Hire for Culture, Not Skill

G Adventures doesn’t hire new people the way most companies do. They still have the normal interview process but what sets them apart from most companies is something called the “Culture Fit” interview. This is the last interview that a candidate goes through and it gives the last go, no-go whether or not a candidate is hired.

When I was hired I remember sitting in my Culture Fit interview, nervous and not knowing what to expect. Across from me were three people who I hadn’t met and I was told to talk about anything. As a developer, I naturally started talking about various technology related things and was quickly told to stop. They didn’t want to hear about those things, they wanted to know who I was and what I was like.

I started talking about beer and cooking, two things that I enjoy, and the rest of the interview went without a hitch. I later learned that if those three people hadn’t liked me or didn’t think I was a good fit, I wouldn’t have been hired. I think every company should hire for culture, not skill and here’s why.

I was once apart of a development team of 3 people (including myself) and it was absolutely toxic. Entire weeks would go by where we wouldn’t talk to one another. It wasn’t that we disliked one another, we just had very little in common and the other developers were on the more extreme side of introverted.

If your employees are hanging out together after work, you’re doing something right. Hiring people who fit into your company’s culture creates better teams and happier employees.

When employees don’t get along with each other they leave. Every time you have to train a new person it costs the company money and the team loses a little morale. From the other developers I’ve talked to when they don’t get along with their team they’re constantly looking for new opportunities with new companies.

I’ve been at G Adventures for almost 2 years now and it’s fantastic. Because everyone gets along there isn’t the constant searching for better opportunities.

Happy employees are fundamental to a successful company. It doesn’t matter if you hired the best programmers in the world (from a technical standpoint), if they don’t get along with one another your company won’t be successful.

Whether you’re running a startup, a Fortune 500 company or just managing a small team of developers, hiring for culture is the smartest thing you can do. It’ll save you a lot of headaches down the road when your team doesn’t work as one.