Culture-Based Recruiting, Part 2: Identify How Your Company Is Different

Important Aspects of Company Culture
We learned in article one that people are more likely to remain in company cultures that support their personal values and professional success.

In terms of candidate sourcing and attraction, the most important aspect of culture is the degree to which common practices and beliefs in your company are perceived as unique and similar to the beliefs and preferences of candidates. For example, some organizations believe financial rewards are more important than other forms of recognition, such as praise from supervisors. One candidate may like this money-based culture, while another may find it impersonal or threatening.

In terms of candidate selection, the most critical aspects of culture are philosophies that employees must support, adapt to or overcome to be effective. Culture can have a major impact on the success of newly hired employees, even those with very similar skills and experiences. For example, certain skills are more critical in consensus-oriented cultures than in cultures where employees are expected to act autonomously. A highly independent employee might succeed in a company that places little emphasis on consensus, but fail miserably in the same job in a company that encourages group decision-making.

Identify Your Company's Culture
Using culture for recruitment requires identifying aspects of your company's culture that make it different from other companies. In essence, you need to identify the unique beliefs, behaviors and practices of your company.

• Review mission and vision statements, shareholder reports or marketing materials that convey the company's self-identity. But these materials often convey what the company wants to be, and may not reflect what the company's work environment actually is.
• Conduct a survey. However, surveys are fairly labor intensive and often fail to capture the work environment's truly unique aspects.
• Interview a cross-section of employees and leaders about the work environment. Ask for short phrases that describe the company's atmosphere, reasons why they like the company and things they find frustrating. More >>>>>

Part three of this series will review specific techniques for incorporating cultural attributes into recruiting practices