Think of a company you want to work for… Goldman? Apple? Google so you can ride those bikes you saw on The Internship? Alright let me stop you.

They don’t have to pay me nothing, just let me ride the bikes!

No, none of these company are what my title is talking about. While they might be ok to work for, good pay, maybe some fun, they aren’t the model company. Want to know what to look for? First try out what Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg called ‘may well be the most important document to ever come out of [Silicon Valley]’ (GQ). Netflix itself might resemble the very values and organizational behavior all start-ups, and some corporations, should emulate.

Some things might catch your eye, like the unlimited vacation days, sick days, or choose-your-own-hours, but its more than that. What sets Netflix apart is their 9 values which, while might come across as common sense, not many companies actually achieve.

The slidedeck was published in 2013 by the head of Netflix, Reed Hastings. Its over 100 pages long but only has a few sentences max per slide, making it an easy read. A link for your reading is below. I invite you to see the similarities and differences between their beliefs and your ‘dream’ company’s beliefs.

http://igormroz.com/documents/netflix_culture.pdf

With the New England Patriots playing in their 7th Super Bowl in 17 years in a few hours, I find it important to understand how such a dynasty could occur. What is the biggest difference in the behavior of good organizations compared to the bad ones? The NFL is known for being one of the hardest sports to have consistent success in (take this for instance: the past two Super Bowl reps last year did not even make the playoffs this year).

However, there are two teams that have this kind of success being the Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh holds the record with Super Bowl wins at 6 while the Patriots are in the tail-end of perhaps the greatest stretch in the sport’s history. But what makes them so different than the snake-bitten franchises like Detroit or Cleveland? What behavior drives these organizations to succeed where most have failed? What organizational behavior is key to success in the NFL?

The Patriots are winners based off this guy’s looks alone!

As stated in my recent post, great leaders make great futures for their organizations. It’s no coincidence that the two owners of the Patriots and Steelers, Robert Kraft and the Rooneys respectively, are considered the best in the business. They make the best decisions on who to hire and who to fire.

But the best organizations don’t make those decisions often. Take for instance that Belichick, coach of the Patriots, has been at the helm for 17 years while the Steelers have had 3 head coaches since 1969. That is impeccable. Put this in comparison of the aforementioned Browns: they have hired 3 head coaches in the last 4 years. 

Hirings and firings produce a level of uneasiness in an organization; this prevents the employees from fulfilling the second level of Mazlow’s hierarchy of needs: job security. If the employees have no belief in job security, they’ll focus more on not getting fired than doing a good job. This is turn makes overall productivity go down, resulting in poor performance across the board. Then the culture turns dreadful, creating a toxic environment renowned across the lands (see any perennial losers in sports or Cleveland).

However, if employees know they aren’t one mistake away from losing a job, they can take risks.

An overbearing boss makes you loss focus on your work

The Rooneys and Kraft are known for being good owners because they often choose to not overreact to any one incident. This lets their employees and staff feel comfortable knowing they have some kind of job security. They let employees focus on their jobs and give them some leeway in terms of responsibility. Thus, it allows employees to focus on fulfilling higher needs based on Mazlow’s model. This is why the Patriots are at the Super Bowl and why Cleveland has never been to one. 

If you’re ever in Muskoka, do visit

Last summer, there was a cafe in Port Carling called Legends. They were hiring a dishwasher. I searched for a job. They hired me on the spot which I found odd. The chef took me through a walk-through the next day. He showed and taught me all the processes of the kitchen. On my way out, he said to me ‘this place is toxic dude. The owners are f*@cking nuts.’ That was my introduction to the organizational behavior in this fine establishment.

Over the course of the one week I worked with that chef, his behaviors started to turn into my behavior. A rush stressed him to the point of a near mental breakdown. He resented customers and became uncaring about the quality and the cleanliness. As the only other employee in the kitchen, I started to mirror the same feelings. They have to be wrong, difficult, picky if anything was sent back. They must be wrong. Between the two of us, that was the norm.

But he eventually snapped. The norms and environment created by him broke him. His friend came in and took over the situation.

Gordon Ramsay famously pushes his staff to the breaking point

Those last few weeks I spent there, I noticed the norms changing. Food came out better than before, the kitchen started to get cleaned, and the customer miraculously knew what they were talking about. There was no argument, no resentment, and no breakdowns. This serves as an example of the importance of leaders; they make the norms in the kitchen and can turn around a family business’ future.