In the modern world of work, the term Cultural Fit Everyone's talking about it right now. This means the congruence between the values, attitudes and behaviours that apply and are lived in a company on the one hand and those of potential employees on the other.
The focus is on the question: Does the applicant fit into the company?
Defining cultural fit:
The term cultural fit, which comes from personnel psychology, describes the correspondence between the existing organizational culture in a company and the desired organizational culture from the perspective of (potential) employees. There is a high level of cultural fit when employees can identify with the organizational culture, i.e. with the values, attitudes and practices practiced in the company.
Cultural Fit: More appearance than reality?
But what role does cultural fit play in the modern personnel selection? Is the term primarily a buzzword with no relevant meaning and implications for the day-to-day practice of HR managers, or should testing the cultural fit between companies and applicants already be on their agenda? Meta HR Unternehmensberatung and Employour investigated this question in a joint study. The surprising result: While over 80% of the HR managers surveyed regard the cultural fit between applicants and companies as important or very important, an actual measurement of this has so far been carried out in less than 10% of personnel selection processes instead of.
Perceived importance and actual implementation therefore appear to be in clear contrast — the reality of personnel selection in German companies therefore seems to be lagging behind changes in the labor market once again. The reason: Last but not least, a number of myths and Half knowledge circulating about the term an often low scientific basis of existing test methods on the market and a lack of know-how regarding the use of scientifically based methods.
We uncover myths and errors surrounding the term cultural fit and tell you recipes for success for a scientifically based cultural fit measurement!
6 myths about cultural fit
Myth 1:
Cultural fit is subjective, not scientifically measurable and is therefore in contrast to “classic” personnel selection criteria
Cultural fit usually covers ”soft factors” such as expectations of leadership styles, preferences for collaboration, or overriding values such as integrity. At first glance, the concept of cultural fit therefore appears to be in contrast to more classical ”hard factors” such as intelligence or ability to concentrate. However, a closer look behind the facades of this frequently used buzzword shows that there is more to the term than the applicants' mere preference for a particular office design. In particular when Cultural fit tests If they are scientifically based and specifically tailored to job requirements, the contrast is lower than initially assumed. This is because values and attitudes are cleanly defined and translated into concretely observable behavioral or Personality dimensions translated (e.g. Team orientation and Openness to experience), can these certainly be achieved with the help of scientifically based psychological testing methods or psychometric mini-games measure.
Myth 2:
Cultural fit is a “nice to have” for employees, but plays no role in company profit
Working time takes up a great deal of our time. As a result, more and more employees want to work for a company Whose values they can identify with. It is therefore hardly surprising that the concept of cultural fit is particularly important as part of New Work movement is gaining in importance. But the benefits by no means end with those for employees. If there is a high level of cultural fit, employees and employers benefit equally. The simple reason: Satisfied employees are better employees — this is proven by various studies.
A higher cultural fit also improves not only employee satisfaction, but also the relationship between employees and thus team collaboration. Other reasons to opt for Cultural Fit include faster onboarding, fewer cancellations, and higher retention (employee retention)
The conclusion is: Cultural fit is more than a “nice-to-have”, but a critical competitive factor for the success of a company. Because the better employees fit into a company and can even identify with it, the more successful the company is too: in the short, medium and, above all, in the long term.
Myth 3:
Cultural fit harms diversity in companies
But wait: doesn't cultural fit automatically mean pure conformity and adherence to the status quo? Is cultural fit therefore not the opposite of Diversity, i.e. the desire for greater diversity in the company, which is currently required everywhere? And isn't it always said that diversity and diversity of thought are the secret to greater success in a company? Diversity or the best fit — what now?
In fact, the arguments for the apparent contradiction between cultural fit and diversity are not entirely out of thin air — because in the search for the best cultural fit, there is definitely a risk that the idea of diversity will be trampled underfoot.
A small thought experiment:
Imagine v20 years ago, the leaders of large, established companies (yes, we mean the “old white men” that everyone is talking about today) would only have hired employees (yes, “opposite” was not yet done back then) whose values and attitudes were in line with theirs. Applicants who questioned established patterns of behavior in the company or brought with them other values would have been excluded from the applications — the reason: a lack of cultural fit. True to the motto: Equal and equal likes to go hand in hand.
