BEYOND THE RESUME:

CULTURAL FIT MAYMATTER MORE

Every organization wants a friendly, hardworking, and diverse workplace. It’s easy to map out your culture goals on paper, but what about the people who live it?

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO ASSESS EMPLOYEES FOR CULTURAL FIT?

Recruiting can be one of the most time consuming and expensive processes organizations go through each year, making it sting even more when you realize 90 days in, you hired the wrong person.

Is there a way to get more insight when matching a candidate to your organization? Yes—by thinking culture first, skill set second.

YOU’RE HIRED?

Why hire for cultural fit?By hiring for a cultural fit, employers can more easily weed out poor candidates and in return, spend more time making an investment and building on culture. Positive work culture is the most important aspect of an organization; it makes sense to hire people who appreciate and connect with your organization’s values.

- Carina Wytiaz

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The best hiring managers have hired for fit all along. They are the ones who build teams with lower turnover and better work product.

http://blog.octanner.com/leadership/recruiting-top-talent-hiring-for-fit

TIPS ON HIRING FOR CULTURAL FIT: 1. Cast a wider net in recruitment

2. Ask culture-driven questions

3. Be appealing to candidates

4. Consider creating a job for a great candidate

1

CAST A WIDER NETIN RECRUITMENTOne of the paradoxes of recruitment is whether to hire a specialist or generalist. Specialists can skip the training and get straight to work, but may not have other attainable skills for career advancement. On the other hand, generalists will take more time to train and develop, but could have other traits necessary for long-term commitment to the organization such as leadership skills.

So how do you combat this issue?

RESUME

When sending out the job posting, consider and interview candidates outside the spectrum of what you’re looking for. Look for people in di�erent industries who have traits that the organizational culture is built on. Chances are, it’s easier to find a workable personality than someone with the skill set AND a workable personality.

RESUME

2

ASK CULTURE-DRIVEN QUESTIONS...What are culture-driven questions? They canvary from an applicant’s approach of work conflict, to work/life balance, and even to their sense of humor. Ask prospective hires to design their own job and give you the job description. Be creative and think of questions you like to answer in order for someone to get to know you better.

http://blog.octanner.com/leadership/recruiting-top-talent-hiring-for-fit

...AND HAVE AN ANSWER KEY FOR REFERENCEThere’s no point in asking questions if you don’t have a general idea what the right answer is. Employers need a guide to let them know good answers from mediocre ones. Talk with current employees to get a sense of right and the wrong answers.

http://talent.linkedin.com/blog/index.php/2014/08/hire-for-organizational-culture-fit

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The trick to building a creative, modern workforce might be asking all those silly questions—What’s your favorite movie? What’s your favorite book? What makes you uncomfortable?—and valuing most highly the answers you’ve never heard before.

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-03/job-applicants-cultural-fit-can-trump-qualifications#p2

3

BE APPEALING TO CANDIDATESChances are, great candidates will have multiple job o�ers. You, as an organization, need to be appealing to candidates and o�er some sort of company resume to your applicant. It doesn’t need to be a sales pitch or advertisement, but the organizational culture that you're trying to instill should speak for itself. Also, don’t be afraid to actively recruit in less common areas where enthusiastic workers can be found.

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ON JOB POSTINGS:

Text alone won’t grab a job seekers’ attention. Create a visual experience... Videos help you communicate your employment brand more clearly than any other medium, because potential recruits get to ‘see, feel, and hear’ what it’s truly like to work at your organization from the employees and leaders themselves.

http://thehiringsite.careerbuilder.com/2011/11/21/do-this-not-that-8-job-posting-tips-for-better-candidates/

4

CONSIDER CREATING A JOB FOR A GREAT CANDIDATE Say you interview a great applicant who may not fill the job description exactly but is someone you still want to employ. Consider making an investment in the person and fit them in a position that they can better fulfill. If their skill set is worth obtaining and will increase cultural dynamics in the o�ce, the value they can add is worth bringing themon board.

The trick to building a creative, modern workforce might be asking all those silly questions—What’s your favorite movie? What’s your favorite book? What makes you uncomfortable?—and valuing most highly the answers you’ve never heard before.

The best way to assess for cultural fit within the organization is during the hiring process. Keep an open mind when looking through those stacks of resumes, searching for outstanding people over box checkers. Identify varied, diverse backgrounds that can indicate a willingness and capacity for learning.

Follow these tips to find applicants with the work experience and personality that will complement your diverse workplace.

RESUMERESUME

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O.C. TANNER AND THE O.C. TANNER INSTITUTEO.C. Tanner helps the world inspire and appreciate great work. Through our innovative cloud-based software, tools, awards, education, and research, we provide thought leadership and strategic recognition solutions for thousands of clients globally. Designed to engage talent, increase performance, and drive corporate goals, our solutions create personalized recognition experiences delivered through a smart technology platform.

The O.C. Tanner Institute regularly commissions research and provides a global forum for exchanging ideas about recognition, engagement, leadership, culture, human values, and sound business principles.