Brian Chesky wanted Airbnb to thrive when he founded it; learning from companies like Nike, Apple and Zappos that successful companies possess their own set of core values that set them apart from competitors.
Airbnb needed to quickly adapt during the pandemic, when international travel ceased and revenue decreased by 80%, to remain viable and successful. Their solution?
1. Personal involvement
Brian Chesky serves as an inspiring example of how applying heart and creativity into business practices can make a significant impactful statement about humanity’s potential. He shows us that success requires the courage to move beyond comfort zones, building bridges between different individuals in order to achieve something bigger than ourselves.
Airbnb was always founded with people in mind. From its inception, its founders put themselves into their customers’ (hosts’) shoes in order to understand how they could enhance their product and service, quickly collecting feedback and responding accordingly. Furthermore, this close engagement allowed for effective vision-keeping during times of difficulty for both employees and hosts alike.
Chesky and his team realized when Airbnb was hit by a pandemic and lost 80% of business within eight weeks that to survive they needed to rethink their strategies and develop an intimate culture in order to thrive through such difficult times. Their strategy included empowering employees as brand advocates while taking care of their well-being by offering benefits such as providing healthcare coverage for laid-off workers.
As a communication advisor, I’m continually amazed at leaders who can convey their messages in an engaging way that reaches minds and touches hearts. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky stands out among these exceptional leaders due to his ability to tell engaging personal tales that can captivate an audience as well as explain complex topics simply.
Chesky excels at product launches; one such launch, Airbnb Trips, was no exception. Instead of providing technical information about his new service through slides or presentations with technical details, he shared personal stories to engage his audience and illustrate how Airbnb Trips could create meaningful and magical experiences for them.
2. One-to-one meetings
One-to-one meetings may seem mundane, but they’re an integral component of Airbnb’s culture and an effective tool for employee engagement. Regular 1:1s give managers an opportunity to provide constructive feedback, support career development goals, celebrate wins and offer employees open conversations they need in their roles.
Effective one-to-ones require being focused on helping managers and employees to meet goals that improve performance. One effective method for doing this is setting regular meeting dates and setting clear goals.
Brian built trust by including Airbnb hosts as an integral part of their culture, visiting each host across the country to meet them personally, learn their challenges, and provide training that made them true brand representatives for Airbnb.
Airbnb’s founders weren’t afraid to go against conventional wisdom and risk their reputation in pursuit of creating a brighter future for their company, and it paid off: Airbnb became the first business ever to turn a profit by sharing homes between strangers.
Brian Chesky was faced with an imminent crisis as the flu pandemic struck, which threatened the existence of Airbnb. Acting swiftly to address it and take decisive actions that ultimately prevented its demise he saved Airbnb from total collapse.
Airbnb realized one key lesson from this crisis is the importance of including its employees. This decision marked a turning point in their company culture, showing employees their concerns were taken seriously by its leadership and that cared about their wellbeing – something essential in creating an atmosphere in which strangers could safely share their homes and lives together.
3. Personal development
Brian Chesky stands as an exemplary entrepreneur who has made great efforts to mold his company’s culture. His focus has always been on Airbnb’s mission of connecting people and creating an inclusive space, as well as his strong personal power motive and willingness to take risks to achieve his goals – qualities which have allowed Airbnb’s growth substantially.
Chesky holds immense power as co-founder and CEO of Airbnb. He exudes charismatic personality that inspires others. Additionally, Chesky has demonstrated a willingness to take risks to promote Airbnb; although this has caused controversy it also helped accelerate expansion quickly.
Chesky’s greatest leadership lesson has been learning the significance of maintaining a healthy work/life balance. He understands the need to spend quality time with family and friends during stressful periods in company growth, such as his recent stint with Facebook.
Airbnb co-founder Nathan Blecharczyk graduated from Rhode Island School of Design, and has seamlessly woven his artistic skills into both their products and culture. This has fostered an environment of trust within their organization.
Chesky takes an integrated approach to business, believing that an equilibrium between logic and creativity is necessary for success. He implements an intricate hiring process and screens candidates based on values rather than technical expertise alone – helping shape Airbnb’s culture by recruiting individuals who share these beliefs. He’s even encouraged employees to express themselves freely within this culture!
4. Shared values
Culture plays an essential role in building and maintaining an organization’s success; when its culture is strong, employees feel connected and can collaborate to make decisions as a group. Airbnb’s leadership emphasizes creating and upholding a strong culture through policies and procedures reflecting their core values.
Brian Chesky is the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, leading its vision and strategy. Together with Joe Gebbia he co-launched this home-sharing platform out of their apartment in 2007; since then it has amassed over 4 million hosts hosting 1.5 billion guests. As a graduate from Rhode Island School of Design Brian has imbued his creative roots into every aspect of Airbnb culture, product, community involvement.
One of Chesky’s key insights has been that people need love and connection more than material goods. He advocates for prioritizing relationships over material goods, while paying attention to internal motivations; external validation may leave people feeling empty and disconnected while prioritizing self-love and acceptance can bring greater success and fulfillment.
Chesky has learned over his journey as a startup founder that setting clear and measurable goals is essential to preventing burnout. He emphasizes the value of long-term goals over short-term results and encourages his team to be patient during the process. Furthermore, prioritizing and maintaining a healthy work-life balance are essential in order to keep passion and creativity alive in an organization.
Airbnb is now valued at 31 billion dollars and has become a household name over just 15 years, but its rise hasn’t come without challenges. On a recent episode of Diary of a CEO podcast host and tech entrepreneur Brian Chesky discussed how its rapid rise has taken its toll on his family and personal life – missing important events due to an “addiction to work,” with regrettable consequences on relationships in his 42nd year as tech entrepreneur.
5. Employees as ambassadors
Companies often focus on culture to set themselves apart in the market. Unfortunately, however, maintaining such an environment requires an army of employees. Employees serve as powerful representatives for your brand when aligned with its core values and beliefs.
Airbnb’s culture is built upon community, and Chesky has made great efforts to make every employee feel like part of the organization. He used to meet personally with each new hire until the company became too large, hosting weekly orientation meetings for staff. Furthermore, Chesky now sends out weekly emails with wisdom he’s gained throughout the week.
Airbnb employs a second round of interviews when hiring, which assesses core value alignment. These interviews are conducted by people outside the position that the interviewee is being considered for and are handpicked by founders to screen out candidates who do not match up well with the company culture and mission. Airbnb looks for employees who view their job as more of a calling than simply another way to make money.
Brands must equip their employees with all of the resources, tools, and support necessary for creating an empowering culture within their organizations. Offering news and content easily shareable with colleagues; creating an easy-to-use hashtag that highlights company culture; providing staff a platform to promote personal stories is all excellent ways of engaging employees as ambassadors of your brand; rewarding employees for their efforts with special swag and activities as well as giving them opportunities to interact directly with senior management is important in creating an uplifting workplace culture.
