Did you yodel? Tell the truth now, did you? If not, you’re one of the few people inhabiting the planet who would miss the opportunity to Yahoo! Since two college guys, Jerry Yang and David Filo, started getting press time for their “search engine” in 1994, Yahoo! has remained one of the darlings of the industry. There’s something about the technology, the name, and the way Yahoo! does business that has kept the company one of the world’s favorite and most recognizable brands.

Once Yahoo! was the company to beat in the search engine market. Microsoft, earning the title of “Evil Empire” from IBM, was really Yahoo!’s only competitor in the early days. Microsoft was suffering from a serious public relations dilemma over snubbing the fast-developing open source world. The world loved Yahoo! for the very thing it hated Microsoft for – it was meant to be enjoyed by internet users without preference for platform or operating system, and it was meant to be free. The company was built because of a fascination with information and technology and the converging zone between them. If you’re thinking, “Well, those are the very strengths that Yahoo continues to offer,” you’d be right. Back in 1994, things went along quite well for Yahoo!, until Google came along in 1999. The problems for Yahoo haven’t abated since that time. What were the problems that kept Yahoo! from staying on top?

Some of the “problems” aren’t really problems at all – it’s the way Yahoo! does business; the way it treats its employees; the way it treats its customers; the way it views itself. Another “problem” may have nothing at all to do with Yahoo! as a company, but simply has to do with time. Yahoo didn’t change over time. Consider how Google has changed – not only on the outside, but on the inside too – more than half of the people leaving Google now cite “too big and can’t make a difference,” as their reason for leaving. And that is definitely not a problem at Yahoo! Which is why it hasn’t changed. (Incidentally, recent press reports that Google’s CEO, Eric Schmidt, is now sitting on the “Evil Empire” throne.”

Yahoo! The Company

There are a lot of analysts who think the Yahoo-Microsoft “Alliance” spelled the end of Yahoo!. Not so. In fact, the recent Alliance, and a ten-year legacy of fighting off veiled hostile takeovers and buy-outs, may have painted a false picture of Yahoo! to the world. The takeovers suggested that Yahoo! was in trouble when it was not. In reality, money and weight from Microsoft cast that image, and competitive desires there and at Google made it even more impressive – at least to an impressionable Wall Street and investor world. Consider, however, the company has stayed true to its ideals, and remains clear about its purpose. Yahoo! successfully beat those attempts, repeatedly, and today may actually have the advantage of once again, defining its place in a great new industry. What would that be? Doing what it has always done, keeping it simple, and developing new and better ways to file, organize and present information.

Yahoo’s structure is true to its purpose. Dividing things up into categories like, “Integrated User Experience,” “Communications,” “Communities,” “Search,” “Media Products & Solutions” and “Mobile” makes sense. It’s how the company sees itself. It’s how the company sees and develops its products. Notice there is a purpose built right into any new product – it has to be useful and meaningful to one of those groups. The definition trims and defines the product line. It streamlines the way people get things done for customers and within the company too. It makes sense to the creative innovators that lead and work at Yahoo!.

As a potential employee, you can be glad that some of the world doesn’t ‘get it.” Yahoo! is highly likely to continue as a strong presence in the technology sector. The company is true to its core of collecting, organizing and dispensing information – free. It’s a refuge for true technologists who still want to find a place where they can create. At Yahoo! you’re not likely to have to choose between great technology innovation and a push to drive production and profits. Sure, they count too, but they’re telling a story at Yahoo!, and the people there know that some things just may be more important than corporate profits and money.

The one big change that did present a problem for the company was addressed when the Board tied new CEO, Carol Bartz’ compensation to improvement in stock prices. Recent reports of aggressive research and improvements at a steady pace coming out of Yahoo! mean that while the company is definitely under new supervision that is bent on raising share prices, they are still retaining the essence that makes Yahoo! a great company.

The Products

Within each of those broader business categories lie Products-Based Offerings and Content-Based Offerings. There are only a few Product-Based Offerings. These include Yahoo! web mail and Messenger, Maps, and classifieds/personals options. In addition, Yahoo! 360° offers blog space, commerce opportunities (like Auto!) and a few small business solutions . Why the products? Because there are information opportunities there. And there are advertising revenue dollars there too.

Content-based offerings are also juice for the advertising machine. The better the content, the better the “integrated user experience,” the happier both users and advertisers are alike. Of course, privacy is always a concern, but Yahoo! jumped ahead years ago (2003?) by becoming the best security provider among all of the free search and email services. Yahoo is a natural for web security-minded job seekers, and for those who are interested in creating new privacy benchmarks in the industry. (See Yahoo faces privacy test with new e-mail features in News & Current Events for more on Privacy & Security at Yahoo!)

