Founded in 1997 and with its first initial public offering in 2002, Netflix is a leading online video streaming service provider operating in the broader entertainment industry with over 150 million member subscriptions in over 190 countries. The company provides entertainment services such as series, documentaries, and feature films spanning a wide range of categories and languages. The company’s head offices are located at 100 Winchester Circle, Los Gatos, California ( United States Securities and Exchange Commission,", 2018 ). A brainchild of software engineers Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings, Netflix has an ample workforce that is highly diverse. As of 31 st December 2018, Netflix had approximately 7,100 permanent employees with 97% of the labor force supporting the company's streaming segments (“ United States Securities and Exchange Commission," 2018 ). The establishment is, therefore, a high-level employer contributing to the global efforts of reducing unemployment rates.
The company has a diverse job portfolio specifically designed to steer forward its core mandates. Netflix has four broad job categories, including product, corporate functions, marketing and publicity, and content. Every one of these classifications has several other subcategories, each with a job-specific objective (“ Join Your Dream Team," 2019 ). Analyzing the job classification, one will understand the source of the success centered culture of Netflix. As mentioned above, the firm's workforce is highly diverse, with all groups of people represented. Netflix's workforce is constituted on equality and expertise with women, minority groups, and people living with disabilities all working for the company. The international status of the company demands that its team of employees reflect the global perspectives and as such it must scout and hire talented employees from different cultures and varying experiences (“ Netflix - Governance - Officers & Directors," 2019 ). Such kind of inclusion positively impacts the company’s success factors due to the diverse contributions of everyone involved.
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Netflix's top organization structure is composed of officers and directors. Officers headed by the Chief Executive Officer include General Counsel, Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Talent Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Product Officer, Chief Content Officer, and Chief Communication Officer ( Netflix - Governance - Officers & Directors”, 2019 ). These are the persons responsible for managing the other employees and the daily operations of the company. On the other hand, the firm has a board of directors consisting of eleven members. The board of directors principally deals with core investment decisions.
Factors that might influence whether Netflix recruits for a position from internal employees or the external labor market
For Netflix, several factors are considered during the recruitment period. Just like any other company, the management can either choose to recruit internally or externally. Organization culture is instrumental during the recruitment process at Netflix. Netflix has a large labor force with members with a varied set of skills, talents, and experiences. Moreover, these employees have internalized the company's mission, vision, and shared values. For a high profile job, Netflix is more inclined to hire internally than externally. Hiring internally for a critical position will guarantee the company continuity of its culture and safeguarding its values. Devaro (2016) also notes that internal hiring has little uncertainty about productivity. An employee who has gone through the ranks of the company understands its vital tenets such as judgment, communication, courage, innovation, integrity, and impact, among others. A person hired from the external labor market may take time to align their work approach to the core themes of the company (“ Netflix," n.d ). Differently, low profile recruitment may be sourced from without the organization since they will be oriented and will work under the guidance of team leaders. Hence, for Netflix, the seniority of a position, experience of a person and the company’s culture determine if recruitment will be internally or externally.
Netflix Philosophy on Internal Recruitment
As mentioned above, the company’s management has a definite philosophy when recruiting internally. The philosophy which is based on the company’s corporate culture and values provide direction to the administration when a position falls vacant. The company prioritizes its talented employees to fill positions that fall vacant. For the management to hire from among the employees, the job must be big enough, the person must be skilled, and the candidate must exhibit an extraordinary understanding of the company's culture and values (“ Netflix," n.d ). A person from outside might not have exceptional knowledge of the firm's culture and values irrespective of their talents and skills.
Does Netflix have a formal internal lateral transfer plan?
Netflix lacks an official internal lateral transfer strategy. Any lateral transfer is dependent on the involved worker's career aspirations. However, the critical consideration by the management is the input of that individual to their current team. A talented team player will likely remain in their usual team and help the other members raise their productivity (“ Netflix," n.d ) . However, there are inter-team partnerships whereby one may be requested to share their expertise in a given area with another team.
Netflix internal succession planning (vertical promotion)
Indeed, Netflix has an internal succession plan. If an opportunity for promotion arises, the management evaluates the seniority of the position and picks a suitable from among the available employees. In this company, an employee who is highly skilled and talented has a bigger chance of becoming promoted than others (“ Netflix," n.d ) . However, the company does not conduct formalized career planning but only offers opportunities for professional development.
Netflix Culture Card Deck as a person/job match recruitment tool
The Netflix Culture Card Deck is an ideal person/job recruitment that can provide one with guidance in locating employment that matches their profile. Netflix is a popular and high-performance company that prides on employing the best. From its culture deck, there are several qualities that the firm looks for in a candidate. These values include innovation, courage, passion, honesty, selflessness, curiosity, communication, and judgment. Any high profile job would prefer a candidate with the above qualities apart from their professional qualifications (“ Netflix," n.d ) . Thus, a person can use the Culture Card Deck to match their qualifications with the available jobs.
