GitHub: Distributed, Asynchronous, and Self-directed

It's easy to observe and discuss symptoms of culture. Appealing "perks" like flexible hours and working from anywhere are fun to talk about and are often used to attract and retain employees. Even though it's a common pattern, there are severe problems with blindly appropriating symptoms of culture. Avoid the pitfalls by being intentional with your values and how you and your team work. Take a look at how GitHub derives culture from first principles and to understand why we work the way we do.

Transcript

1. DISTRIBUTED, ASYNCHRONOUS, & SELF-DIRECTED
2. JOHN BRITTON
5. WHAT DEFINES CULTURE?
6. FREE FOOD?
7. UNLIMITED VACATION?
8. TOYS IN THE OFFICE?
9. NOPE
10. THESE ARE PERKS
11. FUN & EASY TO TALK ABOUT
12. USED TO HIRE & RETAIN EMPLOYEES
13. PERKS DON’T DEFINE CULTURE
14. VALUES ARE EXPRESSED AS CULTURE
15. YOU MAY HAVE HEARD:
16. WE CAN WORK ANYWHERE
17. WE DON’T DO MEETINGS
18. WE HAVE NO MANAGERS
19. TRUE BUT NOT CULTURE
20. SYMPTOMS OF CULTURE
21. SYMPTOMS LACK MEANING
22. FREQUENTLY COPIED
23. DON’T COPY THE SYMPTOMS
24. INSTEAD THINK ABOUT VALUES
25. WHY DO WE WORK THE WAY WE DO?
26. GITHUB HAS INTENTIONAL VALUES
27. FIRST PRINCIPLES
28. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
29. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
30. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
31. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
32. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
33. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
34. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
35. SECURITY FREEDOM OPPORTUNITY COOPERATION FUN LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT
36. APPLYING THE VALUES
37. DISTRIBUTED
44. ASYNCHRONOUS
51. SELF-DIRECTED
57. DON’T COPY THE SYMPTOMS
58. INSTEAD THINK ABOUT YOUR VALUES
59. YOUR VALUES DEFINE YOUR CULTURE
60. JOHN BRITTON @johndbritton