In my free time I'm a musician. I play in several different projects, and know a lot of people who do the same, even making a living doing so.
There's a rule of thumb in that world: "Good hang, good music, good money: don't take the gig if you don't have at least two out of three." If the money isn't good, at least the people and the music are. If the music sucks, at least you can spend your money with people you like. If the people suck, at least you can justify sticking around because it's worth it as a musician and you're well compensated.
Working for a startup or small company is very similar to being in a band, in my experience. And in the beginning, the money isn't great, and so if you're going to be happy there you make double extra sure that the technology (music) and the culture (the hang) work for everyone.
I get what this guy is saying: don't handicap your ability as a team to grow and innovate just because a potential hire doesn't care about the kegerator, or cannot, out of nature or obligation keep the same crazy hours as other members of the team. But when the going gets rough, there's nothing like having a sense of mutual respect and understanding among team members. You do want your team to develop a sense of camaraderie. Likewise, you do want your new hires to be able to fit in and communicate in productive ways. You want your team members to care about one another.
I have been in on hiring people where 'culture fit' has been a topic. On at least three occasions I can think of people hired for a team where yellow flags raised during the interview under the rubric of culture fit actually did become problem later on: failures in ability to argue or communicate honestly or effectively; superiority complexes glimpsed during an interview turned into unneeded friction later on, etc.
On the other hand, there have been hires where the 'culture fit' issue was raised before the hiring which turned out to be unfounded.
I think the key is to truly understand yourself and your own group dynamics before adding more people to the soup.
> "Good hang, good music, good money: don't take the gig if you don't have at least two out of three."
I love that explanation.
I think the problem that most people get into is going after one of them alone or having one outweigh the others significantly. I have yet to see that work long term.
"I have been in on hiring people where 'culture fit' has been a topic. On at least three occasions I can think of people hired for a team where yellow flags raised during the interview under the rubric of culture fit actually did become problem later on: failures in ability to argue or communicate honestly or effectively; superiority complexes glimpsed during an interview turned into unneeded friction later on, etc."
Are these really culture fit issues, though? Does anyone pride themselves on having a culture of miscommunication?
Not a culture built on miscommunication, but there are typically going to be different norms around communication.
E.g. can you approach the C-suite directly, or have to go through their assistants? Can meeting participants cut things off if it's unproductive, or is that feedback shared privately afterward? Is really vigorous (perhaps intimidating) debate an expectation, or are people more laid back about discussing ideas? To what extent can you express emotions, and which emotions? Two companies can totally be "feedback-oriented" yet drastically differ on when, how, and to whom feedback is given/received—none objectively The Right Way, just different cultures.
To me this is all culture, hard to judge pre-hire, and hard to adopt if it's really not your style.
At the same time, these are all things that can be easily communicated after the person is hired. Nothing on this list should even be thought of when interviewing someone.
Well, to be fair, the article has a slanted view of 'culture fit'. While the article says several times that 'culture fit' can mean anything, the examples it gives keep returning to evening drinking, and implies bro-culture as the problem.
In the instances I encountered, 'culture fit' was the phrase we used to describe it. Communication style counts. Does the person have a sense of humor? I'm not talking about enduring off-color jokes or remarks, but are they going to be on the same page as the rest of the team about when it's ok to be a goof, and when it's better to just shut up and get work done? How does this person react to a crisis? Different teams have different tolerances.
There's a rule of thumb in that world: "Good hang, good music, good money: don't take the gig if you don't have at least two out of three." If the money isn't good, at least the people and the music are. If the music sucks, at least you can spend your money with people you like. If the people suck, at least you can justify sticking around because it's worth it as a musician and you're well compensated.
Working for a startup or small company is very similar to being in a band, in my experience. And in the beginning, the money isn't great, and so if you're going to be happy there you make double extra sure that the technology (music) and the culture (the hang) work for everyone.
I get what this guy is saying: don't handicap your ability as a team to grow and innovate just because a potential hire doesn't care about the kegerator, or cannot, out of nature or obligation keep the same crazy hours as other members of the team. But when the going gets rough, there's nothing like having a sense of mutual respect and understanding among team members. You do want your team to develop a sense of camaraderie. Likewise, you do want your new hires to be able to fit in and communicate in productive ways. You want your team members to care about one another.
I have been in on hiring people where 'culture fit' has been a topic. On at least three occasions I can think of people hired for a team where yellow flags raised during the interview under the rubric of culture fit actually did become problem later on: failures in ability to argue or communicate honestly or effectively; superiority complexes glimpsed during an interview turned into unneeded friction later on, etc.
On the other hand, there have been hires where the 'culture fit' issue was raised before the hiring which turned out to be unfounded.
I think the key is to truly understand yourself and your own group dynamics before adding more people to the soup.