By J. James O'Malley
In the consulting business, we tend to use words like "chemistry" and "fit" when deciding how to best assign engagement teams to client projects. We want to be sure that our partner/leaders and the associates who report to them are a good match with the client's corporate culture and style.
While all of that is well and good and makes perfect business sense, it follows that we ought to be recruiting and hiring people on the basis of "fit" too, correct? As an HR professional and consultant who works extensively with large and small consulting firms, I seldom have a week go by where the topic of "cultural fit" isn't brought up while discussing a new executive search. Unfortunately, hiring for fit is more of a myth than a reality.
I don't dispute that cultural fit is important, but I do seriously question its feasibility. Here's why: we've yet to come across a foolproof set of interview questions or an assessment that accurately measures or predicts cultural fit. In a perfect world, we'd have a 100 percent accurate methodology to screen applicants easily and effectively to ensure that they fit our respective organization's corporate cultures. And then, everyone would work together happily ever after. If such a tool existed, the level of voluntary separations and terminations attributed to lack of fit would be much lower than is reported.
Why? First of all, defining a single corporate culture is difficult. Within one organization, culture may vary widely from location to location and even from department to department, depending on that function's utility to the company as a whole.
Think about your own firm, for instance. Partners and those on the partner track, on the one hand, are typically rewarded based on individual revenue goals. On the other, internal corporate departments are often rewarded based on how well they collaborate to run the back office side of the firm, the cultures within those two job groups—within the same firm—may be diametrically opposed, as they probably need to be!
Secondly, consider another dimension of corporate culture: it's often aspirational, rather than a reflection of current reality. Need objective proof? Pick a large corporation or consulting firm and take a look at the way culture is described on the website's pages devoted to careers or HR. Then, ask a friend who works there what it's really like. Or check out some of the sites such as vault.com for insider reviews.
Does what the company describes as its culture and reality align? There are exceptions, of course. Companies such as Zappos, Apple or Google lead with well-defined cultures and are able to attract a very specific type of candidate as a result. But, even within those companies, it's not entirely uncommon to see deep cultural chasms between the techies and the business folks (the "suits").
Of course, there are certain behavioral interview questions you can ask to evaluate whether the individual is likely to be a fit. (Remember that the emphasis is on the word "likely"!). The questions should center on the candidate's track record. By asking "what's worked for you in the past", you'll get a great sense of the type of environment in which that individual will succeed.
By asking situational questions, such as "What type of environment are you most comfortable working in?" or "If you got to pick your next boss, what would he/she be like?" you will learn a lot about the individual's ability to fit in. Another great way to gauge fit is to watch the person interact with potential future colleagues as they walk around the office and/or go to lunch with them. Let's hear from you I am prepared to start the debate!
J. James O'Malley is a Partner at talentRISE and serves in a dual role as head of the firm's workforce planning and risk assessment practice and as an executive search consultant focusing on senior level searches for clients in the professional and financial services industries. Jim's corporate career spans over 25 years in various executive level HR, Recruiting and talent management roles with firms like Deloitte, Arthur Andersen and Huron Consulting Group. Contact Jim at jimomalley@talentrise.com.
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