Do you think we are ready today when it comes to topics such as sustainability, openness to other working time models and gender-equitable organizational cultures? Decide for yourself!
A certain degree of caution is therefore certainly appropriate in this regard. And yet: Is the cultural fit measurement scientifically based and is based on an empirical requirement profile With defined, clearly measurable dimensions, cultural fit and diversity do not have to be in conflict with each other. Finally, it is not values and attitudes that are unrelated to professional success (e.g. attitudes towards same-sex partnerships) that systematically predict professional success and play an important role in daily collaboration (e.g. attitudes towards hierarchies and teamwork).
As a result, cultural fit is also permitted as a criterion for personnel selection under the Employer Equal Treatment Act (AGG). It is important that the procedures used are assessment errors (see Unconcious bias) by carrying out tests and evaluating them objectively. In addition, procedures should be reviewed regularly and continuously for potential discrimination against minorities. After all, we all do not want the lack of cultural fit to be used as a new backdoor for discrimination in personnel selection.
Myth 4:
Cultural fit is only important for personnel selection
Cultural fit is not only central to the selection process, but also plays an important role as Employer branding-Instrument for personnel recruitment and as an employee retention tool for personnel development. And this is particularly true with an increasing shift from an employer market (vacant positions < talents) to a Workers internal market (vacant positions > talents) of great importance. Because in a job market where applicants can freely choose between potentially interesting employers, the question is increasingly coming to the fore: Does the company suit me and can I identify with it?
Cultural fit is thus becoming one of the most important selection criteria for High Potentials. While just 20 years ago, a prestigious company, good pay and a company car were enough to attract young talent, today they expect more, not least a high level of identification with the corporate culture. For example, over half of German employees say that they have already quit their job due to discrepancies between corporate culture and their own values.
Myth 5:
A cultural fit of 100% is ideal
We are used to striving for 100% — whether in everyday working life or in partnerships. But does this also apply to cultural fit? Is a cultural fit of 100% really ideal? The answer may be surprising at first, but it is still: No. Because it is not always about identifying applicants who are 100% suited to the company. Often, even a match of 70 to 80% is closer to the ideal — there is agreement on the most important aspects, but there are still some points of friction that trigger exciting discussions.
In the same way, it can also be the goal Recruit employees who complement the team and cover aspects that have not yet been covered or only insufficiently covered by the team. An example would be hiring a very risk-savvy person, although companies have so far made more risk-averse decisions in order to adapt to rapid developments on dynamic markets. Because as Arne Arotnow said: “Perfection comes from corners and edges.”
Myth 6:
The organizational culture applies across time, location and department
The organizational culture is often defined in the headquarters and then literally “imposed” on all organizational units. This may still work quite well in small and medium-sized companies with a few locations or in a small, up-and-coming start-up. However, it becomes more difficult when different locations and thus even national cultures (e.g. individualistic cultures such as Germany and collectivist cultures such as China) and phases of corporate maturity (e.g. development from start-up to established company) come into play. In addition, the organizational culture within the company can also differ extremely between departments. For example, good teamwork and communication may be understood and lived in a completely different way in the HR department than in the IT department. Computer scientists who actually fit in well with the lived values and attitudes within the IT department would therefore be rejected, as there may be no fit for the overarching and therefore less differentiated culture.
The problem: Even if the corporate culture no longer fits the business unit or has never even been right for it, it is maintained across locations and departments for years — no adjustments take place.
The episode: The backward-looking and undifferentiated definition of culture paralyzes change and genuine diversity — future orientation and change fall by the wayside.
conclusion
The analysis shows that cultural fit is not the guarantee solution for happy employees and corporate success. Especially not when companies choose Test procedure rely solely on good-sounding slogans and hip-looking processes, but for which only Inadequate scientific quality criteria available. The definition and implementation of cultural fit makes the difference. Read how this can be achieved in our article: Successful and scientifically based cultural fit measurement in three steps.
