Skills vs. culture, how to find the balance in your hiring strategy in 2023

Welcome to the latest edition of the Exemplia newsletter! This month, we’re exploring how to utilise your company culture to find the best fit without sacrificing skills.?

Have a pressing issue you’d like us to cover in the next newsletter? Let us know!?

Hiring for skills vs. hiring for culture - what’s your priority in 2023?

While you’re deciding on placements for the new year, one thing to consider is how to prioritise hiring for culture or skills.?

We all know both are important in our teams, but when hiring, it’s easy to fall into the trap of focusing purely on skills and matching candidates directly to your role description and their day-to-day deliverables.?

• A good culture fit delivers a team player who’ll get along with your existing team
• A good skills fit ensures an employee can deliver results more quickly from day one
• A poor culture fit may not collaborate well with the wider team and cause disruption
• A poor skills fit might struggle to keep up with the demands of the job and create more development and management cost

Whether you’re prioritising hiring for skills or culture, a strong company culture will always be a draw for top talent.?

If you’re looking for ways to improve the way you communicate your company culture, we have a few ideas that might help you:

Build a great company culture

It sounds obvious, but this is the first step. If your employees enjoy the culture, they’re more likely to talk about it positively online and promote your company as a great place to work. You need to treat culture as seriously as you treat your sales, marketing or finance. It needs managing and leading, just like all other areas of the organisation.??

Include employees in the role in your interview process

It’s not always appropriate depending on the position and situation, but including the person currently in the role or a similar position at the final stage interviews could be worth considering. Not only does it show candidates that you’re transparent but also, on a tangible level, allows your candidates to ask direct questions about the role’s responsibilities, and for all parties to better assess cultural fit.

Employee testimonials

We all know how vital client testimonials are for new business but have you ever considered using employee testimonials to attract new talent? Creating authentic content can successfully transform your Employee Value Proposition efforts and communicate the benefits of your company culture. Even better, you can make use of real videos of current employees talking about what it’s like to work there.

If you’d like to discuss any of the above or are looking for a new hiring solution, get in touch!

Regards,?

The Exemplia team?