As a business owner looking to create a company culture that aligns with your values and purpose, it is essential that you take the time to interview potential employees thoroughly. The right team can make or break your company, helping you achieve your goals, productivity, and sales, and further contributing to a winning company culture. It’s also important to understand that there is a difference between a bad hire and a bad person.
One company we have worked with was looking to grow their team before they worked with us. They went through your typical recruiting process, posting to LinkedIn, utilizing company referrals, and posting to their company site. Throughout this process, they found a few potential new hires, however, they never actually met these employees in person.
While the candidate they hired was extremely qualified on paper, once they started, it became apparent that they weren’t the best culture fit. Unfortunately, the company did not identify this before the candidate was hired, which had some costly repercussions. This candidate was not a bad person, in fact, she was a good person and extremely qualified, however, she was, irrefutably, a bad hire. In this role, in this company, this person simply did not fit the culture the company has carefully established.
What can a company do in circumstances where there’s a good person who is a bad hire. There’s an old adage: hire slow, fire fast. It’s tried and true and, given that the company had failed to hire slowly, it was essential that they let this person go quickly to avoid lasting damage to their team’s culture and to the person’s prospects. They let her go, with a generous additional chunk of money and good wishes for her to find the right company culture.
Rushing the hiring process can be detrimental to your recruiting process. One of the main reasons businesses make bad hiring decisions is that they are more concerned with hiring quickly rather than hiring well. What most businesses need to understand is that making a bad hire can be costly. When you take the time to find people who fit your culture, you are actually saving you and your employees time, money, and headaches.
Hiring quickly typically means you are cutting corners. Give yourself enough time to prepare the job description and go through an intensive interview process that gives both you and the potential new hire the opportunity to interview the company as well.
Take a look at the big picture of your company. How can you describe the culture you want to cultivate in the job description, even before potential new hires apply. While emergency hiring is sometimes necessary, it may also lead to more mistakes.
Yes, you should create an ‘ideal candidate’ profile. However, try to think outside the box of this profile, as you could be missing some great candidates that may not have all the same qualifications. It’s important to have an idea of the skills and personality a new member of your team should have, however, it’s also important to give other candidates an opportunity.
After all, it’s easier to teach a skill than it is to force a culture fit.
You should also get out of the box when looking where to post your job description. Putting all your eggs in one or two baskets isn’t enough. Explore new channels of communication with potential employees.
As most potential candidates are on social media, use it to your advantage! Those that already follow you will see the posting, and you know they already align with your company culture.
Workforces are more inclusive and diverse than ever before. This is an amazing step forward from where we used to be, however, there is still a lot of work to be done. Ensure your hiring managers and recruiters are without subconscious, unchecked bias. This may mean you need to move toward a blind review of applications to ensure you give everyone a fair opportunity.
The halo effect can be a huge bias that gets in the way of hiring the best employee. The halo effect leads us to judge someone based on the first few personality traits they present. One example is when someone is physically attractive they are more likely to be judged as kind, sociable, and smart, despite what they might actually be.
A candidate who can ‘wow’ the hiring manager with their friendly affinity is more likely to get the job, sometimes when they are less qualified. It’s easier to overlook red flags if you are impressed with someone’s kind nature, or friendly personality.
While your employees need to be skilled at the job they are applying for, hiring for a culture fit can actually be a better option. Skills don’t make a good employee, their attitude and work ethic do.
Hiring managers who hire based solely on a candidate’s talent are missing a key part of the recruiting process. They must take into consideration your company values and how this potential employee fits into them. Hire for culture, not for skill.
At Culture Works, we understand what it takes to hire the right employees for your company’s values and purpose. Our human resources experts have the experience you need to ensure your company culture remains intact as you expand and grow your business. Reach out to us today to see how we can help your company achieve greatness.