Culture matters

By Tom Cline

July 04, 2012

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Personal experience can be an effective teacher.

I have had the personal experience of accepting what appeared to be a challenging position, in a growing organization, where the way decisions were made and how they operated — the culture — was not at all consistent with the message put forth by the owners during the recruiting process. The result was a stressful relationship and job performance that did not meet the expectations of either party.

Some organizations will excite you. They''ll stimulate your success and growth. Others will be stressful and may lead you to quit before you''ve accomplished much or learned what you hoped to learn.

With the pressure or excitement of finding a new job, it''s all too easy to pursue a job opportunity, or to accept an offer, with only a sketchy view of how the institution really operates. The key to finding an organization you''ll like, and to which you’ll be a good fit, is to investigate the culture you''re thinking of joining before you accept the position. The same is true from the employer’s perspective. We can hire the best, brightest and most enthusiastic people into our business, but if our culture doesn’t match what the candidate is expecting, they are likely to be disappointed and underperform.

A company’s culture defines how they operate, what makes them proud, and how their purpose leads to the decisions they make. Finding the people with the skills, experience and education we expect, and the personality, work ethic and core values that match those of our company, will result in improved performance, reduced turnover, motivated employees and increased teamwork.

We recently completed a forum with some of our client companies, during which they were encouraged to share the strategies, approaches, products and ideas they are finding successful. One of the operations managers in attendance outlined a strategy he named “Employees of Character”; his company’s efforts to better describe their behavior expectations to both existing and potential employees. He explained the changes the company has made to clearly express the organization’s core values and how they hold employees accountable for their actions.

This approach to hiring based on character actually resulted in high, voluntary employee turnover, based on the fact that the culture their company was embodying became an uncomfortable place to be for workers who were not a good fit. However, once the “bad apples” moved on, the result was a more motivated team of employees, a better work environment and a group of people who all share the same core values.

Aside from ethical issues there is no right answer to what is best in organizational culture. Different purposes and organizational features can be more or less appealing to different people. What’s key is the match between how a potential employer operates and the goals of the individual.

What should job hunters try to learn, and what should employers be sure to convey, regarding the culture of a company?

1. The organization’s purpose. How they operate. How what they believe leads to the decisions that are made. Examples include how they get things done, the level of teamwork they expect and their focus on performance. The quality of the people in the business and how they communicate are also important elements to understand.

2. Read everything you can about the organization, but realize that references to culture in public documents are there to serve a purpose. Talk with people in the organization – those who are part of the recruiting process and others who aren’t involved. Seek out people outside the organization who are familiar with the company, including customers, suppliers, and ex-employees. Ask them to describe situations where they saw the culture in action.

3. It may be a tricky balance to ask about company culture during a job interview at the same time that you’re trying to sell yourself, but the subject should not be off limits. As an employer, this is the time to communicate your vision, core values and the type of people you want to have in your organization.

Whether we call it “fit”, hiring “employees with character” or something else, populating your organization with people who share your core values and your vision will likely result in more satisfied, motivated employees, a more positive work environment and higher levels of individual and business performance.

After all, regardless of the type of business you’re in, culture matters.

Tom Cline has a 28-year background in sales, marketing, and operations. He is currently a Business Development Advisor for Violand Management Associates (VMA) where he works closely with business owners and their key management staff as both a business consultant and an executive coach. To learn more about VMA''s services and programs visit www.violand.com or call (330)966-0700.