Human Resource Management
Netflix
Name: Georgina van den Burg, Isabelle Gobel & Stijn Veenman
Date: 28-03-2021
Location: Amsterdam
Teacher: M.C.A. Henrich
Study: Hotel- and Event management
Course: Human Resource Management
,TIO University
Management summary
Netflix is an American production company and popular streaming platform, which is currently
headquartered in Los Gatos, California. They have managed to establish themselves as market leader
for online shows and movies, and have undoubtedly set the standard for at-home streaming services.
The company offers endless entertainment that is consistently updated and monitored to ensure the
best quality to all customers. Netflix’s success can be due to a variety of things, primarily their ability to
saturate the market by ensuring that their services are available everywhere, in different ways.
Besides this, they also take price, content and quality into consideration, which significantly separates
them from their competitors. By implementing a unique algorithm, customers are able to experience a
personalized experience. Additionally, Netflix was one of the first streaming platforms to produce a
successful membership pricing scheme, allowing people from all walks of life to be able to afford it.
However, throughout the years Netflix has faced various challenges surrounding management and an
increase in pricing and overall competition.
The company was founded by Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings in 1997 in Scotts Valley, California.
Since it’s expansion to the rest of the world, Netflix is now internationally recognized by a large
majority who use it on a daily basis. In 2020, Netflix produced over 6.64 billion US dollars in revenue,
and they aren’t planning on slowing down. Another aspect that separates Netflix from their
competitors, is their unique management system and hiring process. They utilize a U-form
organizational structure, which entails that all departments must answer and report to a higher official.
Additionally, it is all separated into functional groups, geographical divisions and operations. Although
this sounds like a common hierarchy, Netflix promotes general transparency and honesty. All
employees are able to join support groups, as Netflix acknowledges and aids minorities through
support and discussion. Furthermore, the top 100 officials in the company can see how much each
employee is being paid, in order to prevent any inequalities regarding pay and the common gender
gap. The largest difference from any other employer, is that Netflix does not allocate ‘tasks’ to their
employees, instead they can decide how much work they wish to complete, as long as they get the
task done. Netflix states that they only hire the best of the best, and due to their amazing pay and
benefits, it is competitive company to apply for.
Netflix’s hiring process is unlike any other. All applicants are required to study their work culture and
expectations, which Netflix compressed into a 30-minute presentation. They have however, faced
backlash from previous staff about the intense work culture. Employees are encouraged to evaluate
each other instead of having their superior do it, in order to promote honesty in the workplace.
Previous employees stated that this often-caused animosity between each other and demotivated
them greatly. In general, Netflix wishes to implement more modern approaches to effectivity in the
workplace, but not all are properly thought through and applied to real life people. A possible solution
could be a combination of both peers and supervisors evaluating, allowing for more of a balance within
the work force.
To conclude, Netflix’s ability to start and keep up with current media and management trends is
impressive and explains why they are the current market leader for online streaming. Although their
management system isn’t entirely perfect, they try to take everyone’s needs and worries into account
and switch it into something positive.
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 2
,TIO University
Table of contents
Management summary..........................................................................................................................2
1. Strategic Human Resource Management...........................................................................................4
1.1 The Human Resource Department of Netflix................................................................................4
1.2 The Human Resource strategy of Netflix......................................................................................5
1.3 The Key Performance Indicators...................................................................................................6
1.4 HR Management themes..............................................................................................................7
1.5 The mission and vision..................................................................................................................7
2. The analysis and design of work.........................................................................................................8
2.1 Netflix’s U-form organizational structure.....................................................................................8
2.2 Netflix’s approach to job analysis.................................................................................................9
2.3 Job offers; Job design, specifications & descriptions..................................................................12
3. Human Resource Planning & Recruitment.......................................................................................16
3.1 Challenges...................................................................................................................................16
3.2 Strategic Planning.......................................................................................................................16
3.3 Recruitment & Selection.............................................................................................................16
4. Competences, testing, selecting and interviewing...........................................................................18
4.1 Competences of Netflix..............................................................................................................18
4.2 Key functions and their competencies........................................................................................19
4.3 The interview method of Netflix.................................................................................................20
5. Motivation and Sustainable Human Resource Management...........................................................21
6. Social security, Pension, Sickness, Employment contracts, staff handbook......................................23
7. Employment conditions, labour law.................................................................................................27
8. Reward.............................................................................................................................................29
8.1 Reward policy of Netflix..............................................................................................................29
9. Employee Development & Employability.........................................................................................30
10. Performance Management.............................................................................................................33
10.1 Netflix’s performance system...................................................................................................33
References............................................................................................................................................36
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 3
, TIO University
1. Strategic Human Resource Management
1.1 The Human Resource Department of Netflix
In this chapter, we will explain what the responsibilities of the Hr department are within Netflix and I will
tell how Netflix reinvented HR.
Netflix is one of the biggest streaming websites
used all over the world. Sometimes you even
forget that this major platform also needs a lot of
employees, but this was not always the case.
