A leaked email has surfaced, revealing Elon Musk’s stringent ‘productivity recommendations’ for his employees, causing a stir on social media.
Musk, known for his unconventional management style and penchant for stirring debate, allegedly sent the email to Tesla employees in 2022. The email was leaked onto X (formerly Twitter), showcasing Musk’s unorthodox approach to workplace efficiency.
In the email, Musk begins by thanking employees for their performance, emphasising the importance of the company’s integrity. However, it’s his six ‘productivity recommendations’ that have garnered the most attention. Notably, Musk advises employees to ‘walk out of a meeting or drop off a call’ if they realise they are not adding value.
“It is not rude to leave, it is rude to make someone stay and waste their time,” Musk explains in the email.
Is the meeting necessary or unproductive?
Other recommendations include avoiding excessive meetings unless they are indispensable and keeping them short if they are necessary. Musk also discourages the use of acronyms or jargon that could impede clear communication, urging employees to speak plainly to enhance understanding.
“Excessive meetings are the blight of big companies and almost always get worse over time,” Musk writes. “Please get [out] of all large meetings, unless you’re certain they are providing value to the whole audience.”
Additionally, Musk promotes direct communication across all levels of the company, warning against enforcing strict chains of command. “Any manager who attempts to enforce chain of command communication will soon find themselves working elsewhere,” the email reads.
The email has sparked mixed reactions on social media. One user expressed concern over the disregard for hierarchical communication, stating, “Disregarding the chain of command can be disastrous though.” Another user supported Musk’s stance on meetings, saying, “I absolutely abhor meetings! I agree completely with all but #4, which I agree with some.” A third user advised caution, commenting, “Warm suggestion: don’t breach #4 without a ridiculously good reason.”
Musk himself weighed in on the discussion, tweeting, “Especially the last one,” in reference to his point on free-flowing communication.
Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.
