. She's also a member of the Board of Directors of Blackstone Council on Foreign Relations, Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Board of Trustees of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

[Hoda Tahun]

What an impressive and phenomenal biography, Ruth. Welcome to Redefiners.

[Ruth Peratt]

Thank you. It is great to be here with both of you.

[Hoda Tahun]

So, Ruth, you were at Morgan Stanley for almost 28 years before making the move over to Google as CFO in 2015. What made you switch industries and was there a draw to the pace or energy about Google and the larger tech industry that stood out for you?

[Ruth Peratt]

Well, my career at Morgan Stanley, I think was invigorating in part because I moved around a lot throughout my time there. My view was that as the world changed, new opportunities arose and I wanted to be open to those. In fact, the key phrase that I used throughout my career is what's my highest and best use? And that did open doors that I didn't know existed. I started in mergers and acquisitions and thought that was the only thing I would ever want to do. But as the world changed, I then ended up taking on leadership of a private equity coverage group and technology financial institutions, eventually leading to the role as CFO at Morgan Stanley. And it was an incredible opportunity and privilege to be CFO at that time. It was right after the financial crisis, still coming out of the financial crisis in 2010 when James Gorman took on as CEO. And it was still pretty rough back in 2010 coming out of the financial crisis. And I think we did a lot of really important work over the years to put Morgan Stanley in a very strong position. And I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to work with him as closely as we did. But by 2015, my question that I always ask in my career, what's my highest and best use? And I had a wonderful conversation with somebody by the name of Bill Campbell. He was written up in a book called the Trillion Dollar Coach because he had actually coached Steve Jobs and Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Eric Schmidt and others. And so I had this wonderful conversation with him where I asked that question, how to think about my next chapter. And he actually was the one who said, after a long conversation, the obvious answer for him was Google, CFO of Google. And my reaction had been, I don't want to be a CFO again. But when he said Google, the reaction Clark just had, I kind of went, of course. And I had actually worked on the IPO of Google, admired Google immensely and so jumped when that opportunity arose. And it's been, it's been quite a run.

[Hoda Tahun]

And was it an easy transition to go from finance to technology? Were there a whole new, different language or culture as you kind of made that, made that transition?

[Ruth Peratt]

In zero respects, it was very easy. I'd grown up out here in Silicon Valley. My father was a physicist at Stanford. I had run the technology banking group, capital markets group, worked on a lot of the IPOs through the late 90s. And so it was familiar. And as I said, having taken Google public, many elements of it were familiar. The apparel was very different. That was my first question. Showing up in blue jeans and hoodies was different. But other than that, it really. This question about how do you just keep asking what's the art of the possible? Was an important part for me and really the allure, the magnet to come out here.

[Clark Murphy]

Ruth, you've lived through change, transformation, and quite frankly, crises as well, both at Morgan Stanley and then at Google. What have you learned about dealing with and leading through change?

[Ruth Peratt]

I find that I go back to lessons from the financial crisis over and over again. And during the financial crisis, just for context, I was working very closely with the US treasury and the Federal Reserve through all aspects from the housing crisis, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, all the way through to AIG at the back end. It's probably one of the most meaningful times in my career, working so closely with Secretary Paulson and Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Fed, obviously, at the time. And those lessons were searing and critically important for me. What struck me when I got to Google is that I was asked to take people through what actually happened during the financial crisis and what lessons did I think were most relevant. And when I was first asked it, it seemed odd because Google had only lived through sunny days. And I was trying to see how relevant those lessons were. And it struck me importantly to your question. These lessons are relevant in good times and in bad. And I keep coming back to three, three key messages, three key lessons. The first is that it is imperative for each of us as leaders to identify our greatest source of vulnerability early and fortify against it. For a bank, one of the most important things that one needs is, is to have liquidity to keep your operations moving. It's really liquidity. When you get choked with lack of liquidity, that's what leads to the demise. And in that moment, in that fall, there was nothing a bank could do to really get the liquidity needed. Whereas six months prior it would have been easy to do and not very expensive to do. So the second really important lesson is something that Secretary Paulson said to me during the crisis, which is you need to have the will and the means. And too often by the time you have the will, in other words, the political will, you no longer have the means, the financial means. And I think each of us can think of times as we've been leading where you delay making the tough call that you need to make, it becomes that much more expensive later and sometimes impossible to even grapple with and handle the magnitude of the issue. And the third very important one is you need to develop a team, pull together a team that brings in the requisite experience. I keep saying I need two things. I want to have horizontal vision, connect the dots to all of the related issues. And you also want people who have instinct based on experience. And again, in the moment, you can't do that. And so that's why this notion of having the strength of a team that is enabling you to think ahead, build the strength that one needs, fortify ahead of time, is critically needed in good times and bad. And I certainly saw that as we were leading on a lot of the growth that's been so exciting here at Google, but also going through some of the tougher times like Covid. So those would be the three lessons I take from it.

