The OIAM Culture Quiz: Is your organization the best it could be?
Company culture. This big buzz word seems to be looming over just about any conversation about recruiting talent and building a solid workforce. Do you know where you stand when it comes to culture? Take our quiz below to find out.
The search is on! How do you best describe your recruiting process?
A. Post description to job board. Get a million and five resumes. Match keywords. Weed out anyone without a cover letter. Interview three candidates. Pick candidate with most relevant experience. Done and done.
B. We have a sense of the gaps we need filled, but I’m looking for a person more so than a role. We start with referrals from our team – work from the outside in before starting to have conversations with prospective hires. I’m really looking for personality fit and growth potential.
C. Throw out some feelers and give first-responders a shot. I’m not entirely sure how half the team ended up here... Besides, the nature of our work weeds out the bad fits early on.
You’re hired! How do you best describe onboarding a new team member?
A. Welcome. Clock in at 9AM. After we cross T’s and dot I’s with paperwork, HR will escort you to your cube. Online training will take up the rest of day one. If time permits, you may even be able to pick out your very own stapler and motivational quote poster from the supply closet.
B. You’re here and we’re thrilled! On your first day, we have a signature onboarding process that knocks out the HR essentials and gets you set up with the software/hardware you need for your new role. As you’re getting settled in, your new teammates are swinging by to say hello – all of whom know your first name already. While a colleague is giving you the grand tour, your manager has slipped a hand-written note in your chair welcoming you to the team.
C. Did they even know I was coming? Dive on in, the water is warm! We hope you had your Wheaties this morning because it’s sink or swim in these waters. If HR remembers to ask you for your W-9, cool. Otherwise, good luck!
Moving on. Well, it’s so long for now and off to the next thing. How do you best describe off-boarding a team member?
A. Clock out at 5PM. There’s cake in the break room. If you’ve been here for 5 years, you get to keep your stapler.
B. We wish you the best, but there are no surprises here. We’ve already had you transitioning your role to your replacement. After a couple thorough exit interviews with your leadership team, we know exactly why you’re stepping away and are doing our best to part amicably. If there is an opportunity for improvement on our end, it’s been noted!
C. What’s his face didn’t show up for work this morning? Bummer. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
Celebrate! There’s a win for the books and you’re giving your employee a clap on the back by:
A. $25 gift card to Starbucks and a half-day on Friday.
B. YAS! The CEO has sent an email to the entire company about the big win with a message of gratitude for all the hard work and contributions that made the magic happen. Later you all will celebrate by popping some bubbly and doing a toast with the team.
C. Kudos. Now there are a million and twelve other things to do, so eye on the prize!
He said, she said. How best describes how your team would receive a significant company-wide announcement?
A. Memos work. Likely an email “from the Founder” drafted by the Executive Assistant depending on level of importance. That covers it.
B. The first round of communication would be an email with a video message embedded from the CEO that clearly communicates the change, who all would be directly affected and any instructions for moving forward – combination of digital efficiency with Facetime. A day or two later, there would be another round of communication from team leads reiterating the message and addressing any questions. We may even go for round three to make sure everyone is in the know.
C. Spontaneity is fun. Most of our employees figure stuff out chatting around the water cooler after their morning cry into their coffee cups.
On a scale of one to 10, you would rate yourself where when it comes to employee flexibility?
A. One to three is forgiving. We clock in and out with an hour for lunch – preferably taken at noon. We are big on black and white structure and insist on desktops so our employees don’t stray.
B. We hover between 5 to 7. Although we do have processes and structure for the sake of sanity and making sure our team knows what’s expected, we aren’t big on rigid. As long as the job gets done on time, you are welcome to take your laptop and post in the park for all I care.
C. Zero fudges given, so that makes us a 10. Structure is for the birds and ain’t nobody got time for keeping tabs on you.
The Traditionalist (Mostly A)
You’ve been doing the same things the same way since you can remember. You find comfort in structure and predictability. For the most part, you don’t see harm in “we’ve always done it this way” because that has worked just fine for you thus far. Sure, you don’t have a ping pong table in the break room, but your team knows exactly where you stand and what to expect when it comes to getting the job done. How do people know how to plan their workday if everyone isn’t on the clock from 9-5? Preposterous! When it comes to finding new talent, you are all about that skill-match, man. We’re not here to bond - we are here to work.
This is all well and good, but heed our cautionary words that times are changing and clinging to old-school culture may not attract the fresh blood and new talent you crave from the Millennial and Gen Z workforce. These up-and-coming workforces of nature crave significance and independence – they will be inspired by contributing to a greater movement and will want to be acknowledged for personal contributions to the cause.
The Established (Mostly B)
Although you appreciate efficient process and communication, you are comfortable with doing things YOUR own way. You take pride in having a distinct company identity and personality. You like looking around the room and knowing exactly why each of your team members is involved and how they are inspired by your vision. As long as the work is getting done on time to your standards, how it gets done is inconsequential. When it comes finding new talent, you look for personality fit first knowing that skills can be cultivated.
Well played, friend. You have an established company culture that, because it is distinct and aligns with your mission, will attract the right talent to build your team. You are doing the balancing act between personality and structure but seem to have found the sweet spot. Much like keeping a garden, the trick here is to keep tending to your flowers while plucking those weeds.
Winging It (Mostly C)
Lord of the Flies makes you look tame. You’ve got way too much sh*t going on to worry about process or structure. It’s all about that money, honey, and if you can’t dive in and figure it out then it’s time to thin the herd. An hour for lunch? I’ve been living off power bars and caffeine drips for weeks. Email? If I need info from you, I’ll lob my stress ball at your face until you answer. When it comes to finding new talent, you throw newbies in the deep end and see if they swim. Only the strong or senseless survive and you dig it.
Gear down big truck. All this chest-thumping sounds great in theory, but you’re building your house on sand. Although you’re going a mile a minute, you’re losing resources on high turnover and ineffective operations, which are probably adding up to lost revenue. As for fresh talent, this kind of culture tends to attract those who are desperate or never have a prayer of being team players – not your all-stars who are looking to build a career. This approach may get the job done today, but will have you crashing tomorrow. Big business is a marathon, not a sprint after all.
Not loving where you landed on the culture quiz, or want to talk more about how to stay in that sweet spot? Let’s chat! We are big on cultivating culture here at OneinaMil and are at the ready to help you craft a company culture that makes your team sing and attracts all-star talent.