Best Practices For Transparent Leadership

Most leaders say they want honest feedback. Netflix actually built systems for it. Angela Morgenstern spent years at Netflix during their massive shift to original content, scaling from 20 shows to 1,000+ annually. What she learned about "farming for dissent" (and more) could transform how you approach decision making. The problem: Most organizations accidentally punish honest disagreement. People learn to stay quiet or tell leaders what they want to hear. Netflix built specific mechanisms that made dissent safe and expected: 🔸 Memo-driven culture with transparent commenting: no fancy presentations, just clear rationale with open document-driven discussions. 🔸 Product Strat meetings where farming for dissent was the point: senior forums designed for debate before decisions. 🔸 Informed Captain model: the person closest to the problem gathers different perspectives, then decides. The result? As Angela put it: "If you really hold truthfulness as a North Star...then you really have to work on forums where people feel like they can be direct and honest with the right set of consequences." Three things you can try today: 1️⃣ Switch one weekly presentation to a shared doc. Ask your team to comment with questions and disagreements before you meet. 2️⃣ Explicitly ask for dissent. Before your next decision, say "I need someone to argue the opposite view" -- and be grateful when they do it! 3️⃣ Separate debate from decision-making. Give teams time to gather input, then make it clear when the discussion shifts to decision mode. Netflix's global expansion from Silicon Valley to creating hits in Spain and Korea wasn't just about content strategy. It was about building a culture that could learn, adapt, and scale through honest conversation -- and adapt globally, another story in this week's column! 👉 Read on: https://lnkd.in/ge4Ej8VH What's one forum where your team could benefit from more honest disagreement? #culture #decisionmaking #feedback

You burn a lot of capital when you take the, "If you knew what I know, you'd think what I think," stance. Expecting blind, unwavering trust from your team is both unrealistic (if you have a good team, they'll demand more) and it makes you lazy. Instead, I actively lean into transparency and only when there are really extenuating circumstances do I resort to a "trust me" stance. For example, when I'm recruiting for Ethena, the best candidates want to understand our financials. There are a bunch of seemingly good reasons to be cagey about numbers, especially with someone who hasn't yet joined. And yet, when we have a candidate that I'm on a mission to recruit, and they want to know how we're doing, I screen share our financials. I don't have a separate document that's like, "Special financials for candidates." I'm transparent because what I have to gain (a great team member who will join from a place of trust and confidence) is much greater than what I stand to lose. And while I'm sure at some point this will bite me, I still think on balance, it's the right move. This comes up with terminations too. Great people want to understand why decisions are made. They want to know that your company isn't just arbitrarily letting people go. And while there are many valid reasons to avoid discussing the circumstances of a termination, you also introduce a void into which rumors flood. There's nuance, for sure, and transparent cultures aren't for everyone, but IMO, transparent processes produce better decisions. But the biggest benefit I get from transparency is that it keeps me from getting intellectually lazy. When I'm forced to walk through my logic, I quickly see how sound it is. Transparency is like that friend who isn't very nice but in her honesty, keeps you from doing dumb things (like getting bangs).

Hiding the details of a decision reflects a poor team culture and weak leadership. In contrast, decision transparency—being open about the decision-making process before and after a decision is made—is a cornerstone of building trust within a team. Making tough decisions is one of the most critical responsibilities of a leader. These decisions often involve unclear outcomes, high stakes, and difficult trade-offs. In many cases, no matter the outcome, some team members may be disappointed. Decision transparency doesn’t eliminate disagreement, but it fosters trust by showing that decisions are made thoughtfully and with integrity. Why Decision Transparency Matters Transparent decision-making ensures that even if someone disagrees with the outcome, they can understand how and why the decision was made. This helps build a culture where team members trust their leaders and feel confident in the process, even during challenging times. How to Implement Decision Transparency Whether you're navigating an upcoming decision or explaining one that has already been made, these key components will help foster transparency: 1. The Decision Maker - Clearly identify who is responsible for making the decision. Leadership often means owning the final call, so if you’re the decision-maker, embrace that role and communicate it to the team. - If the decision is delegated to someone else, explain why that person is the right choice. - In hierarchical organizations, clarify how you were involved if the decision was made by someone higher up. - For collective decision-making processes, outline who was involved and their roles. 2. The Process - Detail the steps taken to reach the decision. - Describe what information was gathered, the analysis conducted, and the factors considered. - Highlight the effort invested in making the best possible choice. This reassures the team that decisions aren’t made arbitrarily, but with careful thought and consideration. 3. The Outcome - Communicate the final decision clearly and precisely. - Share what the decision means for stakeholders, and clarify if further approvals or steps are required. - Explain how the decision will be implemented and outline what’s needed from the team to move forward. 4. The Reasoning - Explain why the decision was made. - Highlight the key factors that tipped the scales and the rationale behind prioritizing those factors. - Share any trade-offs and the reasoning behind those choices, so the team understands the broader context. Final Thoughts Decision transparency isn’t about avoiding conflict or pleasing everyone—it’s about building trust. By showing the thought process behind tough decisions, leaders demonstrate respect for their team’s intelligence and input. Even if team members disagree with the outcome, they’re more likely to support it when they understand how and why it was made. More posts from me: https://lnkd.in/ewzbkpUd

Reflection on healthy data culture in business: sometimes executives think success comes from controlling the narrative with their metrics. They tightly restrict access, shape what information is shared up the chain, and spend more energy on positioning than improving results. The best data driven organizations work differently: they democratize access to the data (with responsible governance), openly discuss failures and successes, and encourage a culture of experimentation and learning. High performance leadership isn't about secrecy. It's about owning the results and showing a commitment to keep improving. Better, never best. Trust is built through transparency and accountability to the results. In professionals sports, everyone can see the score. Everyone can see the shots you make and the shots you miss. The best players miss all the time. What makes them great is that they learn from the shots they miss, practice, and get back in the game again to take it to the next level. It's the same in business: winners are never afraid to be seen missing a shot. What they fear is complacency. Victory comes to the brave leaders willing to take measured risks, learn from the results, and collaborate with their teams and peers to make those results even better next time. In my experience, the more your culture embraces open discussion on data and metrics, the faster you will create success for your customers. Get uncomfortable, embrace experimentation and learning, and invest in making your data better, more visible, and more discussed if you want to win in the age of AI.

I have learned that candor and transparent communication form the bedrock of effective leadership. Throughout my leadership career, I have applied these traits in times of growth and crisis. Candor enables transparent communication, even when it's uncomfortable. Cultivating a culture where issues are discussed readily, removes the fear of delivering bad news. Especially if there's a customer impact, the trust in transparent communication means you can immediately inform your CEO and business leaders without fear of reprisal or reprimand. It’s important to share not just successes, but also struggles and opportunities. This level of openness can be challenging, but it's essential for building trust. When a team has respect and trust with each other it means you can focus on solving problems rather than assigning blame. When facing issues, the conversations center on how we collectively solve them, who’s being impacted, and how to prevent similar situations in the future. Transparent communication isn't always comfortable, but it's crucial for building trust, both within teams and with stakeholders. This has helped me and my team, turn challenges into innovation and growth opportunities. #leadership #candor #communication