What Insights Did You Get from Work Rules, by Laszlo Bock?
From how important growing autonomy is to inviting everyone to sit at the table, here are 10 answers to the question, “What are the most helpful takeaways you had from reading Work Rules!, by Laszlo Bock?”
- Autonomy Encourages Innovation and Success
- Data-driven Decision-making
- Trust and Transparency Are Essential
- Creating a Positive Company Culture
- The Importance of Experimentation and Continuous Learning in HR
- Cultural Fit Should Be Your Hiring Priority
- The Vital Role of the “People Go First” Approach
- Challenging Traditional Hiring Practices
- Normalize Mentioning Development
- Giving Everyone a Voice
Autonomy Encourages Innovation and Success
One particular takeaway is the importance of autonomy during work. Laszlo Bock’s book, Work Rules!, encourages companies to let employees address issues and solve challenges autonomously in order to boost creativity and confidence. Moreover, in cases of witnessing employment discrimination, hiring a lawyer can provide essential support and guidance to ensure justice prevails in the workplace.
For example, Google offers a “20% time” for its employees to pursue innovative ideas outside of their allocated roles—this allows employees to find meaningful solutions to challenges that may be outside of their designated role or even sector—proving that unorthodox ideas can become pioneering decisions with great success.
Autonomy fosters innovation, develops skill sets, and revitalizes creativity within the workplace; all essential qualities which make any business successful in today’s competitive world.
Tasia Duske
CEO, Museum Hack
Data-driven Decision-making
Bock taught me about the importance of data-driven decision-making in the workplace. Work Rules is a fantastic book offering valuable insights into building a successful organization. But my key takeaway from this book is the need to use data and analytics to inform hiring, promotion, and other HR-related decisions.
As someone who is deeply interested in the intersection of technology and business, I find this approach to be particularly compelling. In today’s world, we have access to more data than ever before. Also, we have the tools and techniques to analyze and make sense of that data.
By leveraging data in our decision-making processes, we can identify patterns, trends, and insights that might otherwise go unnoticed. This can help us optimize our processes and workflows for maximum efficiency and effectiveness. I believe data-driven decision-making is an essential tool for any modern organization—and Work Rules is an excellent guide for managing it.
Natalia Brzezinska
Marketing and Outreach Manager, ePassportPhoto
Trust and Transparency Are Essential
One key takeaway I had from reading Work Rules, by Laszlo Bock, is that trust and transparency are essential for a successful workplace. Bock points out that when teams have open communication with each other and leaders trust their employees to do the right thing without constantly monitoring them, it can lead to better collaboration and performance.
Ultimately, Bock encourages companies to rethink how they evaluate success, prioritize trust and transparency over productivity, and create a workplace culture where employees feel supported and appreciated.
Aviad Faruz
CEO, FARUZO
Creating a Positive Company Culture
One takeaway from reading Work Rules, by Laszlo Bock, is the importance of creating a positive company culture. Block emphasizes the need for managers to take away their power over employees, encourage growth and development, hire people who are smarter than themselves, and treat all employees with respect and dignity.
Additionally, the book offers practical advice on topics such as how to build a great culture, manage and motivate people, and avoid common hiring mistakes. Overall, Work Rules provides insights that can be helpful for businesses looking to create a more positive and productive work environment.
Brenton Thomas
CEO, Twibi
The Importance of Experimentation and Continuous Learning in HR
One takeaway I had from reading Work Rules by Laszlo Bock is the importance of embracing a growth mindset and constantly experimenting and learning in HR. Bock’s emphasis on testing new ideas and gathering data to inform HR practices resonated with me, as did his call to learn from other industries and disciplines to stay ahead of the curve.
By adopting a culture of continuous improvement and innovation, companies can create a workplace that is adaptable, dynamic, and supportive of ongoing growth and development for both employees and the organization as a whole.
Will Gill
Event Entertainer, DJ Will Gill
Cultural Fit Should Be Your Hiring Priority
Laszlo Bock’s Work Rules opened my eyes to a paradigm shift in the recruitment and hiring practices approach. Instead of prioritizing skills and qualifications, Bock argues cultural fit is paramount to creating a successful and productive workplace.
As a result, assessing the candidate’s values to determine whether they align with the company’s culture is highly important. Qualifications or knowledge can be taught or acquired, whereas beliefs and behaviors are often deeply ingrained in a person’s character.
To achieve a great cultural fit, we must define the company’s core values and what they stand for. We need to determine what people we want to work with—creative, with an exciting personality, or adventurous. Or do we get along better with thoughtful, analytical, and calm candidates?
Hiring individuals who share the same values ensure they thrive in the company’s culture while creating a sense of unity and cohesion, increasing productivity and innovation.
Nina Paczka
Community Manager, Resume Now
The Vital Role of the “People Go First” Approach
One of the essential takeaways from Work Rules by Laszlo Bock is the vital role of adopting the “people go first” approach. Bock advocates putting the needs and well-being of employees at the center of an organization’s culture and operations. He believes that when companies prioritize the needs of their employees, they create a more positive and fulfilling work environment.
What’s more, it also improves their bottom line. Employees who feel seen, appreciated, and supported are more productive, engaged, and loyal to their employers. Therefore, treating them as mere resources is a mistake.
Thanks to investing in employees’ well-being and development, companies become more successful and sustainable in the long run. Also, by fostering open communication and giving employees a voice in decision-making, companies make everyone feel like a part of the big team. It creates a sense of ownership and boosts engagement among the workforce.
Agata Szczepanek
Community Manager, LiveCareer
Challenging Traditional Hiring Practices
Reading Work Rules by Laszlo Bock has reinforced my belief that traditional hiring practices need a major overhaul. Bock’s approach to using data-driven methods to make hiring decisions, such as relying on structured interviews and assessing candidates through their past performances, helps to eliminate biases and leads to better hires.
This highlights the need for companies to be innovative and adaptable in their hiring strategies, and embrace new methodologies that have proven to be successful.
Basana Saha
Founder, KidsCareIdeas
Normalize Mentioning Development
Development calls should not stem from a lack of skills. Your employee development discussions should flow naturally and easily. It will no longer be taboo to talk about development in an encouraging and normal way regularly.
Consequently, your employees will be more open to improvements, which will lead to growth and progress.
Marco Genaro Palma
Co-founder, TechNews180
Giving Everyone a Voice
Anybody who shares real-life insight from Google’s heyday is worth listening to and has my full attention. Understanding Laszlo’s history throughout his professional career and the summary of topics covered in this book makes it a MUST-READ for anyone who runs, works within, or is looking to create a workplace.
It didn’t disappoint.
If I have to focus on one takeaway, I’ll go with the point he made about “voice being the third cornerstone of Google’s culture.” He explains that Google actively gives employees a voice in how the company is run. Coming from a mammoth company like Google, that’s quite the declaration.
So what does a five-year business owner running a small team have to say about that? There should be no reason every business isn’t giving employees a voice so they can speak up, take the lead, and make positive changes.
While I knew this specific thing was important, it was so nice to read about it from the perspective of someone like Laszlo.
Stan Caramalac
CEO and Founder, Move Central
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