[Hoda Tahun]

I think that's a great transition into what we also wanted to talk through around leading through change in different industries. And so what advice would you have for leaders who are looking to transform their own careers and go from one industry to the next? You outlined some really fantastic thought pieces around what people can take in terms of learnings. But how do then folks apply that as they're thinking about their own careers?

[Ruth Peratt]

I think the most important is to be authentic to what you know and be honest with oneself about what you still have to learn. So I'll give you an example. I just mentioned that during the financial crisis, I had been leading the Financial Institutions group at Morgan Stanley, responsible for banks and insurance companies. But the most important part of that experience was the work with U.S. treasury, with Hank Paulson and Chairman Bernanke. Out of that, I was asked to become CFO of Morgan Stanley. And when I moved into that role, notwithstanding the fact that I had been at Morgan Stanley for several decades, I'd been on the investment banking side, the advisory side, I really didn't know the sales and trading side at the level of depth that I knew I would at a certain point in time. And so My first series of meetings with investors, I actually anchored more on what's the regulatory environment coming out of this financial crisis because I knew I had a differentiated set of insights there that would be valuable, that would help contextualize the types of investments that we were making at Morgan Stanley to fortify ourselves. And it really established, I think, a credibility because I was anchoring on things that I knew well, maybe even in a differentiated sense, as distinct from trying to pretend I knew everything about the business at one time. Another example is when I was asked to run the financial institutions group at Morgan Stanley. And this actually brings together your first question and this most recent one. My initial reaction was there was no way I was going to do that. Really, it was too boring. Like I spent my entire career avoiding anything boring. I worked in technology, you know, kind of private equity and somebody I respected greatly said, you got to trust me on this. Financial institutions is just like technology ballpark. 20 something percent of the global economy, multi sector. We have banks, insurance, asset managers and technology. When I was running it, we had hardware, software, semis, Internet. And so I did, I said, I'll take it on. And he wanted to do something helpful to open doors for me in the first meeting. So we set up my first meeting covering this new industry with Larry Fink. I'm thinking, okay, this is not going to end well. Extraordinary leader of an asset management firm. I know nothing about asset management, but what I did know was I knew about technology because I'd run the technology banking business at Morgan Stanley. And Larry has always been a leader in technology. And so my view was if I spoke to him about BlackRock Solutions rather than other parts of the business, we would be able to go deeper than most of the bankers who covered financial institutions and it would establish a base upon which we could build over time. And so again, go to what you know idiosyncratically well. It has credibility and authenticity. You can be differentiated and you will fill out the rest over time.

[Clark Murphy]

So just pulling on that thread a little bit. So technological change or executives adapting to different roles. As you think about the tech world, where we've gone from digitization to machine learning to now and cloud and AI, what skills do organizations look for when it comes to finding tech leaders and thinking about disruption, innovation, et cetera, do you look for different things or what are they from 28 years on wall street and what you look for?

