Cultural-Add: A Strategic Approach for Building Dynamic Tech Teams

Have you ever encountered a common challenge in the recruitment process?

Published on

Jun 10, 2024

Autor

Milena Martinez

Eric Fiklocki

Have you ever encountered a common challenge in the recruitment process? Despite candidates meeting technical requirements, they often face rejection from hiring managers. The quest for an ideal candidate extends beyond technical qualifications; it involves aligning with the team, leadership, and organizational culture. Recognizing recruitment as a pivotal avenue for showcasing the company’s culture, it is imperative to ensure that recruiters’ communication seamlessly reflects the organization’s reality. This becomes particularly crucial as workplace culture gains significance in shaping a positive candidate and employee experience.

In this report, we delve into the strategic approach of Cultural-Add in building tech teams, exploring how it goes beyond conventional considerations to enrich team dynamics and Cultural-Add as a valuable concept, which often refers to the practice of intentionally diversifying teams not only based on traditional factors like skills and experience but also considering diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and cultural aspects.

To better understand what Cultural-Add really is, let’s take a quick step back and dive into the concept of culture to understand what culture really is. As defined by Samovar and Porter (1994), culture encompasses the wealth of knowledge, experiences, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material possessions acquired by a group through generations. All these aspects prove the complexity of culture, which is also ongoing, especially in a constantly evolving cultural landscape. When applied to a corporate context, these elements collectively shape the organizational landscape, influencing how employees engage with one another, interpret their roles, and contribute to the overall ethos of the workplace. Essentially, company culture embodies the comprehensive blend of these various facets, molding the distinctive identity and ambiance within the organization.

Now, take a moment to reflect on your organization’s culture. Are you confident in your understanding of the current state of your culture, or are you, perhaps, projecting an idealized version? Limeade (2010) points out that many organizations articulate values they aspire to possess rather than those that currently exist. Consequently, the challenge lies in accurately identifying individuals within the organization and aligning the stated values with the actual cultural reality. Failing to do so could result in a disconnect, where the values expressed by the organization do not mirror those expressed by employees. Such a misalignment may lead to lower engagement and increased attrition in the long run. In other words, it’s very costly. It’s crucial to bridge this gap to ensure a harmonious and authentic organizational culture.

For that reason, let’s acknowledge that company culture is a set of beliefs, values, rituals, and behaviors that are constantly evolving as the organization does too. This evolution may be related from the expansion of operations to a new location, the addition of new individuals to management, a recent merger, or simply due to global events like the abrupt changes brought about by a pandemic, affecting the dynamics of how we relate and work.

Recognizing that culture plays a big role in how people experience the organization, we aim to build strong teams at Techsquads that match our client’s organizational goals. Our commitment is to close the gap between our client’s and our vision, and the current state of their organization, helping our clients find the right talent for their actual needs. This proactive approach is crucial because choosing candidates solely based on ideal aspirations can lead to conflicts and costly challenges in recruitment and human resources processes.

You might be wondering: How does culture play a role in shaping my tech team, and why is it so crucial to consider? The key to recruiting the right talent involves grasping the true meaning of culture and focusing on a thorough understanding of our people, aiming to add value rather than just seeking a FIT. Let’s delve into the distinction between Cultural Fit and Cultural-Add, exploring how this awareness can enhance both the candidate and employee experience.

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Cultural FIT vs Cultural-Add

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Recognizing how complex culture is, especially in adapting to new team members, changes, and growth while sticking to our values, is crucial. Skills for Care emphasizes that culture is about how people act, what they say, and do based on established customs. This understanding is key in telling the difference between Cultural Fit and Cultural-Add.

That said, Cultural Fit demands an individual to be an ideal match with the job description, leadership style, and values initially. However, as the company evolves, this person may feel out of place. This challenge becomes more complex during Change Management processes, crucial for the company's growth. In the tech industry, known for leading transformations, constant advancements can alter behavior, communication style, and connections—integral aspects of organizational culture.

In contrast, Cultural-Add emphasizes unique contributions and diverse perspectives, enriching the existing culture. Suzanne Lucas (2021) says that insisting on every skill may limit candidates, leading to hiring individuals whose skills may become obsolete. Cultural Add encourages a versatile foundation and the desire to learn, fostering diversity, innovation, and engagement. Thus, hiring and managing from a Cultural-Add perspective enhances and enriches the culture experience within organizations, due to the dynamic environment created to adapt easily to changes.

At Techsquads, we firmly believe that the tech industry requires individuals who are not only reliable but also capable of swiftly adapting to new approaches and adding value beyond technical solutions. Embracing the Cultural-Add philosophy, we seek individuals who bridge gaps and approach challenges with unique perspectives. This belief underlies our commitment to fostering resourcefulness, leading to innovative solutions and problem-solving approaches that positively impact a diverse spectrum of individuals within our business.

In short, Cultural Fit is all about finding people who are as similar to the manager as possible, but Culture-Add focuses on finding people who share the same value sets. So, when your leaders change, the people will stay aligned with the company's values, which focuses your energy on the differences in ideas, not values.

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How to start with a Cultural-Add way forward?

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Creating a vibrant organizational culture starts with carefully assessing your current culture to pinpoint areas that can be improved through strategic new hires. Go beyond individual evaluations by conducting companywide personality assessments to understand prevalent traits. Use insights gained from comparing successful individuals with potential candidates. Also, take the time to clearly define authentic organizational values, promote transparency in assessments, and let Culture-Add hiring practices address and improve cultural weaknesses.

