Build your culture like a product, w/HubSpot's Dharmesh Shah

Cultural Beginnings

Dharmesh Shah faced unexpected challenges when he began building HubSpot's culture. Initially, he was met with harsh feedback from employees, which he found invaluable for shaping a meaningful culture 1. Reid Hoffman notes that Dharmesh's approach was akin to product design, involving market research and feedback loops. This feedback revealed that many viewed culture initiatives skeptically, often associating them with companies that had lost their way 1.

People have this preconceived notion that the only companies that talk about culture are the ones that have already lost their way.

--- Dharmesh Shah

Dharmesh's journey into culture building began after Brian Halligan, HubSpot's CEO, realized the importance of culture during a CEO group meeting 2.

   

Culture as Product

Treating culture as a product, Dharmesh applied principles of product design to develop HubSpot's culture code. He started with a simple 16-slide deck, iterating based on employee feedback, much like refining a software product 3. This approach allowed the culture code to grow into a comprehensive 128-slide document, reflecting ongoing feedback and adaptation 4.

Feedback is a gift. The same should be true for culture.

--- Dharmesh Shah

Reid Hoffman emphasizes that this iterative process is crucial for maintaining a culture that continues to deliver value over time 4.