How does Netflix innovate? Just like any organization that has a track record of innovation, you have to start with it’s culture. Luckily, you can learn about Netflix’s culture from the CEO himself. In his book, No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention, Reed Hastings describes 4 steps which all employees follow within Netflix to pursue an idea they’re passionate about.
Tag Archives: netflix
Netflix’s culture is a prime example of one that isn’t afraid to reinvent itself
We are in a constant state of becoming, and it’s not entirely obvious to anyone or any team that is starting out, and nobody tells you this in school, that we must reinvent ourselves.
Case in point Patty McCord, former Head of HR for Netflix and the person credited with creating their culture, believes that the ideal culture isn’t afraid to reinvent itself:…
Infographic: Most Disruptive companies in tech by the numbers
in Innovation
What is disruption?
Disruptive companies create innovations that invade the market, force change, and create new sectors of the industry. And for companies like Google, Apple, Netflix, Skype, Tata and Pandora, disruption is their game.
And what do the most disruptive companies in technology have in common? They challenged the conventional market and created a new one. …
Can mastery and innovation coexist?
in Innovation
Jonathan Fields posted this question in a Psychology Today article last week. Here is my answer and would love to hear yours.
It’s a great question and not at all difficult to answer, though it’s better said than done. First of all, mastery is never achieved. It’s a goal, but a goal we’ll never reach. As much as you think that somebody is ‘the master’ of something, it’s just a psychological illusion. It’s your human biases at work. It’s an illusion because you’re already thinking that it can’t be improved in some way. And that my friend, is your endgame.
In the world of sports this phenomenon is more obvious, and even the people who are considered the best at what they do will tell you they’re always improving because they know they’ll never fully master their craft.
In the business world it’s not all different. Companies have evolved since forever, some started as a completely different business than what they are today. You may master some process but that process will eventually become irrelevant. It will be replaced by either another process (incremental) or by an unforeseen evolutionary paradigm (disruptive).…
A great customer deserves a special gift continuously
But that gift can’t be that obvious.
It’s always interesting to me how some organizations delight their customers. Or how they assume their customers will be delighted.
The image above is a promotional email from Scientific American Book Club, it was delivered to my inbox with the title: A great customer deserves a special gift like one of those solid wood outdoor playhouses. Your clients who are also coffee lovers may appreciate gifts like a coffee mug funny. You may also consider giving out custom office supplies; visit sites like https://www.swagify.com/custom-office-supplies to see more options.
The title got my attention, but the offer didn’t!
Why? Because their offer makes me feel like it’s a hard sell. It’s repetitive and predictable. It actually annoyed me. I mean, are book clubs still relevant? I’m sure in some cases they still are but I’ve never actually felt like I’m in the SCIAM Book Club.
Also I can get those books at Amazon delivered to my Kindle for less. The other problem is I’ve been a SCIAM Book Club member for two years and have so far bought two books from them and it wasn’t even by choice. I was forced to.
Meanwhile, as an Amazon Prime member I don’t pay taxes and get free two day shipping on most orders. And on top of that, Amazon just threw in free online video streaming rights to about 5,000 TV and movie titles. All that for $79/month.
Am I delighted? You bet!
So what gives?
The best way to delight a customer is to exceed and/or break their expectations. A type of gift that breaks/exceeds expectations is the one that isn’t directly related the offering a customer expects. What do I mean? For example, us Amazon Prime members didn’t expect to get free online video streaming with our subscription when we signed up. It would’ve been more common to expect a lower price or quicker delivery (incremental value) on our purchases. While that may make us happy it certainly would not have exceeded our expectations.
The element of surprise is the ultimate equalizer
Think about it this way, when you are dating a girl or guy everything starts out really fast and you just want to do everything for your partner to keep them interested. You want to keep them entranced. But as that relationship grows and reality settles in, most of the time, that ‘want’ disappears. Your partner knows your tendencies and knows what to expect. You become predictable. A bore.
The way to break this pattern is to do something unexpected, to surprise.
And so it is the same with the relationship between a customer and an organization. But in this case, the customer is the receiver and the organizations has to constantly be surprising and delighting. Otherwise you risk becoming a bore, predictable, more of the same.
In a world of sameness, promoting sameness is not a viable strategy. Get that out of your head and break the pattern.
Related articles
- Is Amazon Prime’d for Streaming Success? (compete.com)
- HANDS ON: Amazon’s Prime Instant Video (mashable.com)
- Should Amazon free its Kindle? (shamelessinformation.wordpress.com)
Presentation: How Netflix fosters a culture of success
in Strategy
What makes your company unique? it’s not the slogan and name on your logo.…