In the article "Why Are We Here?", Sally Blount and Paul Leinwand delve into the significance of purpose within organizations. This importance extends beyond just Millennials, as many individuals seek to work for organizations whose missions and business philosophies align with them intellectually and emotionally. The authors emphasize that in companies with clearly defined and communicated value-creation-creation processes, 63% of employees report feeling motivated, compared to 31% at other companies. Furthermore, 65% express passion about their work, in contrast to 32% at other companies. Notably, purpose-driven organizations, as revealed by Strategy& and research and analyses, not only exceed industry average growth and profits but also make up more than 90% of such successful entities.

Thus, the key is to shift the mindset from seeking someone who aligns with the leadership style to actively searching for individuals whose values, culture, and behavior resonate with our company's core ethos. This change is essential to aligning purpose with people and cultivating a more profound connection between individuals and the organization.

That's why companies like Google, Apple, Hilton, and IBM have shifted away from mandating college degrees for employment. The emphasis has transitioned from uniform experiences, social interests, hobbies, or educational backgrounds to a focus on shared values. This shift acknowledges the importance of diversity and inclusivity in the workplace, emphasizing that individuals with different life paths and perspectives can contribute significantly based on their alignment with the company's core values. This evolving approach not only broadens the talent pool but also fosters a more inclusive and innovative work environment.

While personality assessments serve as a foundational step in understanding your employees, they represent just the beginning of crafting a robust workplace culture. Dedicate effort to genuinely defining the values steering your organization, acknowledging any deficiencies revealed through honest assessments. Prioritize Culture-Add hiring practices, emphasizing attentive listening during interviews and focusing on technical questions, key competency-based queries, and an understanding of behaviors, competencies, and talents that contribute genuine value to the team.Your interview questions should uncover new perspectives and experiences that candidates could bring to the table. With this information, you'll be able to assess how well a candidate could contribute to the collective intelligence of your team, rather than nebulous ideas of "company culture" (Fair HQ | Dec 2021).

Furthermore, implement periodic assessments to detect changes in your culture and measure the gaps that need addressing in subsequent hiring efforts. While Cultural FIT helps define non-negotiable values, behaviors, and characteristics within the company, Cultural-Add is essential for navigating changes and transforming the organization in response to market demands.

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Cultural-Add contributions for Organizations

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When building digital products with impact, a diverse Tech team is crucial. Diversity extends beyond gender to include cultural backgrounds, socioeconomic factors, sexual orientations, and neurodivergent thinkers. Prioritizing culture-add in hiring is synonymous with bringing in fresh perspectives that can catalyze business improvement.

During candidate interviews, assess not only how well they align with your organization's norms but also identify areas where they deviate. Consider scenarios where introducing diverse perspectives can propel your team to explore deeper dimensions in product development or advertising. Diversity of perspective can enhance your company's ability to resonate with a broader audience.

In essence, hiring for culture-add in tech companies becomes a strategic move to unlock innovation, expand market reach, and ensure authentic connections with a diverse user base. The willingness to challenge the status quo is vital for fostering innovation and enabling company growth.

An employee with a distinct cultural background brings the potential to authentically connect with audiences beyond your primary cultural group. In the tech industry, where global reach is often paramount, insider knowledge gleaned from diverse cultural experiences can surpass the value of data and research when understanding and engaging with different cultures. So, hiring for culture-add in tech companies becomes a strategic move to not only fill gaps but to unlock innovation, expand market reach, and ensure authentic connections with a diverse user base

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Conclusion

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In building dynamic tech teams, Cultural-Add is key. As the professional landscape evolves, embracing diversity, unique perspectives, and ongoing contributions is crucial. It's more than a recruitment approach; it's a guiding philosophy transforming organizational cultures into vibrant ecosystems that welcome change and celebrate adaptability. In the competitive tech industry, this mindset sparks innovation, ensuring teams not only meet current demands but also thrive amid future challenges. Adopting Cultural-Add propels companies, like Techsquads, toward resilience, creativity, and sustained success.

While hiring for Cultural Fit is vital, Matt Bush, culture coaching lead at Great Place to Work, notes that "innovative organizations need to think less about who fits into the business they have today and more about who opens doors to the kind of business they can be tomorrow." So, how to achieve this clearly and concisely during the recruitment process? To select our talent with a Cultural-Add approach we begin by clearly defining the organization's core values. During the hiring process, we shift focus from Cultural Fit to evaluating a candidate's potential to enhance the existing culture, incorporating tailored questions for deeper insights. Behavioral interviews explore a candidate's experiences to assess alignment with cultural expectations. Inclusivity is prioritized by involving members from various teams in the interview process. This strategic sequence ensures a thorough and inclusive talent selection process that promotes diversity, innovation, and positive cultural impact within the organization.

To sum it up, Cultural Fit aligns with the existing culture, while Cultural-Add emphasizes diversity's value and the positive impact of unique perspectives and contributions. Both are crucial for building a robust and dynamic organizational culture. Prioritizing CulturalA-dd promotes diversity, ensuring a rich mix of perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences within the team, which brings adaptability and resilience, as the team is accustomed to navigating various challenges and changes. Also, organizations that prioritize Cultural-Add develop a positive reputation for being inclusive, forward-thinking, and open to embracing new ideas and approaches.

And now that you know the value of Cultural-Add, are you ready to learn more about how we do it at Techsquads and enrich your company through value-adding talent?