No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention

by Reed Hastings

To instigate a culture of transparency, consider what symbolic messages you send. Get rid of closed offices, assistants who act as guards, and locked spaces. Open up the books to your employees. Teach them how to read the P&L. Share sensitive financial and strategic information with everyone in the company. When making decisions that will impact your employees’ well-being, like reorganizations or layoffs, open up to the workforce early, before things are solidified. This will cause some anxiety and distraction, but the trust you build will outweigh the disadvantages. When transparency is in tension with an individual’s privacy, follow this guideline: If the information is about something that happened at work, choose transparency and speak candidly about the incident. If the information is about an employee’s personal life, tell people it’s not your place to share and they can ask the person concerned directly if they choose. As long as you’ve already shown yourself to be competent, talking openly and extensively about your own mistakes—and encouraging all your leaders to do the same—will increase trust, goodwill, and innovation throughout the organization.