Hire for Culture Fit – if You Have One

Hiring candidates poorly aligned with the company culture is blamed for early failures in recruiting.  So today’s mantra is to hire for culture fit above all.

Sounds good.  Now, what is your culture?

A recent survey suggests that over half the participating companies had trouble explaining or describing their culture.  No surprise there, but it does make it hard to ensure your new high-value hires are going to fit right in if you are not sure what they are fitting right into.

Many companies, apparently, start talking about perks — such as free supper if you work late.  Not much “culture” there.  What we are talking about with terms such as “organizational values” and “culture” are what is going to make employees get up and actually enjoy going to work.

Pie in the sky?  Not sure that all this feel-good argument actually counts with a candidate who is really only interested in the pay and vacation?

Key to Your Hiring Process

Don’t underestimate it.  Projecting your company culture throughout the hiring process and providing a top candidate experience has an enormous effect on your success — which after all ultimately shapes the power and value of your workforce.

Here’s how writer Ben Slater puts it in ere.net, a recruiting information site:

The only experience candidates have of your company comes directly at the hands of your recruiting department. They can browse your website and read your blog, but the way they’re treated is likely to impact their opinion of your company far more – as many as 64.3 percent of applicants reported that they would share a negative experience with their inner circle.

Projecting your company culture throughout the hiring process and providing a top candidate experience has an enormous effect on your employer brand and the number of people who apply. Want to see this in numbers? Google, widely acknowledged to have one of the best working cultures in the world, has upwards of 2 million high quality applicants every year.

Research suggests that creating a positive hiring experience can even affect the way new hires approach their work. Some 15 percent of candidates who feel fairly treated throughout the process actually put more effort in after being hired.

Here’s the rest of Slater’s article that lays out some of the basics in defining such a specific and attractive work environment:

via: Use Company Culture to Hire Top Talent and Engage Your Team