📓 Netflix's unique approach to culture

Hi friends! Liz here. 👋🏾 This is my first Monday in your inbox in a few weeks and I’m so excited to share some updates. But, before I get into all of that, I hosted my first ever Friendsgiving on Saturday and it was so much fun. I made an 11lb turkey alongside some vegan friendly dishes, and since this is a work related newsletter all I’ll say is if you’re looking to switch things up this holiday season, google “vegan scalloped potatoes”. 

Life-changing.

Ok. On to more serious matters. First of all, the Modern Admin website got a makeover! I’ve also added an archive page so you can access all of our past issues. 

Second, last week I shared our first ever ebook - Building Culture That Works. It’s an all-in-one guide to celebrating 12 months of culture, along with free templates and over 100 vetted resources you can utilize to support your team. And I have a special discount for newsletter subscribers. Use the code NEWSLETTER at checkout to get $30 off. 💌

Today we’re chatting all things Netflix & their unique approach to culture.

Let’s get into it! 

DO IT FOR THE CULTURE:

It turns out the leader of streaming isn’t just great at creating binge worthy entertainment. They also have cracked the code on how to create happy, high performing teams. Since 2020, Netflix has won awards for Best Company Compensation, Best Leadership Teams, and Best Company Culture.

So what is their magic formula? 

In an interview, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings mentions that the term “family” is misplaced. He states “if someone isn’t performing well, you will let them go. Oftentimes without severance. In that action alone, you’re not treating a team member the same way you’d treat a sibling or a parent – where there might be a bit more focus on feelings. But when you look at the organization through the lens of a pro sports team, you’re constantly hiring talent and letting go of talent all in the name of ‘winning the game’”.

From day 1, prospective hires are told that Netflix is not a career-management company. Managers are not expected to be career planners, and individual contributors aren’t promoted into management roles simply because they are strong performers. Instead employees are encouraged to take charge of their own growth, learning from top performing colleagues and managers and either rising in the company when it makes sense to or seizing a great opportunity elsewhere.

Patty McCord argues that annual performance reviews, retention plans, employee empowerment and engagement programs aren’t enough to stand up great cultures. As their former chief talent officer for 14 years, she’s best known for being a co-creator of Netflix’s infamous culture deck, and in her book Powerful she goes on to state that “yes, engaged employees probably deliver higher-quality performance, but too often engagement is treated as the endgame, rather than servicing customers and getting results.” 

The first step in building a great culture is knowing what type of culture you currently have and then determining what type of company you want to be.

At the time of their deck creation, Netflix had 11 years of trial and error, not just in how they hired employees but how they scaled their company. 25 years since their launch, Netflix knows who they are.

They offer a great alternative, prioritizing customer-centric culture (see it defined in our Building Culture That Works guide excerpt below) but does that mean engagement doesn’t matter and team lunches have to go out the window? Of course not.

High performing, customer-centric cultures & fun team events can exist at the same time. In fact, perhaps it’s the best of both worlds.

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Until next time, stay modern.

-Your fellow admin