Finding the best candidates to hire is crucial in building a successful company, but just having someone really good at their job isn’t enough. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for an intern or are on an executive search hunt. You need to find someone that fits well with the culture of your company. This is what makes culture fit interview questions so tricky to ask: they aren’t about the overall job, but about how they fit into the team.
Why Culture Fit Is Important When Hiring Company Executives
Everyone wants to hire someone who “fits” into the company culture. Why is this important? How does culture impact the entire workplace? Read on to find out.
1. Support Employer Brand
Employees that align with the culture and values of a company will support the employer brand. This creates a cohesiveness within the company and gives employees a common sense of belonging. Executives should most definitely support the employer brand because they are leading the company.
An executive that doesn’t fit into the company culture will disrupt the cohesion and only cause problems. Brand is an important part of any organization and those at the top need to be aligned with it for the best results.
2. Increase Workplace Happiness
Along with supporting the employer brand comes workplace happiness and morale. When hiring company executives, you should make sure they align with the company to promote a healthy morale. Employees working under an executive that understands the ins and outs of the company helps increase workplace happiness.
3. Better Work Relationships
Better work relationships are possible when everyone fits with the company culture, including executives. When values align and employees are working together towards a common goal, they are more likely to create stronger relationships. Great executives can foster growth within an organization and help build those relationships between employees.
4. Increased Productivity
Similar to increased workplace happiness, there will be increased productivity when executives fit the company culture. Executives will understand how employees work best and create an environment where productivity is a focus. When company culture is strong, better work occurs. Employees will be more motivated to complete tasks if they feel appreciated and part of something bigger. Executives can ensure this environment is maintained.
To help you prepare, we’ve selected a few of our favorite cultural interview questions to ask that will help you find the best candidate.
Cultural Interview Questions You Should Ask
Here are some good cultural interview questions to ask to find out if the other person will fit into your organization.
Describe the work environment you are most productive and happy in.
This is a good topic to begin the interview. Think of it as the ice breaker culture fit interview question. As well, it gives you the chance to see how productive a potential worker can be in the company environment. You shouldn’t necessarily base your hiring position off of this one question, but it’s a good jumping off point for a successful search.
Which word best describes your personality?
Questions that tend to be open-ended are the most revealing when assessing cultural fit. It is especially important that recruiters understand how a candidate would describe themself with regard to attitude, temperament, and ways of behaving. These are all things that can often drift outside their job description but play an essential role in performance within the organizational culture.
What superpower will you bring to our company?
This is a way to see what the prospective employee can bring to your team. Essentially, it’s another way of asking what their greatest strength is, but done in a casual way. Nevertheless, you should pay attention to the answer as it allows you to see whether or not the interviewee would be able to easily integrate into the company culture.
How do you manage conflict with coworkers?
Unfortunately, even the most functional work environments will have some conflict. They’re not always dramatic blow ups, but navigating conflicts with coworkers is a part of the company culture. If you feel the way they handled a previous conflict with an employee wasn’t handled well, take note and see if it will work with your company.
Your manager assigns you a big task right before the end of the day. How would you reply?
This question is mainly used to see what kind of worker a potential employee is and how they respond to last minute changes and pressure. Hearing how someone answers this question allows you to see whether or not the person values time management. Are they the kind of worker to stay late and complete the task, or would they rather tackle it first thing in the morning, refreshed and renewed? Review the company culture and see what kind of worker would work best with the team.
Can you describe your work experience over the past three years?
This is a question that can help recruiters determine whether or not they have found someone who will fit in with their organization’s culture. A candidate who has been working outside the industry, for example, might behave differently from one who has spent time within it.
What are you most passionate about?
The question about what a candidate is most passionate about can give recruiters insight into someone’s hidden motivations, interests, and non-work related values. Passionate people tend to be very involved with the world around them –– including their work environment –– which can cause problems if they cannot transfer that interest to their professional lives.
Describe your ideal work environment.
This interview question allows recruiters to see how well a candidate will fit in with the corporate culture by determining whether or not they have examined it closely enough to perceive themselves as part of it easily and seamlessly. The more detailed and accurate the picture is, the better chance there is of this person being a good cultural fit.
Which part of our company values do you think you’ll have the greatest difficulty living up to?
Recruiters should ask this question because it can help them determine whether or not a candidate has truly examined what the company’s culture is all about. A good answer to the question will include specific examples of how this individual might behave in contrast with those values, which is helpful information for recruiters looking for cultural fits.
What would make you quit a job in the first month?
This one is a big interview question to ask about culture, so you’re going to want to save it for the end. You want to gauge what kind of person the interviewee is and see what their values are. It’s similar to asking them what they think is most important in a company. It gives you the chance to review your own company and if you’ll be able to offer them what it is they need in a company.
Find The Best Executive For Your Company With Recruiterie
Culture fit interview questions are a way to understand a potential employee’s values and see whether or not they match up with the company’s. They’re a chance to see if you’re able to offer what someone is looking for in a work environment. Once you find the right fit, they’ll be able to transition into the company on the right foot.
You won’t be doing anyone any favors by hiring someone whose values aren’t a good match. As an executive recruitment firm, we have seen how company culture is able to impact its employees. Asking the right cultural fit interview questions can help preserve the culture of the company by finding the best talent to enhance your business.
There is a better way to recruit. Let us show you how. If you need to search and fill a critical role, contact Recruiterie or call us at 602-326-6820.