[Ruth Peratt]

I think it's an exciting question at this moment in time because I do believe that we are extraordinarily fortunate to be Living in this time with AI and the implications for society and the way we talk about it at Google, there are really four primary opportunities with AI. First, very exciting, is advancing the frontiers for science. The second is just the economic uplift that's been estimated to be in the trillions globally. The third is really advancing solutions around some of the biggest social issues facing humanity around education, healthcare, climate. And the fourth is really enhancing cybersecurity. And two examples may best to help get at your question. You know, at Google, one of the many things I'm proud of is what we've done with Google Translate. And over the last 20 years, our teams have been working to expand the number of languages included within Google translate. They're now 260 languages.

[Hoda Tahun]

Wow.

[Ruth Peratt]

In the last six months alone, the team added 110 of that. 260. In other words, been a vertical lift. We added 500 million people on the planet can now access information in their their own language. But that vertical lift is important because if you're not at the front end of change, how do you catch up when something's under a vertical lift? The second, which starts to get even more closely to your question is really the work that was done by Google DeepMind to deliver something called Alphafold. And I'm so proud of my colleagues Demis Hassabas and John Jumper, who were awarded the Nobel Prize for AlphaFold. What AlphaFold does is it predicts protein structures. They went on a path to predict the protein structure for all proteins. So they have now predicted for more than 200 million proteins. What's important about that is that it is being described as the single greatest contribution to drug discovery in our lifetime. And without AI applied to predicting protein structures, we're talking about millions of scientists years to try and reach this. In other words, not in our lifetime. And to me, what is so profound about this is the way Demis Hassabis thought about it when he embarked on the journey. And so many people said to him, how can this be possible? And his answer was, why not? And I think the importance with AI and it starts to get to your question more directly is each one of us needs to radically rethink what is in the art of the possible, just as he did with AlphaFold. And that's true with how do you connect with customers? What's operating efficiency? What are risk analytics? How does a public sector leader better communicate with constituents? What is the art of the possible has fundamentally changed. And so when I think about the type of people that are imperative, it's always been people with a growth mindset who want to learn, who push themselves. And that is true now with a sense of urgency because you just go back to this Google Translate and the vertical lift is what we're seeing in so many areas. So you want to move with speed and think broadly about what is the art of the possible.

[Hoda Tahun]

We'll be right back with Ruth Peratt. But first let's hear from Robert Voth, a Managing Director in our Chicago office, who will discuss a critical challenge facing banking leadership today.

[Robert Voth]

Despite CEO succession being one of the Board's most critical responsibilities, it remains a blind spot for many US Banks. Our research into CEO succession across the top US Regional banks in the last decade found that around half didn't approach succession planning in a thoughtful way. The implications of poor CEO succession planning on financial performance are clear. When we analyzed the short term price reactions of 50 publicly traded banks following initial CEO succession announcements, we found that banks experienced the most significant impact on shareholder value when their CEO left abruptly without any public announcement of a long term succession plan. But there is good news. The Harvard Business Review found that banks that implement robust succession plans can boost their valuations and investor returns by up to 25%. In our latest article, we identify five key strategies to help your organization effectively plan for CEO succession. To learn more about what these strategies for succession are and how you can ensure a smooth leadership transition, you can find the full paper via our Show Notes or by visiting russellreynolds. Com.

[Hoda Tahun]

And now back to our conversation with Ruth. This is just amazing because we continue to hear how AI is not only disrupting but advancing all of these different business areas, but in particular the healthcare space. And so what you're describing now is just so profound. And I think what we will continue to see is AI will continue to find new ways to diagnose and detect and treat diseases like cancer. And we know that you've personally battled breast cancer not once, but, but twice. Tell us about your experience and really how that has shaped your influence and your perspective on leadership.

