At netflix, when they say they don't want "brilliant jerks", what they mean is they don't want "constant ass holes".
Context vs. Control.
Context vs. Control.
"constant ass holes" equates to "jerks". How does the "brilliant" part come in to play?
pg said "The problem is, not all these people are really jerks. Some just don't like being told what to do."
This interpretation makes sense. I've seen this happen in large companies. "He is brilliant and very good at his job, BUT he doesn't take orders (blindly)".
Orders are not given at netflix. I choose the project I want to work on. Hence my comment "Context vs. Control", it's taken right out of the presentation.
No mention is made of why they feel the need to offer severance when they're shedding an underperformer, but maybe they want to make it a less negative event. Maybe the strategy is to try and avoid distracting or upsetting the high performers by having underachievers leave on good terms (this could explain the "goodbye" emails).