Don’t be hasty, Hastings | Why Netflix should think twice about abandoning its culture of 'employee freedom'

In the world of sports, there’s a phenomenon known as the commentator’s curse – the tendency of a player to make a mistake right after the commentator waxes lyrical about their talent or abilities.

Apparently, the curse also applies to editors. Less than a month ago, I wrote about Netflix’s culture playbook, including five reasons why the deck - which has been viewed over five million times and is arguably one of the most influential pieces of content in the HR industry – is so brilliant.

Just a few short weeks later, the Wall Street Journal has reported Netflix is strongly considering amending its playbook to remove the “freedom and responsibility” section.

Senior Netflix executives, including co-founder, former co-CEO, and now Executive Chairman Reed Hastings, who co-authored the original culture deck, discussed the decision during its annual business review meeting in Los Angeles as they mulled over ways to trim the culture deck for existing employees and future hires.