the times | Saturday September 5 2020 1GM 7
News
The distinctive corporate culture that
turned Netflix into a dominant player
in the entertainment world was partly
forged by marriage counselling, the
streaming giant’s long-serving boss has
revealed.
Reed Hastings, the company’s joint
chief executive, learned a vital lesson
about the power of candour from the
sessions that helped to revive his rela-
tionship with his wife. When he applied
the knowledge in his professional life
Marriage guidance turned Netflix boss into blissful billionaire
Ben Hoyle Los Angeles he discovered that “truth-telling im-
proved both marriage and work”, he
told The Times.
Searing honesty in the workplace be-
came one of the defining characteris-
tics that Mr Hastings, 59, now credits
with driving Netflix’s spectacular 23-
year rise from a start-up posting out
rental DVDs to a $215 billion behemoth
that is shaping the future of television
and cinema.
The company announced a partner-
ship this week to make “inspirational”
documentaries and films with the Duke
and Duchess of Sussex, the latest in a
string of eye-catching deals that have
also included the Obamas, Martin
Scorsese and Shonda Rhimes, the crea-
tor of Grey’s Anatomy.
In his new book No Rules Rules: Net-
flix and the Culture of Reinvention, writ-
ten with the business academic Erin
Meyer, Mr Hastings recounts his expe-
riences in marriage counselling.
His relationship to Patty Quillin had
run into trouble in the mid 1990s when
he was preoccupied with running his
first business, a company called PureSoftware. He writes that he was at “the
pinnacle of my professional life, but I
didn’t know how to be a good spouse”.
Their marriage counsellor “got each
of us to talk about our resentments,” he
writes. “While I was saying things like,
‘Family is the most important thing to
me’, I’d been missing dinners at home
and working all hours of the night. I see
now that my words were worse than
platitudes.
“They had been lies. We learnt what
we could do to be better partners, and
our marriage came back to life.”In addition to frankness Netflix
believes in delegating responsibility to
staff, dispensing with most of the rules
and policies that other companies rely
on, he said.
Yet workers are also subject to con-
stant reassessment of their value to the
company and are expected to embrace
regular public feedback sessions on
their performance and that of their col-
leagues. “We are always clear that
working at Netflix is not for everybody,”
Mr Hastings said.
Reed Hastings interview, Magazinecouncil to remove or redact some ob-
jection letters on its planning portal.
It is understood some commenters
alleged that Sir James’s plans would
enable him to seek an inheritance tax
exemption for his art collection. He
strongly denies any such intention and
told the council that the comments
were “false and defamatory”.
The council confirmed that it was re-
viewing some objections “to ensure
they comply with our policy to not
publish any statement which is
defamatory”.
Lesley Byrne, whose objection to the
planning application was removed
from the council website, said: “Sir
James is a brilliant designer and a very
good businessman but he’s a rubbish
neighbour. I live 25 yards from hisestate and I’ve never seen him. I don’t
see why he can avoid all the inconven-
ience of his construction project while
his neighbours have to suffer. The dis-
ruption to the residents of Coombs End
will be unbearable — at least 18 months
of noise and heavy traffic. We cannot
get away from the noise by helicopter.”
Richard Pearson, another resident,
questioned why provision was not
made for a new access road that would
divert traffic away from Coombs End.
Dodington parish council has called
for the traffic issues to be reviewed by
the planning and highway authorities.
The Dyson collection has been
amassed over many years by Sir James
and Lady Dyson, who met at art school
in the 1960s. It includes Lichtenstein’s
Crying Girl (1963), a print from Andy
Warhol’s Toy Series (1983), Blake’s
Twins in their Tea Garden (1999) and
several Hockneys.
Tim Marlow, director of the Design
Museum in west London, told Wall-
paper magazine that the collection re-flected “the most vibrant and signifi-
cant period in British pop art”.
The Dodington estate says that it has
a good relationship with its neighbours
and after consulting with them, had
capped the number of cars that would
be able to park at the gallery.
“Art is important to the Dyson family
and they have been fortunate to build
up a private collection of modern art
which they are keen to share and for
others to enjoy free of charge — partic-
ularly as there is no other modern art
exhibition in the area like this,” a
spokesman said.
