recruitment
T he Hiring Challenge
FIT OR DIVERSITY?
By Evert Akkerman
JOB FIT IS THE EASY
PART OF RECRUITING.
TEAM FIT AND
ORGANIZATIONAL
FIT ARE HARDER
TO DETERMINE.
Can organizations hire for “fit” without sacrificing diversity?
Many organizations tout diversity and inclusivity all over
their websites yet many shy away from bringing in people
with a fresh perspective. If we emphasize cultural fit, we
end up selecting people “like us,” with diversity and inclusivity as
collateral damage. Values are at the core of diversity; it’s about who
the candidate is, not whether the candidate is like us.
The phenomenon of “fit” usually has three components: job fit,
team fit and organizational fit. Job fit is a matter of skills, abilities
and experience, while team fit and organizational fit are based on
working well with others and blending with the culture. What’s
often missing from the equation is values – the core beliefs and
goals that all members of an organization should share, regardless
of background and what they look like. Great teams tend to consist
of people with different talents but similar values, driven by
the same goal or ideal.
Job fit is the easy part of recruiting. Team fit and organizational
fit are harder to determine. What it often comes down to with
team fit is: do the team members like you? Organizational fit is
more of a broad stroke and tends to include unwritten rules and
codes. This can be an obstacle to hiring great talent, as we’re stereotyping
people for fit into an organization.
Ahmet Misirligul/Shutterstock.com
HRPATODAY.CA ❚ JANUARY 2016 ❚ 35