Elon Musk on Tesla Company Culture

Summary

In this interview, the focus is on the company culture at SpaceX and Tesla, highlighting how culture emerges through actions rather than conscious design. Elon Musk discusses how company culture evolves as organizations grow and the challenges of maintaining direct communication. He explains the importance of minimizing meeting sizes, ensuring only relevant participants are present, and allowing people to leave unproductive meetings. Musk also touches on the impact of technology in meetings and the value of staying engaged, creating a culture of efficiency and active participation.

Takeaways

• 😀 The culture in companies like SpaceX and Tesla is not consciously created, but stems from actions and interactions during meetings.
• 😀 As companies grow, productivity per person can decline due to communication issues, and information loss can occur as it flows through more layers of people.
• 😀 Skip-level meetings are implemented to alleviate communication breakdowns, where leaders meet with the reports of their direct reports.
• 😀 As companies get larger, written documents outlining company values and operations become essential to ensure clear communication and alignment.
• 😀 Company value statements should be actionable and avoid being vague or obvious; they need to include counterintuitive rules that distinguish the company’s operations.
• 😀 A key principle in meetings at SpaceX and Tesla is minimizing the size of meetings—typically 4 to 6 participants.
• 😀 Participants in meetings should only stay if they are contributing or gaining value; if not, they are expected to leave.
• 😀 It is considered rude to stay in a meeting without contributing; leaving a meeting if it's not useful is seen as expected behavior.
• 😀 Meetings with excessive attendees (e.g., 30 people) are viewed negatively, and this approach is contrasted with the efficiency of smaller meetings.
• 😀 Multitasking in meetings (e.g., working on phones or laptops) is discouraged, as it reduces engagement. If it happens too much, participants should leave the meeting.

Q & A

How much time does Elon Musk spend consciously creating a particular company culture at SpaceX and Tesla?

Elon Musk mentions that he doesn't consciously spend a lot of time specifically trying to create a particular culture. Instead, he believes that culture naturally arises from actions, interactions with people, and the way meetings are conducted.

What is the importance of skip-level meetings at Tesla and SpaceX?

Skip-level meetings are seen as important for Elon Musk because they allow him to directly engage with people who are not his direct reports. This helps alleviate the communication barriers that arise as companies grow larger, ensuring that valuable feedback and information reach all levels of the organization.

How does the size of a company affect productivity and communication?

As companies grow, productivity per person tends to decline due to increased communication barriers. With more layers between people, information often gets lost or distorted, similar to the game of broken telephone.

What does Elon Musk think about written documents for company culture and values?

Elon Musk believes that a written document outlining the company’s culture and values is a good idea, especially as companies grow and direct interaction becomes more limited. He suggests that these documents should be actionable and focused on counterintuitive aspects of the company's operations.

Why is it important to minimize the size of meetings at SpaceX and Tesla?

Minimizing the size of meetings is important to keep them efficient and productive. The basic rule is that only those who contribute meaningfully or gain significant value from the meeting should be present.

What happens if someone feels that a meeting is not helpful or productive?

If someone feels that a meeting is not helping them or that they are not contributing, they are expected to leave the meeting. Elon Musk considers it rude to stay in a meeting without contributing.

What is the typical number of participants in a meeting at Tesla and SpaceX?

The typical meeting at Tesla and SpaceX would involve about four to six people. This ensures a focused and productive discussion.

How does Elon Musk handle people who are distracted by their phones or laptops during meetings?

Elon Musk believes that if people are using their phones or laptops too much during a meeting, they should leave. The idea is that if someone is working on their devices instead of engaging in the meeting, they could do that work at their desk instead.

What happens when meetings become too large or less productive?

When meetings become too large, they often lose productivity. Musk has encountered situations where collaborations with other companies involved meetings with many people, but those meetings tended to be less effective due to the size and lack of engagement.

How does Elon Musk view the use of electronics, like phones and laptops, in meetings?

Elon Musk is open to the use of phones and laptops in meetings as long as it doesn’t distract from the meeting’s purpose. If people are using electronics but not engaging with the meeting, he believes they should leave and do their work elsewhere.