Get in the KNOW
on LA Startups & Tech
X
Photo by Venti Views on Unsplash
As Its Stock Drops, Netflix's Employee Morale Is In Freefall, Too
Kristin Snyder
Kristin Snyder is dot.LA's 2022/23 Editorial Fellow. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
Netflix’s poor first-quarter earnings report has led to both a falling stock price and falling workforce morale.
After the streaming service disclosed a large subscriber loss in its earnings last week—triggering a roughly 40% decline in its shares since—many Netflix employees are reconsidering their futures at the company, with their confidence in its future direction shaken and their stock options looking increasingly skint, Bloomberg reported. Some employees have even requested new stock grants to make up for their losses, according to The Information.
The disappointing results have also led Netflix to evaluate its current spending levels, which will likely force employees to succeed with smaller budgets and fewer people. Bloomberg reported that Netflix is already restructuring teams in its engineering department—which have largely consisted of one leader overseeing a team of similarly-ranked people—to add seniority levels, a move considered to be a cost-cutting measure.
Other changes have already occurred in Netflix’s animation department, where the company has laid off Phil Rynda, its director of creative leadership and development for original animation, and several other employees, The Wrap reported last week.
Netflix has grown from 2,000 to 11,000 employees in the last eight years, according to Bloomberg, with most of its new hires based either internationally or in Hollywood. Co-founder Reed Hastings has boasted of a company culture based on freedom and responsibility—values that could now come under pressure amid heightened constraints.
Netflix disclosed its first net subscriber loss in over a decade in its earnings report, placing much of the blame on password-sharing—a practice it said it would be cracking down on. The company also indicated that it will be incorporating ads via a cheaper subscription tier to entice new subscribers.
From Your Site Articles
- Can Netflix Keep Growing? - dot.LA ›
- Why Wall Street Isn't Expecting Much From Netflix's Earnings - dot.LA ›
- Netflix Laysoff Journalists Months After Hiring Them - dot.LA ›
- Netflix Hit With Lawsuit Amid Plummeting Stock Price - dot.LA ›
- Netflix Updates Culture Memo With Anti-Censorship Addition - dot.LA ›
- Netflix Lays Off 150 Employees - dot.LA ›
- Netflix Lays Off Another 300 People - dot.LA ›
- Roku Lays Off 7% of Workforce Amid 2022 Ad Apocalypse - dot.LA ›
- How Netflix is Restructuring Through 'Quality Over Quantity' - dot.LA ›
Related Articles Around the Web
Kristin Snyder
Kristin Snyder is dot.LA's 2022/23 Editorial Fellow. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
https://twitter.com/ksnyder_db
Top LA Accelerators that Entrepreneurs Should Know About
02:05 PM | July 17, 2024
Los Angeles, has a thriving startup ecosystem with numerous accelerators, incubators, and programs designed to support and nurture new businesses. These programs provide a range of services, including funding, mentorship, workspace, networking opportunities, and strategic guidance to help entrepreneurs develop their ideas and scale their companies.
Techstars Los Angeles
Techstars is a global outfit with a chapter in Los Angeles that opened in 2017. It prioritizes local companies but will fund some firms based outside of LA.
Location: Culver City
Type of Funding: Pre-seed, early stage
Focus: Industry Agnostic
Notable Past Companies: StokedPlastic, Zeno Power
Grid110
Grid110 offers no-cost, no-equity programs for entrepreneurs in Los Angeles, including a 12-week Residency accelerator for early-stage startups, an Idea to Launch Bootcamp for pre-launch entrepreneurs, and specialized programs like the PledgeLA Founders Fund and Friends & Family program, all aimed at providing essential skills, resources, and support to help founders develop and grow their businesses.
Location: DTLA
Type of Funding: Seed, early stage
Focus: Industry Agnostic
Notable Past Companies: Casetify, Flavors From Afar
Idealab
Idealab is a renowned startup studio and incubator based in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1996 by entrepreneur Bill Gross, Idealab has a long history of nurturing innovative technology companies, with over 150 startups launched and 45 successful IPOs and acquisitions, including notable successes like Coinbase and Tenor.
Location: Pasadena
Type of Funding: Stage agnostic
Focus: Industry Agnostic, AI/Robotics, Consumer, Clean Energy
Notable Past Companies: Lumin, Coinbase, Tenor
Plug In South LA
Plug In South LA is a tech accelerator program focused on supporting and empowering Black and Latinx entrepreneurs in the Los Angeles area. The 12-week intensive program provides early-stage founders with mentorship, workshops, strategic guidance, potential pilot partnerships, grant funding, and networking opportunities to help them scale their businesses and secure investment.
Location: Los Angeles
Type of Funding: Pre-seed, seed
Focus: Industry Agnostic, Connection to South LA and related communities
Notable Past Companies: ChargerHelp, Peadbo
Cedars-Sinai Accelerator
The Cedars-Sinai Accelerator is a three-month program based in Los Angeles that provides healthcare startups with $100,000 in funding, mentorship from over 300 leading clinicians and executives, and access to Cedars-Sinai's clinical expertise and resources. The program aims to transform healthcare quality, efficiency, and care delivery by helping entrepreneurs bring their innovative technology products to market, offering participants dedicated office space, exposure to a broad network of healthcare entrepreneurs and investors, and the opportunity to pitch their companies at a Demo Day.
