Issue 129: We Rate MrBeast's Onboarding

Last week, the team onboarding document written by YouTuber Mr Beast was leaked. For context, MrBeast is huge; he currently has the most subscribers of any YouTuber out there, and has spun off IRL into everything from national ghost-kitchen burgers to chocolate bars that are mysteriously always on promotion at Loblaws. He was also recently accused of unsafe work practices. Now needing a full team behind him, he’s hand-written them a handbook for success. We tapped team Bright + Early, who have a high tolerance for alternative workspaces, and a low tolerance for toxic ones, to weigh in. Note that this contains some language some folks might find unprofessional (and lots that we’d personally never put in a handbook). Here we go:

1. “The first dozen employees had unfiltered and unlimited access to me to learn as much as they could about my vision and what I wanted. Sadly, you don’t have that luxury. So, I thought it would be useful to try to braindump as much as I can into this silly little book to give new people to help bring them up to speed on everything we’ve learned over the past decade with this channel.”

Fair! This is something we 100% encourage founders to do as they begin to scale. While creating handbooks and policies might feel a bit too “corporate vibes”, it’s key to codifying and scaling the vibe you do want. 9/10.

2. “Obviously we want grinders that put in the hours and love you guys to death that do. But at the end of the day you will be judged on results, not hours. We are a results based company. Get shit done and move the goalpost!”

Okay, but you better have an ironclad way to communicate and measure what “results” means. Does he have a skills matrix going on? Some KPIs? If some people need an hour to get the same results that take others days, time to investigate and invest in some training or better documentation. Extra points deducted for “guys” (which along with “the boys”, appears repeatedly through the handbook as a way to describe staff). 3/10.

3. “I want you to look them in the eyes and tell them they are the bottleneck and take it a step further and explain….so you both are on the same page. “Tyler, you are my bottleneck. I have 45 days to make this video happen and I can not begin to work on it until I know what the contents of the video is. I need you to confirm you understand this is important and we need to set a date on when the creative will be done.” Now this person who also has tons of shit going on is aware of how important this discussion is and you guys can prio it accordingly. “

Could do with less cursing, but communication is king! Spell out your needs and deadlines clearly, and don’t let resentment build. Teamwork! 9/10.

4. “I’d rather you be honest with each other then nice to each other.”

It’s nice to clearly spell out behaviours you want to reinforce, but someone teach this man radical candor! You can be kind while giving effective feedback; you just have to show that you are giving feedback because you care personally, while still being direct. 6/10.

5. “If talent wants to draw a dick on the white board in the video or do something stupid, let them. (assuming they know all the risks and aren’t missing context on why it’s not safe) People like when we are in our natural element of stupidity. Really do everything you can to empower the boys when filming and help them make content.”

While their goals (baiting YouTube clicks) may differ from ours (creating good work environments), we’ve got to give this one 0/10.

6. “Every single department has an opportunity for you to grow in and you’re in luck because we don’t do yearly reviews. We do whenever the fuck you want reviews. If you want to become a production manager, tell James your intention and ask him why you suck and how you can become better. Seriously. He will give you a list of things that you need to improve to become what we need and if you actually listen and master those things, we will give you a shot at the role.”

Okay, we’re all here for continuous feedback and communicating our goals. But a session where your manager outlines what you should improve and work on to grow sounds a lot like…a review. If you want to make sure you’re doing this regularly and growing people, why not just set a specific date to do it and give poor James a break the rest of the time? Also, does James have anything nice to say about my work? Positive reinforcement goes a long way. 4/10.

Overall, while we applaud the commitment to direct communication and clearly outlined expectations, MrBeast’s team could really avoid “bottlenecks” by formalizing performance and growth processes a bit more, ensuring the environment is way more inclusive, and bringing in experts to help scale people processes so they aren’t continuous one-offs or knowledge held by one senior staff member. That would be a culture worth clicking on.

-Team B+E

Bright Reads 🌞

• Working in marketing and design and worried about burnout on your creative teams? Nora is joining RGD and Creative Niche for a free webinar on designing healthy agency environments (and avoiding burnout) tomorrow (Sept 26) at 2pm ET. Register here!

• September 30 is National Day of Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. Some provinces have this as a stat holiday, some do not. Looking for resources?

  • University of Alberta has a free online course on Indigenous history and issues in Canada (try taking the day to complete it!)

  • We’ve heard good things about the ongoing lunch and learn series happening this week from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.

  • Or check out our guide from B+E team member Stephanie Bergman, linked above.

• October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and we’re revisiting Early Magazine’s Cripping Time at Work, an empathetic piece where writer Katie Walsh explores how time connects to disability and to labour.

• We know why journalists leave the profession. A new study looks at why they stay. (Nieman Lab)

• Workplace pays employees to go on dates with ‘Tinder leave’ initiative. (NYPost)

• Pizza Hut will print job seekers’ resumes on pizza boxes and deliver to employers in ‘the toughest job market’. (CNBC)

• LinkedIn starts training GenAI on users' personal data - without notification. (The Stack)

• How trauma awareness in the workplace is growing for people leaders. (WorkLife)

What’s New at B+E 🍏

This week, we’re welcoming Lauren Freeman to our consulting team! Joining us with 8+ years of experience across tech and nonprofits, Lauren is a strategic HR leader with a passion for building people-centric programs and processes in energizing and inclusive work environments. She’s known as a trusted HR advisor, working primarily in fast-paced, high-growth technology organizations. Her approach is proactive, data-driven, and focused on both equity and impact. When Lauren’s not at work, she enjoys hot yoga classes, a great cheese plate, and watching live sports.

NEW: Bright Jobs ☀️

Every week, we’ll share a curated list of exciting jobs at Bright + Early partners. Bright + Early organizations are all committed to building human, inclusive places to work. Note that we’re not involved in hiring– please apply directly!

• Leading tech and business newsroom The Logic is looking for an Ottawa Bureau Reporter

• Wagepoint, a Canadian-made payroll software team with a lot of heart, are looking for a Product Marketing Manager

• Our friends at leading arts fest Luminato are hiring a Director of Philanthropy

Coming Up 👀

• September 30 is National Day of Truth and Reconciliation in Canada, and a bank holiday in many (but not all) provinces.

• October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month and LGBTQ+ History Month (USA)

• October 2-4 is Rosh Hashanah

• October 10 is World Mental Health Day

• October 11 is Coming Out Day

• October 11-12 is Yom Kippur

• October 14 is Canadian Thanksgiving (and a bank holiday across Canada)

• October 14 is Indigenous People’s Day in the USA

• October 16 is International Pronouns Day. A good opportunity to put in some best practices around sharing pronouns at work!

• October 31 is Halloween and Samhain

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