Technology | Google Google Turns to Algorithm to Retain Employees By Kevin Spak Posted May 19, 2009 11:52 AM CDT Copied Google umbrellas at Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) Google is dealing with the departures of several prized employees the way it deals with nearly everything: with an algorithm. The search giant has a mathematical formula it says will identify which employees are at risk of jumping ship, the Wall Street Journal reports. The formula has already spotted employees who feel underused, a key complaint. The company fears that it's lost its biggest draws—a startup atmosphere and ever-soaring stock price—now that it’s a 20,000-person behemoth. Many are leaving for burgeoning startups where they feel they can make a bigger impact. But with the formula, Google’s human resource head says they can “get inside people's heads even before they know they might leave.” Read These Next RFK Jr. suggests antidepressants to blame after shooting. Isolated tribe members show up in an unexpected place. Trump just used a spending maneuver last seen nearly 50 years ago. A government watchdog is warning the FAA about meteorologists. Report an error