It seems that every large (or simply well-known) company has its unique culture, which is also considered the only correct and successful one. We are all unique, after all. However, the concept of “correctness” and “success” is highly subjective. Yet many want to showcase that they achieved success solely because of their approaches (and that others, therefore, succeeded despite theirs).
First, there was the remarkable book Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull about the culture at Pixar. Then came the very loud, but completely unappealing to me, Principles by Ray Dalio. Finally, I reached No Rules Rules by Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who co-wrote this book with Erin Meyer. I frequently recommend Meyer’s The Culture Map almost every time someone asks me about the best books.
This book, like many others, was highly praised by my colleagues, receiving the highest ratings. However, I always strive to form my own opinion rather than follow the masses. I read it. And it took me quite a while to gather my thoughts and finally write my review. This is because it is one of the most controversial books I have read in the past several years.
On the one hand, I will definitely recommend it. On the other hand, I had comments like “interesting, but there are nuances” for nearly every chapter. This is because, as usual, I tried to apply all the described approaches to myself as a manager and to the companies I have worked for. And here, as they say, things became far less straightforward.
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