Netflix Culture Card Deck as a Person/Organization match recruitment tool
Since the Netflix Culture Card Deck has successfully been implemented in the company, one can use it to identify organizations with a similar culture to that of Netflix. A candidate employee will research the culture of an organization and attempt to match their lifestyle and objectives with that of Netflix. The company which matches such requirements will automatically fit the desired profile (“ Netflix," n.d ) . For example, one may be interested in a company that provides opportunities for development, such as having stunning colleagues and challenging work-related tasks.
Type of employment candidate that Netflix Culture Card Deck might attract
The Culture Card Deck works to set stringent but friendly work environment standards that favor highly disciplined employees. A person who is not team-oriented, talented, and productive may feel intimidated by the Netflix Culture Card Deck. From the card, it is evident that the organization insists on high performance, a culture founded on the values stipulated therein. Innovation is particularly a crucial element of the Culture Deck Card, and the management cannot compromise on the quality of its team. Such candidates must be focused, risk-takers, creative, adept communicators, and team players. I am attracted to the Netflix Culture Card Deck and its holistic approach in setting up a dynamic work environment (“ Netflix," n.d ) . I would also love to work at Netflix and use it as a platform to grow my career by interacting with highly talented people who give their all in every challenging task.
Legal issues that Netflix would face
Netflix in its Culture Card Deck has mostly attempted to evade legal traps by critically thinking through each element of the tool. It adequately takes care of the employees, investors, and other stakeholders' welfare. However, concerning the high-performance part, an employee may feel that he was unfairly relieved of their duties. The culture of Netflix is predominantly established around the element of performance. If the management feels that an employee is not performing as required, they are informed that the company cannot accommodate them anymore. A worker who is new to the company may feel that the management was unfair and thus decide to seek compensation at the court ( Desai, Lockett & Paton, 2018 ). Regardless of the legal foundations of such a case, it can be damaging to the brand image of Netflix.
Identify lessons that might be personally meaningful to you
Three lessons are particularly meaningful to me. As a person who aspires to work in a company in the class of Netflix, I now understand aligning one’s character, talents, and skills with an organization's vision and objective are crucial. The seven values of Netflix are a reflection of an exceedingly professional person working for a company that has its objectives indicated spelled out. Second, any person endeavoring to work with Netflix must be ready to cultivate a high level of discipline, a trait that will enable them to fit in such a dynamic environment with minimal problems. Last, high performers are not determined by the number of hours they work but by the quality of effort they put in every instance of their work. Thus, innovation is an essential personal attribute that provides one with opportunities for growth.
Conclusion
Netflix is a leading online video streaming service provider whose corporate culture plays an instrumental role in the recruitment process. Recruitments at Netflix are more likely to be conducted internally rather than from the external labor market. Internal hiring will ensure that the company gets an employee who understands its value, corporate culture, and shared objectives. Internal recruitment is based on the principle of prioritizing exceptional talents, skills, and experience besides having a solid idea of the company's vision and goals. Lateral transfers at Netflix are highly unlikely since the firm prefers to develop and maintain strong teams whose continuity is hardly disrupted. Differently, there is a vertical promotion plan at Netflix, where the management is inclined to fill a position internally ( DeVaro, 2016 ). The Netflix Culture Card Deck is a tool that can be used as both a person-job and person-organization match tool since it will ensure that both the organization and the employee get a high-value bargain. The Culture Card Deck will attract high performers, focused, and team players who also professional communicators. Last, it is the policy of Netflix to filter nonperformers from their labor force, a culture that can result in a series of lawsuits from disgruntled employees. Lawsuits can tarnish the name and reputation of the company.
References
Desai, M. N., Lockett, A., & Paton, D. (2018). Information asymmetries in the hiring process and the risk of new leader dismissal: insights from English Premier League soccer organizations. British Journal of Management , 29 (1), 26-42.
DeVaro, J. (2016). Internal hiring or external recruitment?. IZA World of Labor .
Join Your Dream Team. (2019). Retrieved 1st October 2019, from jobs.netflix.com/teams
Netflix - Governance - Officers & Directors. (2019). Retrieved 1st October 2019, from www.netflixinvestor.com/governance/officers-and-directors/default.aspx
Netflix. Netflix Culture: Freedom & Responsibility [Ebook] (1st ed., pp. 1-124). Retrieved from abinoda.com/clippings/Netflix-Culture.pdf
United States Securities and Exchange Commission. (2018). Annual Report Pursuant To Section 13 Or 15(D) Of The Securities Exchange Act Of 1934 (pp. 1-40). Washington, D.C.: United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved from s22.q4cdn.com/959853165/files/doc_financials/annual_reports/2018/Form-10K_Q418_Filed.pdf