Netflix started their platform the 29th of August
1997. This was the moment that DVD’s were still
very trending. Their first success was in late
2001, Netflix had been growing quickly and now
reached 120 employees. This was also the
moment that they were planning an IPO. IPO
means that they wanted to offer its shares for
sale to the public through the stock exchange.
But things changed quickly after the dot-com
Figure 1: Patty McCord (Netflix, Patty McCord)
bubble and the 9/11 attack. They needed to put
the IPO on hold and fire a third of the employees. This was really hard for the company, because they
just started to make their company bigger. Then even more unexpectedly, the DVD players became a
hot Christmas gift. Luckily, by early 2002 their DVD-by-mail subscription business was growing
significantly. Out of nowhere, they had more work to do but with 30% of the employees gone.
After this turbulent start, they gained more knowledge when you look at the HR department. The CEO
of Netflix talked to a lot of the employees and apologized for the workload. The employees on the
other hand didn’t mind, they told the CEO that this was better than before. The employees that needed
to leave the company in 2001 were inadequate for the jobs and the other employees needed a lot of
time to fix the mistakes of others. Now, they had more time to focus on themselves. Eventually this
created the talent philosophy of Netflix: “The best thing you can do for employees—a perk better than
foosball or free sushi—is hire only “A” players to work alongside them. Excellent colleagues trump
everything else.” Netflix has now 8600 employees working within their company. This is a major
growth since 1997.
The HR Department of Netflix works a little bit different than the standard HR Departments. Netflix
does not really work with formal policies. Over the years, they learned that it works better when you
ask people to rely on logic and common sense instead of on formal policies. Netflix says that they only
hire people who will put the company’s interest first, who understand and support the desire for a high-
performance workplace. This is also why they do not need those many HR policies (McCord, 2014).
One of the persons who really boosted the HR Department of Netflix is Patty McCord. Patty McCord is
a human resources consultant and executive. She was the chief talent officer at Netflix, where she
was influential in establishing the corporate culture of employee empowerment, but only those with
outstanding achievements.
Responsibilities
The HR department is also called the talent team of Netflix. This talent team is responsible for
identifying, attracting and developing Netflix’s team of stunning colleagues. This also includes
Recruiting, Employee services and the Human Resources Business Partners. They strive to create an
amazing experience for the Netflix team members by creating strong partnerships that are deeply
integrated in the business in order to keep an eye on Netflix’s Cultural Values of Freedom and
Responsibility. Next to this, they want to create a diverse company that reflects that world that we live
in (Netflix, Talent and Recruiting, 2021).The most important responsibility of the recruitment team of
Netflix is: “Find and hire amazing people to make Netflix great.”
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 4
Netflix
Name: Georgina van den Burg, Isabelle Gobel & Stijn Veenman
Date: 28-03-2021
Location: Amsterdam
Teacher: M.C.A. Henrich
Study: Hotel- and Event management
Course: Human Resource Management
,TIO University
Management summary
Netflix is an American production company and popular streaming platform, which is currently
headquartered in Los Gatos, California. They have managed to establish themselves as market leader
for online shows and movies, and have undoubtedly set the standard for at-home streaming services.
The company offers endless entertainment that is consistently updated and monitored to ensure the
best quality to all customers. Netflix’s success can be due to a variety of things, primarily their ability to
saturate the market by ensuring that their services are available everywhere, in different ways.
Besides this, they also take price, content and quality into consideration, which significantly separates
them from their competitors. By implementing a unique algorithm, customers are able to experience a
personalized experience. Additionally, Netflix was one of the first streaming platforms to produce a
successful membership pricing scheme, allowing people from all walks of life to be able to afford it.
However, throughout the years Netflix has faced various challenges surrounding management and an
increase in pricing and overall competition.
The company was founded by Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings in 1997 in Scotts Valley, California.
Since it’s expansion to the rest of the world, Netflix is now internationally recognized by a large
majority who use it on a daily basis. In 2020, Netflix produced over 6.64 billion US dollars in revenue,
and they aren’t planning on slowing down. Another aspect that separates Netflix from their
competitors, is their unique management system and hiring process. They utilize a U-form
organizational structure, which entails that all departments must answer and report to a higher official.
Additionally, it is all separated into functional groups, geographical divisions and operations. Although
this sounds like a common hierarchy, Netflix promotes general transparency and honesty. All
employees are able to join support groups, as Netflix acknowledges and aids minorities through
support and discussion. Furthermore, the top 100 officials in the company can see how much each
employee is being paid, in order to prevent any inequalities regarding pay and the common gender
gap. The largest difference from any other employer, is that Netflix does not allocate ‘tasks’ to their
employees, instead they can decide how much work they wish to complete, as long as they get the
task done. Netflix states that they only hire the best of the best, and due to their amazing pay and
benefits, it is competitive company to apply for.
Netflix’s hiring process is unlike any other. All applicants are required to study their work culture and
expectations, which Netflix compressed into a 30-minute presentation. They have however, faced
backlash from previous staff about the intense work culture. Employees are encouraged to evaluate
each other instead of having their superior do it, in order to promote honesty in the workplace.