The best way to look at products from the employment perspective is to take a close look at what’s going on at Yahoo! Labs. This site is always changing, and so are the projects. The projects feed product development at Yahoo!. There are hundreds of them – enough to appeal to all levels of techie zealotry. Even if you’re not one of those “left brained” yodelers, the User/Consumer Experience team is always looking for better ways to create that pleasing and effective experience Yahoo! is known for.

Just know that essentially, by becoming Microsoft’s Search partner, the company can finally be left alone to do what it has been doing better than anybody for more than 15 years. Look at Yahoo! as the lab of happy, non-evil scientists who are “inventing the future of the internet.”

Financials

In a recent discussion, an industry professional remarked how they were constantly amazed at Yahoo!’s traffic numbers. The company, despite all the changes and rumors and reports to the contrary, attracts hundreds of millions of users every month, and is still one of the most trafficked Internet destinations as well as a world class online media company. Still, hovering between $13 and $20 a share for the last year, the company may finally level off after being tossed around by speculation for two years about whether Google or Microsoft was aimed to pounce on Yahoo!’s diminishing market share.

As an employee, your questions about financials should go beyond stock price. The good news is, as Yahoo! continues to shine in its activities, whether with Microsoft or elsewhere, the Wall Street picture should brighten, and share prices should start inching toward the targets, although stretching to $24.00 may be a bit too steep of a climb. Economic conditions will certainly play a part in this turn-around. Once the gossip and speculation about Yahoo!’s future begin to settle out and the company’s longevity and clear purpose become more evident to investors, the picture should start to change. The best thing you can do as an employee is to become an important catalyst in that settling and leveling out process!

Market & Competition

The one thing that did change considerably with the Yahoo!-Microsoft Alliance is the competitive market for Yahoo!. Microsoft is no longer the target, nor the threat. And with Google at a whopping 73% of the market (estimated), Yahoo is wise to spread the risk in continuing the business, and branching out (or branching back out) into content arenas where Yahoo already holds a substantial portion of the market. There will be more competition in that area as well. Companies like Demand Media (IPO filed 8/8/10) will continue to make this area interesting. Yahoo! has the reputation, the technology know-how, the territory well mapped and staked out, and it’s in a good position to do well by its core strengths. The company is already focused well on the important strengths areas it knows and in which it does historically well. It is also in the best of all possible position among its competition, to become a strong and defining leader in information management and distribution through technology.

How is this different from Google? How will Yahoo! even begin to compete? Google has changed a lot in a very short time. The company is already suffering from a sizeable exodus of employees and talent because size and playing market games with Microsoft are not what many true technology innovators are looking for. In fact, technology developers, the innovators, usually don’t like “size,” because they prefer to initialize their work in small, and hopefully scalable environments. Small is good. So long as it scales, small is good. Which may mean Yahoo! is right back where it needs to be; away from the competitive arena that wanted Yahoo! to become another big company, and back in the comfortable spot of solitude in which to create things that make sense, and make a difference.

What does that mean for the potential employee? You should be an expert at content sales and also on deciphering content needs. Design is obviously important, but given Yahoo!’s simplistic approach to just about everything, the quality of information is more important. Simplistic does not mean ineffective. Yahoo! has some, if not the best organized and presented web information out there. But you know that now, right?

Yahoo! – Employment

Yahoo! is a great place to work. If you like serious people who like to have fun making a difference both in the office and in the rest of the world at large, Yahoo is a good place for you. It’s probably one of the last of the original technology companies where you can, and will be expected to, make great, original contributions, and support customers in outstanding ways. And it’s a small environment that packs a huge impact in its user base! You’ll be reaching 1 out of every 2 people online around the world every day.

Yahoo also stands out among the industry and competition by employing women in more than 36% of the company – that’s actually about a 10-15% difference over the industry standard range of about 75% male. Does that mean the company is more “female friendly?” Possibly, but it’s more likely a stronger indicator of the importance Yahoo! places on creativity, user experience, communications and community – all of which are great roles for both sexes.

On the benefits side, Yahoo! has an excellent compensation package that includes the usual, and many perks found on-site in it’s four main locations. Stock options may not be a great investment in the short run, but for the long term, Yahoo! will, in all likelihood, redefine itself and its market to regain the value not apparent at this time. Since the company goal is to be “the center of people’s online lives by delivering personally relevant, meaningful Internet experiences,” it’s a safe bet to safe that Yahoo! is living up to its vision.

Yahoo is always looking for people to contribute excellent engineering and technology skills to all areas of product and experience development. Other important skill areas lie in corporate strategy, HR, brand and women’s marketing and, of course, all types of product, development, service and network (and other!) engineers. Expect a fun, collaborative spirit – people are aligned to meaningful work categories here too. You’ll be interacting with people from all walks of life who share passion for their field, excitement for the work, and a high level of commitment to the future of Yahoo! and the rest of the folks here on earth.