5 Reasons Why It’s Important to Hire for Culture Fit

Recruitment is one of the most critical – and probably one of the toughest – human resources functions. It’s not just a matter of choosing a candidate from among hundreds of applicants as there are vital factors to consider in assessing a candidate’s fitness for a role.

Of course, the usual things matter, such as career history, relevant job experience, and specific skills and competencies required for the job. Moreover, you also need to consider soft skills like empathy, creativity, and communication.

However, research has shown that all things considered, none of these things can guarantee recruitment success (i.e. hiring the best person for the role and the company). In fact, one survey among recruiters found that 84 percent of them agree that it's important to hire for culture fit, first and foremost. To support this further, nine out of 10 in the same pool of recruiters said they choose candidates whose values and goals align with the company culture.    

So if you’ve been seeing people come and go in your company, perhaps it’s time to start looking at culture fit more closely and find out how you can benefit from it.

Benefits of hiring for culture fit

Before moving on to the benefits, let’s try to determine what cultural fitness is first. If you go over various sources, you’ll find a common theme where the employees and the company itself share common values, beliefs, and behaviors – not unlike mainstream culture as we know it. It’s understandable for people to stick together when they are bound by a common culture.

So, without further ado, below are the benefits of hiring for culture fit:

• Engagement: When a company’s mission and vision or corporate objectives resonate with their employees’ values and beliefs, staff are likely to work harder and be more committed to their jobs. Culturally fit employees are loyal, confident, and willing to go the extra mile to do their job and achieve the goals of the company.
• Retention: People typically spend a minimum of 40 hours a week in their workplaces. If employee priorities, values and goals mesh well with those of their employers, they will likely be committed workers. They’ll find meaning and feel connected to what they are doing. This, in turn, leads to higher levels of job satisfaction, and of course, better staff retention. Happy employees wouldn’t want to leave a company that knows their worth.
• Better communication: Having values that align with each other and with their employer’s makes it easier for employees to collaborate and openly communicate with each other. This, in turn, makes for a stronger corporate culture.
• Cohesion: A team is only as good as its members. When people work in unison because they have the same values and goals, success is almost always guaranteed. It’s also much easier to overcome personal and professional differences when people are committed to and value the same things.
• Productivity: Companies with a strong culture and happy employees are usually more productive. Conversely, poor culture and unhappy staff can mean disengagement, higher rates of absenteeism, tardiness, and employee turnover.

Work on developing a strong culture

Corporate or organizational culture is a critical success driver. When you have a strong culture, and you hire for culture fit, you get engaged, productive, loyal, and happy employees who’ll be working with you through the challenges and successes that come.

If you have questions about hiring for culture fit or don’t know how to start implementing it, do get in touch with us at HRDI.