[Ruth Peratt]

So when I was first diagnosed with cancer, it was terrifying. My children at the time were 5, 7 and 9. And just wanting to make sure I was there to see them grow up to be their mom was absolutely, absolutely terrifying. And I think that one of the important points to your question is one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in our lifetime. 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in their lifetime. And so there are some really important learnings that I've had that I really actually like to share with people because I think there's a level of optimism which when you first hear that awful diagnosis, it's hard to realize that you can have. The first thing is I learned to love the word manageable when I was first diagnosed and realized I needed to go through chemo as well. It was a terrifying concept, but I actually learned that even chemo was manageable. I was one of the lucky ones. I know some people do have reactions to it, but this was 20 years ago, and it's only gotten better since then. And the level of care, the quality of care and the success rate is extraordinary. The process itself is manageable. The second really important lesson that I learned, and I learned this the second time I was diagnosed with cancer. It felt like at that point it was this never ending uphill battle. And I spoke to someone who had had cancer a number of times, and he told me a story that I've repeated frequently because it inspired me so much, which was that when you have cancer, on good days, a bird will come to your shoulder, and that bird will say, you may think you're having a good day, but actually you have cancer. And I was assured that over time, the bird would come less frequently and one day that bird would fly away for good. And it was a really important message because when the bird showed up, and it does, anyone who's had cancer, I would bet, has had this freaking bird show up, you know, to say, you're not going to be coming back and get out of there. And I want to own my life. I want to enjoy life. And you can. And that was the way I got it back. For me, it was really valuable to hide and work. I got joy out of that. Everyone has their own way to do it. You can't prejudge. You can't know until you're in the moment. But I would say that level of confidence about the pace of change is something that everyone should have. And with AI, the pace of change is nothing short of staggering. The final thing I would say sort of goes back to the way you framed the question. Everyone needs to get that diagnosis early. Because the difference between getting it early and getting it late can be the difference between survival. Anyone who's pushed off getting a checkup, go get a checkup. What I'm really proud of, again with AI, is some work that our teams did years ago. We can now with AI, identify diagnose early stage metastatic breast cancer and other cancers at the highest quality level. When I called my oncologist and asked if this was as profound as I thought his comment was, the only way to democratize healthcare is with AI.

[Hoda Tahun]

Wow.

[Ruth Peratt]

Because it means that any, any patient anywhere on the globe has the same quality read as I had at Memorial Sloan Kettering. And it's an operating leverage for radiologists everywhere. So I look, I think the main thing is with the advances in care, remain optimistic. So many cancers are actually now in that land of manageable. I appreciate not all of them are. And there's a lot of work being done to add to the list of cancers that are manageable. But for many of us, that bird is the right metaphor. It will fly away.

[Clark Murphy]

You know, I'll surprise some people here. Hopefully I'll get through this. So I've never told anybody I'm a two time cancer survivor. The most recent this summer. And the one thing that I've seen my friends do since then is on social media, they ring the bell. Because I was so private, I didn't want to tell anybody, you know, and particularly second time, I don't know about you, Ruth. We have four children who are in and out of college now. But you know, going back to the kids the second time and saying, so I told you I'd be fine and I was. But we're back at the plate swinging again. And luckily for me, early discovery. Your message is what made me decide to speak up. Ruth. I'm 61 years old. Men and women, you know, gotta have checkups. And I caught both of them early. Somebody else caught the first one, I got the second one. But I think psychologically, as I see people. You talk about the bird, I see, I just saw a video, a friend of mine ring the bell and walk out of msk. I think ringing the bell is important psychologically. We all face things differently, but, you know, I think it's important and go early, talk to the bird, ring the bell and then try and help others as best you can. You know, those, those are redefining moments. That's, you know, that's for sure.

[Ruth Peratt]

If I can add one thing, I'm so, I'm so sorry you're. You two are going through it. It's a large club that we have.

[Clark Murphy]

Yeah, we're not alone.

[Ruth Peratt]

What I went through it the first time and I was bald and that had a mastectomy and I've never actually talked about that publicly. And working in a bank with basically only men, it was not something I wanted to talk about. But I found that when I did, the outpouring of support and care was about the best medicine that I could have. And I think that to your point, Clark. Yeah. Everybody wants to ring that bell with you. And it does, does fortify.

[Clark Murphy]

It does. It's good, it's a good moment. I might go ring a bell just for the hell of it.

