Culture | The importance of cultural fit and getting it right

If you’re anything like the majority of employees, you’ll know how important it is not only for your professional development, but perhaps more significantly, for your own wellbeing to work somewhere where your values tie in with those of your employer.

In fact, research from LinkedIn showed that 71 per cent of employees would be happy to take a pay cut if it meant that they could work for an organisation that mirrored their own values.

‘Cultural fit’ is a term often mistakenly used to describe a homogenous workforce, where everyone is the same and hiring managers hire people similar to themselves. The result? Stifled creativity and an uphill struggle when it comes to innovation.

I’d be hard-pressed to think of anyone who would profess that this type of environment ties in with their own values. Instead, we’d most likely describe our ideal organisation as being one that empowers its people by giving them a voice, recognises the individual contributions that make the business a success, and understands that true diversity lays the path to a sustainable future.