No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention

Many of you know how much I love the topic of corporate culture, but few of you know how much I despise reading books about the culture of different companies or all those tons of text on self-improvement and leadership. However, there are times when I have to force myself to put down an intriguing novel, and read something like No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention (https://www.amazon.com/No-Rules-Netflix-Culture-Reinvention/dp/1984877860).

To say I was blown away would be an understatement. Now, every time I turn on Netflix and see their red intro screen, I think about their corporate culture and how distant it feels to me. Netflix often inspires companies and leaders, but in my opinion, much of their culture involves practices that are hard to scale.

For instance, “Increase talent density.” The idea that a company filled with talented employees attracts more talent makes sense. Okay, Netflix, now I see why you have so much outsourcing; how else to find enough talents to cover not just the core team? However, the book doesn’t dwell much on the workhorses as outsourced staff who handle a large volume of work at Netflix.

Another example is “a culture of candor,” meaning anyone can give open and non-anonymous feedback to anyone else. It’s a good idea, provided you have a plethora of manuals and training for employees on how to give and receive feedback. Perhaps, if every employee in your company is talented, they are talented at everything, including feedback 👏

One example of this approach at Netflix is the “360 sessions,” which take place as informal dinner meetings. Each participant receives feedback from the others in turn, with a ratio of praise to criticism of about 25% to 75%. Would I want this? Hmm, probably not! 🤔 People usually struggle to commend employees, and here the “praise” is that you continue to work at the company. Netflix also has a kind of extreme — if you’re not willing to fight for your employee, then they can be let go.

But there’s a good example from Netflix that truly inspired me. It’s called “leading with context,” where a manager’s task is to provide employees with the full context for execution (strategy, vision, expected outcome), and employees are then expected to make the most optimal decisions, i.e., to develop autonomy and leadership 🤝

In short, the book indeed made an impression on me and crystallized approaches that don’t resonate with me. So, if you’re inspired by Netflix culture, I’d also suggest reading Dare to Lead by Brené Brown (https://www.amazon.com/Dare-Lead-Brave-Conversations-Hearts/dp/0399592520) — a truly great read about trust and leadership. Perhaps the book can inspire and develop your own vision of the company culture and values that you share 🙌