Instead of hiring full-timers, LoveMachine farms assignments to freelancers, who bid on tasks such as fixing a software bug or designing a new feature. What makes it work, says co-founder Philip Rosedale, is the company's willingness to break some traditional workplace taboos:
Taboo 1:
Don't publish internal communications. Workers collaborate in an online chat room on LoveMachine's website. Anyone can read all of the conversations going back to 2009. The company even publishes a link to the dialogue on its homepage.
Taboo 2:
Don't tattle on lazy co-workers. The company's online system tracks and publishes the progress of each work assignment. Anyone can see how much work each person is taking on and which jobs have been completed.