[Ruth Peratt]

Go ring a bell.

[Hoda Tahun]

Yeah, I think you should.

[Clark Murphy]

As we talk about investing in our lives and our future, you look, have looked investments your whole life. One of them now is in other bets that I think most people don't know about. So many different areas that you oversee the investment to change the world, to democratize healthcare, whatever it might be. How do you think through where to make the bets and how much and when. What's the process of thinking through these huge bets? And it's so important at Google for, for all of us.

[Ruth Peratt]

So I think the most important thing is each of us needs to invest for long term growth. Because if you're not investing for long term growth, you're sowing the seeds of your own destruction. And so you need to aggressively invest. And sometimes you're taking bigger bets than others. But you need to be very clear eyed and stack rank. What are the biggest priorities? Where can you deprecate pre f resources to self fund the most important priorities? And that needs to be a rigorous process in every area across one's portfolio. And for us it starts with search. The search experience continues to evolve. You see it now with AI overviews, everything we're doing enhancing what is the user experience, how do you access information and youth for example, we're very quick to move to like it's all about voice and it's you know, increase, it's about video. So it continues to evolve. We need to be evolving the product to stay ahead of where we need to be. We're investing for long term growth because if you wait until you get to that point, which is a banker, I saw too many companies do and then they're like now what do I do? If you're not investing early, you're sowing the seeds of your own destruction. And it is very exciting within the portfolio to see what are some of the efforts that we've been nurturing for years and you're now experiencing firsthand. You know the number two tourist attraction in San Francisco today is Waymo self driving cars. And for anyone who comes out, you need to pop in one because it truly is an extraordinary experience that's been years in the making and now you're increasingly seeing it in cities across the United States. But again it starts with identify the highest Priorities, identify what you can free up to fund those highest priorities. Self funding, part of what the growth is across one's portfolio.

[Hoda Tahun]

And Ruth on that thread, in addition to overseeing the investments, you also oversee the organization's philanthropic efforts. So a lot of the expansion and the access to digital infrastructure and seeking initiatives globally. Can you tell us a little bit more about what you're doing at Google and Alphabet to create more access to opportunities for everyone?

[Ruth Peratt]

So the key thing I find as I travel the globe is leaders everywhere are saying they want to be part of this digital transformation. They see the economic uplift that's available with the proper application of AI across industries. They see the opportunity to address education, to address healthcare, to address agriculture. And so their question is how do we become part of this, how do we become an attractive place for investment? And I keep coming back to what I visually think of as a triangle, which is Google idiosyncratically has products and services that enable people everywhere to have the same quality access to information and markets that we do sitting here in the Bay Area or you do in New York. That's the suite of Google products and services that we're very proud of. But to your question, the only way to access that is if there are investments in technical infrastructure, second part of the triangle. And if you have a population that is educated, that has the skills, that is digitally proficient, digitally skilled. And so that's the triangle solutions infrastructure and really investments in a resilient workforce with the digital skilling that's needed. That's what we look to provide as we go into any, any market, any country with whom we're working.

[Clark Murphy]

You've worked in the financial crisis obviously with regulators. We talked about treasury and Hank Paulson where you're dealing with regulators now. Both dealt with the uncertain, the fear of the uncertain and the power of a few investment houses in Wall Street, G sibs and now tech companies are there too few with too much power. How do you navigate showing the opportunity, the democratization to talk to the regulators about this world and the role of technology?

