5 ms·

Why I'm Bearish on Netflix

13 points by primodemus 10y ago

scdoshi 10y ago
Would be interesting to hear from netflix employees on whether this hypothesis rings true
iamleppert 10y ago
I've interviewed at Netflix twice now and have been turned down both times. Both times, not for technical reasons, for cultural reasons. The first time they told me a vague I didn't fit their "culture deck" and the second time they said I was a "brilliant jerk", despite being recruited to join by an old co-worker that liked working with me. The kinds of cultures are just excuses at the end of the day when someone on the team doesn't like you. Both times, I wasn't impressed with their products and the teams building them or what they had been able to accomplish. I don't buy the fact they hire top of market, they just pay well. The reality is you get the people who are available, at the time you want to hire. Just because you pay a bunch of mediocre people well doesn't mean you're going to get a great product. And it shows. Netflix hasn't been innovating recently. They are HBO, delivered over the Internet.
- gmarx 10y ago
  Brilliant Jerk? I wish I were hiring. That sounds great
  - CarolineW 10y ago
    I don't know how accurate the assessment is, and I don't know what kind of jerk they might be talking about, but I have worked with brilliant jerks before, and it was a relief when they finally moved on. They did amazing things, but the atmosphere became increasingly toxic, and morale, quality, and productivity all went up when they left. Having a "Brilliant Jerk" on your team sounds useful and manageable, but in my experience it's not. Again, I don't know if this was an accurate assessment, but if you want to have a brilliant jerk, all I can say is that you should be careful what you wish for.
kqr2 10y ago
But didn't this experiment already happen during Netflix's self inflicted "death spiral", ala Qwikster? Did all of the top employees leave at that point? http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/business/netflix-looks-back-on-its-near-death-spiral.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/business/netflix-looks-bac...
- guiambros 10y ago
  Also, those who got upset from getting fired (or frustrated from not getting an offer) really didn't understand the culture. It's an amazing company, but they're very clear that its culture isn't for everyone. Getting fired (or not hired) doesn't mean you're incompetent; it just means the business needs have changed, and they now need something different than you can offer. I think this [1] is probably one of the best interviews with Reed Hastings. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYhP08uuffs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYhP08uuffs
  - sjg007 10y ago
    Except it is misguided. You need high functioning teams not individuals.
    - guiambros 10y ago
      Without a doubt. But what leads you to believe that they don't have highly functioning teams?
- vidoc 10y ago
  Netflix has a long history of jacking their prices as soon as they get to the next level of subscribers. Their long term strategy might be somehow similar to ticketmaster, except that it'll be way tougher for them to get a monopoly on this market.
epberry 10y ago
What a silly reason to be bearish on Netflix. If anything you should be bearish on Netflix because they're highly leveraged and if their growth slows down they're SOL. As far as the specific "HR policy" outlined in the NYT article... I find it extremist. It seems to me that you would turn off certain kinds of people from ever applying to Netflix, people that might be highly skilled and would contribute but don't ascribe to such a dispassionate view of hiring and firing.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]

13 points by primodemus 10y ago

Would be interesting to hear from netflix employees on whether this hypothesis rings true

I've interviewed at Netflix twice now and have been turned down both times. Both times, not for technical reasons, for cultural reasons. The first time they told me a vague I didn't fit their "culture deck" and the second time they said I was a "brilliant jerk", despite being recruited to join by an old co-worker that liked working with me. The kinds of cultures are just excuses at the end of the day when someone on the team doesn't like you. Both times, I wasn't impressed with their products and the teams building them or what they had been able to accomplish. I don't buy the fact they hire top of market, they just pay well. The reality is you get the people who are available, at the time you want to hire. Just because you pay a bunch of mediocre people well doesn't mean you're going to get a great product. And it shows. Netflix hasn't been innovating recently. They are HBO, delivered over the Internet.

gmarx 10y ago
Brilliant Jerk? I wish I were hiring. That sounds great
- CarolineW 10y ago
  I don't know how accurate the assessment is, and I don't know what kind of jerk they might be talking about, but I have worked with brilliant jerks before, and it was a relief when they finally moved on. They did amazing things, but the atmosphere became increasingly toxic, and morale, quality, and productivity all went up when they left. Having a "Brilliant Jerk" on your team sounds useful and manageable, but in my experience it's not. Again, I don't know if this was an accurate assessment, but if you want to have a brilliant jerk, all I can say is that you should be careful what you wish for.

kqr2 10y ago

But didn't this experiment already happen during Netflix's self inflicted "death spiral", ala Qwikster? Did all of the top employees leave at that point? http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/business/netflix-looks-back-on-its-near-death-spiral.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/business/netflix-looks-bac...

guiambros 10y ago
Also, those who got upset from getting fired (or frustrated from not getting an offer) really didn't understand the culture. It's an amazing company, but they're very clear that its culture isn't for everyone. Getting fired (or not hired) doesn't mean you're incompetent; it just means the business needs have changed, and they now need something different than you can offer. I think this [1] is probably one of the best interviews with Reed Hastings. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYhP08uuffs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYhP08uuffs
- sjg007 10y ago
  Except it is misguided. You need high functioning teams not individuals.
  - guiambros 10y ago
    Without a doubt. But what leads you to believe that they don't have highly functioning teams?
vidoc 10y ago
Netflix has a long history of jacking their prices as soon as they get to the next level of subscribers. Their long term strategy might be somehow similar to ticketmaster, except that it'll be way tougher for them to get a monopoly on this market.

epberry 10y ago

What a silly reason to be bearish on Netflix. If anything you should be bearish on Netflix because they're highly leveraged and if their growth slows down they're SOL. As far as the specific "HR policy" outlined in the NYT article... I find it extremist. It seems to me that you would turn off certain kinds of people from ever applying to Netflix, people that might be highly skilled and would contribute but don't ascribe to such a dispassionate view of hiring and firing.

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]