Who would you fight to keep?
Apply the Netflix “Keeper Test” to your team. If you wouldn’t fight to keep them, why are you letting them stay?
Netflix doesn’t tolerate “adequate” performance. They use the Keeper Test: “If X told me they were leaving for a competitor, would I fight to keep them?”
If the answer is No, you should give them a severance package today.
Mediocrity is a contagion. If you let B-players stay, your A-players will quit.
The Prompt
Act as a Talent Density Consultant (Netflix Culture style).
I am evaluating a specific leader/employee on my team.Their Profile: [Describe output, behaviour, and cultural impact - NOT personality].
1. The Verdict: Apply the "Keeper Test." If they resigned today, is the impact Net Negative or Net Positive in 6 months?
2. The Tax: Calculate the "Organisational Tax" this person creates (e.g., slow decisions, drama, fixing their mistakes).
3. The Script: If they are not a "Hell Yes," draft a dignified exit conversation script that emphasises "generous severance" over "performance management."
The Executive Upgrade
Most executives know who they need to fire. They just don’t do it.
Why?
Sunk Cost: “We spent 6 months training them.”
The PIP Lie: You put them on a Performance Improvement Plan just to document the firing. This kills morale.
Here are the two Execution Protocols to pull the trigger cleanly.
Follow-Up Prompt 1: The Cost of Inaction
(Use this to convince yourself to act)
Act as a CFO.
I am hesitating to fire [Role/Employee].
Their salary is: $[Amount].
I am worried about the cost of replacing them (recruiting fees, downtime).
Run a Cost/Benefit Analysis on Keeping them vs. Firing them.
1. Quantify the "Opportunity Cost" of having a B-player in this seat for another 12 months vs an A-player.
2. Estimate the "Morale Cost" on the rest of the high-performers.
3. Compare the cost of a 3-month severance package today vs. the cost of 12 months of mediocre output.
Follow-Up Prompt 2: The “Decision Day” (The Anti-PIP)
(Use this if you genuinely aren’t sure)
Act as an HR Strategist.
I am not ready to fire [Employee], but I need to see immediate change.
I don't want a bureaucratic 90-day PIP (Performance Improvement Plan).
Draft a "Decision Day" proposal:
1. Define 2 binary outcomes they must hit in the next 30 days.
2. If they hit them: They stay.
3. If they miss them: They agree in advance to take a specific severance package and leave voluntarily.