Google HQ cycling initiative: who rides, which trips, daily operations, success metrics

You are a product manager asked to propose a cycling program for Google's headquarters campus in Mountain View. Describe who the program serves, which problems it solves, how it runs day to day, and how you would judge whether it succeeds. ```hint Start from the trips List the trips people make on and around the campus, such as hops between buildings, rides to lunch, and legs to a shuttle or home. Decide which kind of trip the program must win before choosing bikes, parking or rules. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Is this a new program, or a redesign of a bike offering the campus already has, and if so, what is going wrong with it? - Which trips are in scope: hops between campus buildings only, or also commuting and rides to transit? - Who may ride: employees only, or also contractors, interns and visitors? - What is the main goal: saving employees time between meetings, cutting car trips and parking demand, sustainability, or wellness? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A clear program goal and target trip type, justified by how people move around the Mountain View campus - Rider segments (meeting hoppers, lunch riders, transit connectors, visitors, people who cannot use a standard bike) with a chosen focus - A concrete design for the chosen form of program (a shared fleet, support for personal bikes, or a mix): bike types, how riders get, ride and park a bike, and the rule for taking bikes off campus - Operations: theft and loss, maintenance, getting bikes to where they are needed, safety and liability - Success metrics with guardrails, such as rides per week, availability at peak times, injuries and cost per ride ### Follow-up Questions - Bikes keep disappearing from campus. What do you change without making the bikes harder to use? - How would the design change for employees who need an electric or adaptive bike? - How would you decide whether to bring the program to other Google offices?