“They are also hoping that they will
be able to exhibit and support the work
of young artists in the proposed gallery
which has been developed to be sus-
tainable and sensitive to the heritage
and landscape of the estate.”
The planning application for the gal-
lery was submitted last month. In July
the Dyson business had announced
that it was making 600 redundancies in
Britain because of the pandemic.A YouTube and TV presenter who died
in what is believed to be Britain’s first
fatal e-scooter crash was driving too
quickly and had a deflated tyre, a
coroner has ruled.
Emily Hartridge, 35, lost control on a
cycle lane in Battersea, south London,
and was thrown into the path of a lorry
on the morning of July 12 last year. She
had been on the way to a fertility clinic.
Fiona Wilcox, sitting at Westminster
coroner’s court, recorded a narrative
The proposed art gallery at Dodington
Park estate in the Cotsworlds, owned
by Sir James and Lady Dyson, will be
for 28 days each August. Neighbours
have complained of traffic and noiseSWNS; WILKINSON EYREBritain’s richest man has been praised
in the art world after unveiling plans to
put his private collection, including
pieces by David Hockney, Sir Peter
Blake and Roy Lichtenstein, on display
at his Cotswolds estate.
Critics are eager to see a “compelling
and important collection” while the
architects designing Sir James Dyson’s
new gallery say that it will be “a gener-
ous philanthropic gift for the enjoy-
ment of the public”.
Some of his neighbours
in the hamlet of Coombs
End beg to disagree.
They complain that
their lives will be ru-
ined for 18 months by
construction traffic
clogging up
narrow lanes
around the
Dodington Park
estate while Sir
Dyson art gallery
plan takes us for
suckers, say locals
Sean O’Neill James, 73, will suffer little inconven-
ience by using private access roads to
his property or travelling by helicopter.
The tycoon, who topped The Sunday
Times Rich List with a fortune of
£16.2 billion, will also be untroubled by
visitor traffic. The gallery will be open
for a limited number of enthusiasts on
28 days each August when he
and his family are abroad on
holiday.
Residents also expressed
concerns that the develop-
ment is taking place on
Green Belt land and in an
area of outstanding natu-
ral beauty.
The dispute
became more
acrimonious
this week
when Sir
James’s law-
yers urged
South Glouc-
estershire
Emma Yeomans
been through in my life. For those who
knew Emily she was just incredible —
such an amazing person to be around
and to call her my girlfriend was literal-
ly the best I felt in my life.”
Police made no arrests in connectionEmily Hartridge,
35, was riding too
fast, a coroner saidYouTube star who died in e-scooter crash had a deflated tyre
verdict in which she said: “She died in-
stantly of injuries sustained by the HGV
driving over her. The scooter was being
unsuitably driven, too fast and with an
underinflated tyre and this caused the
loss of control and her death.”
At the time it was illegal to ride
e-scooters on public roads. After Ms
Hartridge’s death Michael Ellis, the a
transport minister, met representatives
from hire companies and shops selling
e-scooters to tell them that they must
remind customers of the law.
Ms Hartridge was best known for herYouTube series 10 Reasons Why. She
had presented shows including Oh Shit
I’m 30 for Channel 4, and interviewed
celebrities including the actor Eddie
Redmayne. The scooter was bought for
her by her boyfriend, Jake Hazell.
Mr Hazell told the BBC in February
that he wished he had never bought the
scooter and was reminded of her death
whenever he saw one on the roads. He
said: “It’s an adult toy, really, isn’t it?
When you say it like that it’s obvious
that there’s a massive risk to it.
“[It was] just the worst thing I’ve everwith the death. Mr Hazell said that he
did not blame the lorry driver and be-
lieved the road surface played a role. Dr
Wilcox acknowledged that Ms Har-
tridge had been thrown after riding
over an inspection hatch cover.
Rental e-scooters became legal on
public roads on July 4 this year for
people aged over 16 with a full or provi-
sional licence but trials are running in
only a few areas. The scooters are
banned on pavements and can be rid-
den on roads at up to 15.5 miles an hour.
Riders are advised to wear a helmet.