No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention

by Reed Hastings

hoped to promote flexibility, employee freedom, and innovation, instead of error prevention and rule adherence. At the same time, I understood that as a company grows, if you don’t manage it with policies or control processes, the organization is likely to descend into chaos.

a company with really dense talent is a company everyone wants to work for. High performers especially thrive in environments where the overall talent density is high.

A feedback loop is one of the most effective tools for improving performance. We learn faster and accomplish more when we make giving and receiving feedback a continuous part of how we collaborate. Feedback helps us to avoid misunderstandings, creates a climate of co-accountability, and reduces the need for hierarchy and rules.

It costs a lot more to lose people and to recruit replacements than to overpay a little in the first place.

No one should know your market range better than (first) you and (second) your boss.

Do not punish the majority for the poor behavior of a few.

The pratfall effect is the tendency for someone’s appeal to increase or decrease after making a mistake, depending on his or her perceived ability to perform well in general.

ADEQUATE PERFORMANCE GETS A GENEROUS SEVERANCE

PIPs rarely help employees improve and they delay the firing by many weeks.

HIGHLY ALIGNED, LOOSELY COUPLED