‘Don’t panic, Mr Mainwaring!’ Why you shouldn’t ignore cultural fit

Would you turn down a candidate for being a poor cultural fit if they possessed the skills to help you grow your businesses?

I’ll give you a moment to mull that question over.

It’s a mighty dilemma, given the tech skills shortage that the industry is experiencing right now. Almost a third of digital businesses have had to turn away work due to not finding the right talent in the past year, according to a report by Manchester Digital.

I know what you’re thinking: “What’s the worst that could happen?”.

Well, they could end up leaving you as quickly as they joined. You’re forced to write off the cost of the hire. And you might even have to abandon a project if it’s dependant on their skills.

That’s not as unlikely as you might think, either. More than half (53%) of employees are leaving companies because their working styles don’t fit in with the organisation, as per a survey by HireVue.

Stay true to your values

Hiring someone who’s a poor cultural fit is likely to do more harm than good. It could even make other employees question the integrity of the business if a hire proves to be disruptive.

So, my advice, every time, would be “DON’T PANIC!” – stay true to your values and keep searching. That’s the approach we take here at Revoco, both when we’re hiring internally and when we’re finding candidates for our clients.

Chris and I have built Revoco on a foundation of ‘good behaviour’. Our consultants are rewarded not for the number of calls they make, the number of CVs they send out or even the number of roles they fill. First and foremost, they’re driven by client and candidate satisfaction – that’s the true test, in our eyes and what makes us different to most recruiters out there today. And, most importantly, that message comes from the top down.

Communicate your culture

To be able to unearth those special candidates, you need to be clear on what your culture actually is. Only then can you define what cultural fit is and put processes in place to measure it accurately and objectively.

Only 11% of employers are currently satisfied with how they measure culture fit in their interview process, according to a new survey by ThriveMap. This lack of cultural awareness (as I’m going to call it) increases the chances of them making a bad hire.

How would you define your company culture? And, more importantly, do you think your employees would say the same?

If you need help communicating your culture more effectively, DON’T PANIC. We can help you establish an employer value proposition that reflects exactly what it is you stand for and how you want to operate. And once that’s been defined we can help you find the talent to match.