Hiring employees for cultural fit is something we know plenty about. It is in our DNA. As we advise our clients, when you hire for both job fit and cultural fit you get employees who integrate quickly into their role, are happier, tend to stay longer, and contribute more.
Culture is the personality of your business. The beliefs, values, and attitudes within your business that form the foundation of the behaviour you expect employees to uphold? When recruiting it is important that you can clearly articulate your values either to your recruitment agency or when interviewing a potential candidate.
If you manage your own recruitment, then involving people from different areas of the business in the interviewing process can be advantageous. We like to meet new clients on their premises so we can get an understanding of the company’s physical and cultural environment. If we can meet with other team members as well – a senior manager or team members, this broadens our appreciation of your business and helps us to accurately identify the candidates who fit.
When you focus entirely on hiring people for their skills and place less importance on the cultural fit you risk employing people who don’t blend in with the team, do not adhere to the values and behaviours you expect of them, become dissatisfied with their role very quickly, or resign before they’ve had time to immerse themselves in the role.
The culture of your organisation is important. It is the glue that holds the team together. Therefore, we say hire for cultural fit first and role fit second. Additional skills can always be taught but a misalignment with behaviours, values and beliefs will only end up costing the business more in the long run.
This article was originally published in Business North Harbour’s FYI magazine.
Author: Lisa Hill, Managing Director
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