Location: West Hollywood
Type of Funding: Seed, early stage, convertible note
Focus: Healthcare, Device, Life Sciences
Notable Past Companies: Regard, Hawthorne Effect
MedTech Innovator
MedTech Innovator is the world's largest accelerator for medical technology companies, based in Los Angeles, offering a four-month program that provides selected startups with unparalleled access to industry leaders, investors, and resources without taking equity. The accelerator culminates in showcase events and competitions where participating companies can win substantial non-dilutive funding, with the program having a strong track record of helping startups secure FDA approvals and significant follow-on funding.
Location: Westwood
Type of Funding: Seed, early stage
Focus: Health Care, Health Diagnostics, Medical Device
Notable Past Companies: Zeto, Genetesis
KidsX
The KidsX Accelerator in Los Angeles is a 10-week program that supports early-stage digital health companies focused on pediatric care, providing mentorship, resources, and access to a network of children's hospitals to help startups validate product-market fit and scale their solutions. The accelerator uses a reverse pitch model, where participating hospitals identify focus areas and work closely with selected startups to develop and pilot digital health solutions that address specific pediatric needs.
Location: East Hollywood
Type of Funding: Pre-seed, seed, early stage
Focus: Pediatric Health Care Innovation
Notable Past Companies: Smileyscope, Zocalo Health
Disney Accelerator
Disney Accelerator is a startup accelerator that provides early-stage companies in the consumer media, entertainment and technology sectors with mentorship, guidance, and investment from Disney executives. The program, now in its 10th year, aims to foster collaborations and partnerships between innovative technology companies and The Walt Disney Company to help them accelerate their growth and bring new experiences to Disney audiences.
Location: Burbank
Type of Funding: Growth stage
Focus: Technology and entertainment
Notable Past Companies: Epic Games, BRIT + CO, CAMP
Techstars Space Accelerator
Techstars Space Accelerator is a startup accelerator program focused on advancing the next generation of space technology companies. The three-month mentorship-driven program brings together founders from across the globe to work on big ideas in aerospace, including rapid launch services, precision-based imaging, operating systems for complex robotics, in-space servicing, and thermal protection.
Location: Los Angeles
Type of Funding: Growth stage
Focus: Aerospace
Notable Past Companies: Pixxel, Morpheus Space
Read moreShow less
DogVacay Founder Aaron Hirschhorn Dies in Miami Boating Accident
03:48 PM | March 31, 2021
Aaron Hirschhorn, a well-known investor and entrepreneur in the Los Angeles tech scene who founded the pet sitting startup DogVacay died Sunday in a boating accident near Miami Beach, Fla. He was 42.
Hirschhorn started DogVacay with his wife Karine Nissim in 2012. The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company raised nearly $50 million and was a leading competitor in the pet services industry before being acquired by Rover in 2017.
Hirschhorn moved from Los Angeles to Miami Beach about three years ago, according to the Miami Herald.
Hirschhorn held a seat on Rover's board for a year. A month ago on LinkedIn, he called news of Rover's plans to go public via a SPAC deal "an amazing day."
"All of us at Rover were saddened to learn of Aaron's sudden passing. Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and colleagues during this painful time," Rover said in a statement provided to GeekWire on Wednesday. "His love of animals and commitment to pet parents was exemplified in his founding and leadership of DogVacay and Gallant, but his vision for what was possible in the pet industry went well beyond what he already had accomplished."
In 2018 Hirschhorn founded another pet-focused startup called Gallant, which stores dog stem cells so that they're accessible for future treatments.
The Miami Herald reported that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Coast Guard reported a crash on Sunday between a 38-foot Chris-Craft motorboat and a personal watercraft.
Hirschhorn was reportedly riding his electric foil surfboard and died at the scene. In an Instagram post on Monday, his wife wrote: "My beloved husband of ten years died yesterday in an accident. We are broken and will never be the same."
Hirschhorn's Instagram shows numerous family images and scenes from his active lifestyle. "I play sports and get hurt a lot," his profile description reads.
The photo feed also illustrates his love for dogs.
After the Rover acquisition, Hirschhorn called the growing of DogVacay "an incredible journey."
"Our goal has always been to make quality pet care accessible to everyone, and with Rover and DogVacay's experience and expertise, we will continue to create the best solution for our host community, our pet parents and most importantly, our pets that we love as family," he said at the time.
According to the Gallant website, Hirschhorn founded that company "after experiencing the power of regenerative medicine for himself" when he underwent a single stem cell treatment "to heal a debilitating back injury."
Hirschhorn pitched Gallant in a 2019 episode of the ABC TV series "Shark Tank" and snagged an investment from Lori Greiner and Anne Wojcicki, co-founder and CEO of 23andMe.
The Miami Herald reported that Hirschhorn is survived by his wife and their three young children: a daughter in kindergarten, a son in first grade and a son in second grade.
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
Read moreShow less
Kurt Schlosser, GeekWire
Kurt Schlosser covers the Geek Life beat for GeekWire. A longtime journalist, photographer and designer, he has worked previously for NBC News, msnbc.com and the Seattle P-I.
RELATEDTRENDING
LA TECH JOBS