Question:

I wonder if you could direct me to an article (including one of your own) that discusses the concept of ''fit''. I was recently disqualified for a position because I did not ''fit in'' with the corporate culture, even though the hiring manager said I was otherwise qualified to do the work. I guess doing the job right is not enough anymore. Believe me, I am not the ''postal'' type. I am a down-to-earth transactional/business lawyer who has worked in the legal departments of large public companies, and who has never been accused of ''not playing well with others''.

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	Any good recruiter knows that getting a candidate hired is mostly about chemistry, or as you refer to it, ''fit''.

I have talked to many people and no one can really give me a good idea of how to determine a company's culture to see if I ''fit''. This is a very perplexing issue for me as I do not know how to determine corporate culture in advance. Corporate websites rarely give you an honest description of their corporate culture.

Answer:

Any good recruiter knows that getting a candidate hired is mostly about chemistry, or as you refer to it, “fit”. This is true, provided that the candidate has the requisite skill set and record of accomplishment. That is the easy part of this column. The rest is much more nebulous, and is not as much a science as it is an art.

There are certain predictors (things we can tell a candidate) for success within a role, but for most recruiters it boils down to their personal experience, the right questions, intuition and feel. For a candidate, that statement makes the interview process about as easy as figuring out Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. So here are some of the things we do and ask that any candidate can do and ask.

I am going to insert this next statement first, and repeat it later on. You are who you are. Don’t take acting lessons and try to radically shift your personality for an interview. That will only bring disaster. I will repeat this statement at the end — that means it must be important.

Find out as much as you can about the hiring manager (and any other interviewers). That means first asking the HR person about their personality, style, etc. They should be happy to share that with you. Next, head for the Internet. There is tons of information out there, probably more than you will ever be able to consume. Look for past employers, professional affiliations, articles they have written, etc. Even if you are not a member, go to places like LinkedIn. This will tell you if they are a networker, but many times it will also provide you with their extensive professional background. Finally, look for associates which you have in common, or ones to whom you could be introduced quickly. If you can’t find either of those, identify someone who might have worked with them in the past, and simply pick up the telephone and make a call. Many times, to find these associates all you have to do is go to LinkedIn and put the name of the company in the search bar. My suggestion is to start with previous companies for which the hiring manager has worked.

Bill Gaffney has had 17 years of experience as an executive recruiter and a career coach.

The next thing you should do is spend some time looking at the company as a whole. You should do several things regarding this step. Visit the company, if it is convenient. Sit in the parking lot, or lobby, and watch the people going in or coming out at “start” or “quit” times. Look at their dress, demeanor, age, etc. I say age (and this is not necessarily age discrimination) because if the company is composed almost entirely of people in their 20s or early 30s, you probably are not going to be comfortable or happy in that environment if you are not part of this age group yourself. If you are in your 50s, have been through the “mature” corporate scene and have worked for experienced, proven executives, today’s version of the “Wild West” is probably not for you.

It is time to head to the Internet again. Find executives that work for the company. (LinkedIn, Hoovers, Zoom Info, etc.) Study the background of these executives, including where they attended college. Are they Ivy Leaguers, Stanford types, etc? I was looking at one company once to recruit for them. Almost every executive was a graduate of BYU. This told me a lot about them.

Next read about the company, including articles about their culture. A great place to look is articles about the “Best Places to Work For”. These will typically provide detail about the particular corporate culture, etc. Don’t restrict yourself to national publications. Many local publications, such as the local business paper, will have these types of lists, as well as lists with the largest number of accountants, etc., and individual articles. Visit www.bizjournals.com. This is far and away the largest owner of these types of publications.

There are a lot of things you can do during the interview itself, most of which I have covered in previous columns. The first one is attire. Don’t overdress. I would never recommend Dockers and a “casual” shirt. However, if that is standard company attire, don’t wear a three-piece suit, either. It is always best to ask the HR person what the company attire is and how most interviewees dress for an interview.

Beyond that, be attentive during the interview and look for signs. This is more than just being a good listener, which is also critical. Listen for the style of grammar they might use, education level (typically most evident by their vocabulary), etc. If you are a person who uses more “formal” language and theirs is more casual, adopt their manner of speech. Watch for interactions between the hiring manager and others if there is the opportunity. Is it formal or informal? There are many other little things, but I think you are probably getting the picture.

One final item — at the end of any interview with a hiring manager, ask what would keep them from hiring you today. More often than not they will respond using the excuse of other candidates. If you get that as an answer, ask them what they saw as your strengths and what else they might like to see in you. You might just get the chemistry fit here. A tip: listen for the final thing they are not seeing or would like to see. That is usually the aspect on which they are most focused. All the others are minor. If at the very end of the interview you get the comment regarding a lack of fit or chemistry, then shortly afterwards, pick up the telephone and call the hiring manager. Don’t be aggressive or conduct an inquisition. Also, don’t use this as an opportunity to sell yourself (if it is truly a chemistry thing, you can’t). But be inquisitive and tell them you are hoping to better target firms for which to work. Ask them why they don’t see the chemistry fit and then listen to their response. Then thank them for their time and get off the telephone.

I promised you at the beginning I would repeat this. You are who you are. Don’t try a radical makeover. The “chemistry” is always the toughest item in an interview process, even for recruiters…but it is critical. If you are not a match in this way, don’t be discouraged or get frustrated. You would, more than likely, be miserable fairly quickly, anyway. Move on and look for the right chemistry fit.

Here’s Wishing You Terrific Hunting,

Bill

About the Author

Bill Gaffney has had 17 years of experience as an executive recruiter and a career coach. He can be reached at 937-567-5267 or wmgaffney@prodigy.net.

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