[Ruth Peratt]

The opportunity with technology is profound for every country, 85% of economic growth over the last 80 years is attributable to technology. And so the most important thing as we're sitting here today is to identify how collectively we can benefit from the upside while protecting against mitigating the downside risks. We need to be clear eyed about the art of the possible and fortifying to make sure that we're being responsible, collectively responsible in everything we can do. I've already Spoken about the upside, it's profound. Whether it's advancing science, it's the trillions in economic uplift, it's around healthcare, it's around education, the upside is clear. And the concern to your question about downside risk is appropriate, important, and we're very focused on it. And so I think it's our obligation to work constructively with regulators when they ask any of the questions or looking at any of the issues around workforce transition or energy utilization content to make sure that we're operating on a solid foundation. We need to constructively engage. And I found the same thing when I was in financial services. As they were looking to implement changes coming out of the financial crisis, those who were in banks, who were putting country first, trying to understand what are some of the issues around implementation became valuable partners to people in the regulatory world who are trying to understand how to land something that enables the upside benefit without the downside risk. And so it's imperative to be constructively engaging, responsibly, putting the problem solving first in order to get this upside down side right.

[Clark Murphy]

What do you take from Wall street and technology to other industries? In this power of technology, whether it's building supply or construction or, or any across industry, how can you take this knowledge to other industries as a leader and think about how we accelerate some of those?

[Ruth Peratt]

I think it's such an important question because as I said, we're privileged to be living in this amazing time in history with AI and it does require each of us to radically rethink all elements of our business. Because what you don't want to do is be at the back end of something that is evolving. It is easier to prevent than to fix. It is easier to be ahead of the curve than trying to catch up. So to give you two examples, one of the ones I get really excited about, and a lot of this is through Google Cloud and the work that they do with their partners. One example is with logistics leaders across a whole host of different areas. They've come to us and said, how can we optimize our routes? And that saves them money, it saves them time. And in many instances what they're also saying is thank you. It's also addressing our carbon footprint and some of the goals that we've set for ourselves there. And I give you one in the public sector, which I really like. In the state of Minnesota, we were asked to do some work with the public sector where they wanted to better provision services to their constituents. And initially they said they wanted to be able to do that. In four primary languages. I hadn't even realized there were four primary languages that would be critical. There. There were. But after a number of months they came back and said actually we want to extend it by another 26 languages. The ability with Google Translate, whether you're in the public sector or the private sector to meet people where they want to be met in their own language is so easy with AI. And so again, each one of us has opportunities, whether it's how you interact with customers or how you manage your expense line so you can invest more for long term growth. There are a host of opportunities are relevant for every industry. You have to radically rethink what you're doing.

[Clark Murphy]

So I have to give a little boost to google translate. Our 23, 23 year old son has just, it's a long story, doesn't matter. Has just been in Serbia, Romania and Lithuania amongst some other crazy places. And unfortunately some difficult situations arose in Romania and Serbia, and Serbia in particular, where he had a little, a lot of risk in a certain situation and he whips out his phone and he's putting Google Translate in and he's speaking Serbian on the screen. That de escalated what could have been a really bad situation.

[Ruth Peratt]

Wow.

[Clark Murphy]

So, Ruth, I'm super happy that Google Translate has come along as far as it has.

[Ruth Peratt]

Thank you. That's a great story.

[Clark Murphy]

It's true. When it just happened last week.

[Ruth Peratt]

Wow.

[Clark Murphy]

As our listeners know, we like to end each podcast with some rapid fire questions to get to know you even better. Ruth, this is where we ask you a series of questions and you respond as quickly as possible. First thing in the top of your mind, are you ready?

[Ruth Peratt]

Go for it.

[Clark Murphy]

Besides mail, phone and Calendar, what are the three apps in your phone you can't live without?

[Ruth Peratt]

Probably Maps and YouTube, both for music to start my day and pump it up the right way, and for amazing podcasts.

[Hoda Tahun]

If you could instantly become an expert in something, what would it be?

[Ruth Peratt]

Probably, I'd probably want to be a concert pianist.

[Hoda Tahun]

What motivates you the most?

[Ruth Peratt]

Feeling like I'm having an impact, doing something valuable, learning, you know, my father probably in many respects I turn back to something that he always said as I was growing up, said education is a passport to freedom. It's a passport for life. And he was a Holocaust refugee, made it to the United States years after the war. I was born in England and loved this country. In his final days, he talked about the risk of coming to this country. I think that the opportunity to do things that make a difference to me, that's the most inspiring.

