Hiring for Culture Fit: What to Look For

Hiring for Culture Fit: What to Look For

Whether you work hard at it or not, your company has a work culture. When you look around at your team, that "culture" should be evident. It's not just about the tone you set, though. Culture is usually created by the personalities that make up a team.

This starts with the hiring process. The best candidates are a good fit for your existing culture. Even better if they can enhance and improve upon it. As you start to interview candidates, here are a few ways to make sure you're choosing people who complement your existing culture.

Communicate Your Culture

Hiring for culture fit starts with understanding it in the first place. Is your culture more defined by loyalty and caring or organization and structure? What unifies your employees? It may help to ask some questions of your team to see what motivates them to show up for work each day, aside from a paycheck.

Once you've identified your culture, make sure it's reflected in your job ad. If you're trying to attract candidates who like a formal, structured environment, write a serious, straightforward job ad rather than a more whimsical one.

Interview with Culture in Mind

As resumes roll in, look for hints in the cover letter and resume that a candidate might be a good fit. Then begin prepping for the interview phase. Craft some interview questions that will give you the answers you need.

During the interview, also communicate your work culture directly to the candidate. Someone concerned about workplace safety may jump headfirst into a job that minimizes risk. You'll find many candidates eager to join a workplace that injects a little fun with the work, so if you strive to do that, make sure you mention it.

Gather Team Input

The final phase of your interview process should be to let your team meet the top candidates you're considering. Take the finalists on a tour and introduce them to the existing team. Then gather feedback after each tour.

If your team has a bad feeling about a candidate, take those insights to heart. As valuable as a great resume can be, if an employee constantly clashes with the rest of the team, you'll find you don't get the results you want.

A good recruiter will get to know your work culture and narrow down the candidates to those who are the best fit. Express Pros works with organizations across the country to place the best people for each position. Contact us at (615) 441-8898 to find out how we can help you enhance your team by hiring the perfect employees for your culture.