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.
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