[Hoda Tahun]

That's beautiful.

[Clark Murphy]

And speaking of making a difference, if you were to devote the rest of your life to philanthropy, what cause would you choose? What single cause would you choose?

[Ruth Peratt]

You know, it builds off of what I just said about my dad. It's addressing the opportunity gap. Everyone deserves the opportunity to have a shot at the best life they can lead. And there are many paths to that. I think at the umbrella would be around opportunity. And so probably the most important is around education and skills to thrive in the world in which we live.

[Hoda Tahun]

And if you were to give one book to everyone on your team, what would it be?

[Ruth Peratt]

Well, the book I just finished reading was Maniac. And I read it because the author is such an extraordinary author. And the his first book I read was When We Cease to Understand the World. So I immediately went right into the next one. And importantly, it traces the life of an extraordinary physicist, von Neumann, and then it ends with our colleague Demis Asavas in the final chapters. So everyone at Google has to read that book.

[Clark Murphy]

Last question. Knowing what you know now, what advice do you give to someone who thinks they want to be a C suite leader and they're entering their career?

[Ruth Peratt]

Well, when I entered my career, it didn't occur to me I would be a C suite leader. And I had never thought about it. I think that people who plan to deliberately miss things along the way and that what actually opened the door for me to be here was the fact that I wasn't rigid in my thinking and I didn't have a clear plan. My plan was just to continue growing and learning and having an impact. It goes back to an earlier answer when I said the most important thing for me is to keep asking what's your highest and best use? And if you keep addressing that question, what's your highest and best use? And you don't have blinders on, you will find that leaders eventually say, wow, if you did X and Y and A and B, you can probably do something else as well. And that's why doors then kept opening. And I didn't take all of the doors. You have to know yourself and know when to say no. But it's also important to have that debate with people you trust and respect who are thinking out for you, not just for the expedient problem they have. So you know when to turn down a door and when to take the door. That's what I would say is the most important. Just keep learning and being open to new ideas.

[Clark Murphy]

Brew, thank you again for being here. What an amazing conversation. And broad, ranging from learning from the past to thinking about how we invest in the future and optimize all of that, and thinking about optimizing in your own redefining of yourself. You said, listen, what is my highest and best use? And when the world changed, you changed. But you knew what those opportunities were and you took advantage of them. When we look towards the future and think about the power of technology, the power of AI in particular, the most important thing is asking why not? This sense of optimism, to ask why not and act on it, to reframe the impossible to the possible. And if you think broadly, you can act on the art of possible. And when things like AlphaFolds and Google Translate came from people who said, let's think about what we can do and not worry about what we can't do. We also talked about some of your journeys and mine through cancer. And the fact that 20 years on the quality of care, the level of care and the process is so much improved that it is manageable. And 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. But there's room for optimism. Don't let the bird scare you off. And that speaking to others creates an outpouring of support and humor and ability to take on anything. And last, as we think about these big thoughts, where do you invest for the future? How does Google think about where to make the big bets? You said it's really important that you don't just move on from what success is. You invest in search and it's gone to voice because that's what the next generation wants. What you have must evolve or it'll be gone. So don't just focus on the new new thing. Make sure you continue to invest primarily in what you have and make it improve by investing in long term growth. You focus on the highest priorities and you invest in long term growth or you sow the seeds of your own destruction. But there's also the obligation to have a foundation around privacy and creating a solid foundation for society that we trust technology, we trust these investments. So we look both for where we can go, but protecting how we get there. Thanks again. Have a great day. We appreciate you being here.

[Hoda Tahun]

Thank you so much, Ruth.

[Ruth Peratt]

Thank you. It's wonderful being with you.

[Hoda Tahun]

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Redefiners. For more compelling insights from leaders across industries and around the world, listen to Redefiners wherever you get your podcasts.

[Clark Murphy]

And to learn more or to get in contact with us, visit our [e-mail], find us on LinkedIn and follow us on on X. Formerly known as Twitter raonLeadership.