Previous employees stated that this often-caused animosity between each other and demotivated
them greatly. In general, Netflix wishes to implement more modern approaches to effectivity in the
workplace, but not all are properly thought through and applied to real life people. A possible solution
could be a combination of both peers and supervisors evaluating, allowing for more of a balance within
the work force.
To conclude, Netflix’s ability to start and keep up with current media and management trends is
impressive and explains why they are the current market leader for online streaming. Although their
management system isn’t entirely perfect, they try to take everyone’s needs and worries into account
and switch it into something positive.
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 2
,TIO University
Table of contents
Management summary..........................................................................................................................2
1. Strategic Human Resource Management...........................................................................................4
1.1 The Human Resource Department of Netflix................................................................................4
1.2 The Human Resource strategy of Netflix......................................................................................5
1.3 The Key Performance Indicators...................................................................................................6
1.4 HR Management themes..............................................................................................................7
1.5 The mission and vision..................................................................................................................7
2. The analysis and design of work.........................................................................................................8
2.1 Netflix’s U-form organizational structure.....................................................................................8
2.2 Netflix’s approach to job analysis.................................................................................................9
2.3 Job offers; Job design, specifications & descriptions..................................................................12
3. Human Resource Planning & Recruitment.......................................................................................16
3.1 Challenges...................................................................................................................................16
3.2 Strategic Planning.......................................................................................................................16
3.3 Recruitment & Selection.............................................................................................................16
4. Competences, testing, selecting and interviewing...........................................................................18
4.1 Competences of Netflix..............................................................................................................18
4.2 Key functions and their competencies........................................................................................19
4.3 The interview method of Netflix.................................................................................................20
5. Motivation and Sustainable Human Resource Management...........................................................21
6. Social security, Pension, Sickness, Employment contracts, staff handbook......................................23
7. Employment conditions, labour law.................................................................................................27
8. Reward.............................................................................................................................................29
8.1 Reward policy of Netflix..............................................................................................................29
9. Employee Development & Employability.........................................................................................30
10. Performance Management.............................................................................................................33
10.1 Netflix’s performance system...................................................................................................33
References............................................................................................................................................36
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 3
, TIO University
1. Strategic Human Resource Management
1.1 The Human Resource Department of Netflix
In this chapter, we will explain what the responsibilities of the Hr department are within Netflix and I will
tell how Netflix reinvented HR.
Netflix is one of the biggest streaming websites
used all over the world. Sometimes you even
forget that this major platform also needs a lot of
employees, but this was not always the case.
Netflix started their platform the 29th of August
1997. This was the moment that DVD’s were still
very trending. Their first success was in late
2001, Netflix had been growing quickly and now
reached 120 employees. This was also the
moment that they were planning an IPO. IPO
means that they wanted to offer its shares for
sale to the public through the stock exchange.
But things changed quickly after the dot-com
Figure 1: Patty McCord (Netflix, Patty McCord)
bubble and the 9/11 attack. They needed to put
the IPO on hold and fire a third of the employees. This was really hard for the company, because they
just started to make their company bigger. Then even more unexpectedly, the DVD players became a
hot Christmas gift. Luckily, by early 2002 their DVD-by-mail subscription business was growing
significantly. Out of nowhere, they had more work to do but with 30% of the employees gone.
After this turbulent start, they gained more knowledge when you look at the HR department. The CEO
of Netflix talked to a lot of the employees and apologized for the workload. The employees on the
other hand didn’t mind, they told the CEO that this was better than before. The employees that needed
to leave the company in 2001 were inadequate for the jobs and the other employees needed a lot of
time to fix the mistakes of others. Now, they had more time to focus on themselves. Eventually this
created the talent philosophy of Netflix: “The best thing you can do for employees—a perk better than
foosball or free sushi—is hire only “A” players to work alongside them. Excellent colleagues trump
everything else.” Netflix has now 8600 employees working within their company. This is a major
growth since 1997.
The HR Department of Netflix works a little bit different than the standard HR Departments. Netflix
does not really work with formal policies. Over the years, they learned that it works better when you
ask people to rely on logic and common sense instead of on formal policies. Netflix says that they only
hire people who will put the company’s interest first, who understand and support the desire for a high-
performance workplace. This is also why they do not need those many HR policies (McCord, 2014).
One of the persons who really boosted the HR Department of Netflix is Patty McCord. Patty McCord is
a human resources consultant and executive. She was the chief talent officer at Netflix, where she
was influential in establishing the corporate culture of employee empowerment, but only those with
outstanding achievements.
Responsibilities
The HR department is also called the talent team of Netflix. This talent team is responsible for
identifying, attracting and developing Netflix’s team of stunning colleagues. This also includes
Recruiting, Employee services and the Human Resources Business Partners. They strive to create an
amazing experience for the Netflix team members by creating strong partnerships that are deeply
integrated in the business in order to keep an eye on Netflix’s Cultural Values of Freedom and
Responsibility. Next to this, they want to create a diverse company that reflects that world that we live
in (Netflix, Talent and Recruiting, 2021).The most important responsibility of the recruitment team of
Netflix is: “Find and hire amazing people to make Netflix great.”
Isabelle Gobel, Georgina van den Burg & Stijn Veenman 4
