Powerful

In the book Powerful: Building a Culture of Freedom and Responsibility, which was named one of The Washington Post’s Leadership Book recommendations for 2018, author Patty McCord offers insights into how companies can better attract, motivate, and retain employees. McCord shares lessons she learned from her time at Netflix, where she served as chief talent officer. These include practicing radical honesty in the workplace, saying goodbye to employees who do not fit the company’s emerging needs, and motivating with challenging work rather than promises, perks, and bonus plans. McCord argues that many time-tested HR techniques―annual performance reviews, retention plans, employee empowerment and engagement programs―often end up being colossal wastes of time and resources.