Author: Jen Clark
An innovation-centric culture is vital to support competitiveness, growth and resilience in an organization. Toward that end, as part of their hiring strategies, many organizations prioritize candidates who bring backgrounds, experience and thinking similar to the existing team. As a result, hiring managers often hire candidates whose values, beliefs and work styles align with organizational norms.
However, this "culture fit" approach can have unintended consequences. Organizations that consistently look for people who "fit in" find that such an approach quickly leads to hiring people who think and act the same. Innovation needs productive friction, not clones. Instead, a "culture-add" approach can build strength through diversity.
Hire to strengthen culture
Hiring for existing cultural fit often prioritizes comfort over disruption, which can hinder organizational growth. Maintaining cultural status quo through hiring can backfire in several ways:
Creates echo chambers: Hiring individuals with similar beliefs and work styles can lead to groupthink, where new ideas struggle to emerge. For example, a tech startup with a "hustle culture" consistently hired high-energy extroverts, overlooking quieter, analytical thinkers who could identify risks others missed. Such echo chambers can kill creativity, limit adaptability and blind teams to better ways of doing things.
Lacks versatility: Many companies use AI to review resumes, favoring candidates with similar education and experience. One consulting firm, for example, attracted top-tier talent but lacked adaptability when expanding into niche sectors. Focusing on "pedigree" over adaptability hindered innovation and market expansion.
Discourages healthy conflict: In another example, a biotech company primarily hired employees from elite institutions, reinforcing a culture that valued credentials over questioning. In this situation, staff were less likely to challenge leadership, even when the science didn't add up. The culture at this organization stifled innovation and led to missed opportunities, eventually causing the company to shut down.
Alienates clients: A medical practice's emphasis on cultural fit resulted in a team of loud, gregarious personalities, mirroring the lead physician. While this high-energy approach worked for some patients, others felt overwhelmed, impacting their comfort and willingness to return.
Focus on mission alignment and shared values
For companies looking to drive innovation, we advise employers to prioritize "culture add." Deprioritizing a standardized cultural fit doesn't mean ignoring company values. Hiring teams should look for individuals who not only align with the company's core values and mission, but who also bring fresh perspectives, diverse experiences and new ways of thinking. This blended approach can lead to impactful hiring decisions.
For instance, one nonprofit organization hired a fundraising candidate without grant-writing experience, but who had worked directly with underserved communities. Her ability to connect authentically with donors and those the organization served proved invaluable in attracting donations.
By focusing on values and mission alignment rather than on a checklist of skills, the organization gained a fundraiser who could build trust and drive impact in ways that traditional qualifications alone couldn't predict.
Hire for cognitive diversity in a hybrid/remote workforce to foster innovation
A hybrid or remote workforce complicates managing through proximity or observation, requiring intentional efforts to maintain culture. Culture-add hiring emphasizes values alignment and unique contributions crucial for dispersed teams that often solve problems without in-person collaboration.
While chemistry and rapport represent hallmarks of culture-fit hiring, culture-add hiring prioritizes adaptability, varied workstyles, inclusive communication, value-driven autonomy and cultural or regional perspectives. These characteristics foster innovation through cognitive diversity.
Interview for cultural contribution
Teams thrive when members complement, rather than mirror, each other. The synergy between diverse viewpoints sparks creativity and leads to breakthrough ideas.
In consulting with organizations, Gallagher's Recruiting Services team recommends including a "cultural contribution" question in interviews, such as: "What unique perspective, experience or skill do you bring that could help our team think differently or grow in new ways?" Such a question shifts the focus from hiring for comfort and similarity to leveraging unique perspectives as strategic assets.
Including a culture contribution question encourages diversity of thought and supports more innovative hiring decisions.
Define core organizational values — Gallagher can help
Emphasizing culture "add" over "fit" can foster diverse and innovative teams. Organizations, however, must clearly define their core values and identify gaps to fill. Without this clarity, interviewers may rely on subjective decision-making.
Training interviewers to assess culture-add information and alignment with company values is essential. Otherwise, organizations risk overemphasizing differences and hiring individuals whose strengths don't match the role or who lack the competencies needed for success.
Gallagher works with organizations to identify high-quality talent who can drive innovation while adhering to core values. For more information, contact us.
