You’ve got the perfect resumé and you’ve gone through the early interview process. It feels like you passed with flying colors. But, there is one thing that you hadn’t yet considered. It only came up as an ‘afterthought’ since it didn’t seem all that important. It’s the company’s culture. It could be that you have found your dream job; on the other hand, it could end up being just another short stay on an otherwise great CV.

The bottom line is that no matter how qualified you are on paper and how impressive your background and experience, it’s all meaningless if there’s a mismatch in company culture and personality. Your work involves a set of technical skills that allow you to manage your job well. You need to remember that you’re doing these tasks in a new place with a history of working a certain way, with colleagues who have their own style and expectations. There’s much more to determine about job “fit” than whether you can manage the technical aspects of the work.

Defining Company Culture
It can be hard to measure something as intangible as company culture, because most of the time it isn’t at the front of your mind during your interview. It’s a gut feeling that sneaks up on you—you either feel good about the people and environment, or something about it feels strange and off-putting in some way.

A good example is the area of teamwork. Have you ever worked with a person who was a game changer, but just not a team player? If teamwork is absolutely crucial to advance projects forward, it’s going to put a stress on the company culture to bring in a superstar who has no regard for the importance of the team effort.

Company culture is not just about the ‘personality’ of the company, it defines how people are treated. In fact, you may be considering a job change right now because the culture you are working in does not suit your own style. Do you feel like a cog in a machine or are you a valued team member? Are you living to work or working to live? Every business, and every individual employee in that business, has an answer to these questions and the two views must fit together well in order to make it a long-term fit for both employer and employee.

When you ask a hiring manager how he or she defines company culture, you may get a wide variety of answers. Put simply, company culture is the spirit of its people and the morale of the organization. It’s the ‘how’ of everything you do with a unified vision. 

Culture helps set the assumptions, values and beliefs of employees. This then drives, motivates, and determines the nature and type of behaviors that achieve results. The sum of these results is what keeps companies profitable and viable.

A company’s culture will certainly impact its employee turnover rate. According to the magazine Entrepreneur, a ‘rich’ company culture has as low as a 13.9% turnover rate, whereas job turnover in companies with poor company cultures can skyrocket to 48.4%. Not surprisingly, happy workers are 12% more productive, and unhappy workers are 10% less productive. What does this equate to exactly? $300 billion in lost revenue per year that stem from issues with company culture.

Developing a ‘sixth sense’ to determine culture fit
How do you mitigate risk before making a huge life decision and taking a position that requires moving your family half-way across the country? Adding another element to your decision, when you are already chock-full of interview advice and anxiety, isn’t easy.

Good interview questions can help, but won’t be all that you need. After all, the hiring manager is not going to reveal to you any bad things about the company, just as you will not speak badly of your past employer. So how do you gauge and assess those gray areas?

Your pre-interview feelings can tell you a lot. A process that seems a bit ‘off’ can be a red flag. If the interviews are rescheduled numerous times and you aren’t getting a timely response, or the company just can’t stay organized, it may be time to move on. If the Human Resources department hasn’t sent you an agenda for interview day, that should be a concern as well.

You need an agenda to review everyone’s LinkedIn profile and backgrounds. If there are key members on the team that you will be working with such as a peer or another department manager, you need to meet and talk with them. Your interview with that person can be critical to your understanding of the job and company culture.
Before you leave for the interview, you should already know if you are replacing someone, or if it’s a new role. What reasons have they given you for the vacancy? Open jobs have a pain point behind them—some pressing need or a ‘gap’ that needs filling. Make sure you understand what that pain point is before you head out for the in-person meeting. If the company’s pain point is sky high turnover in itself, this clearly deserves attention.

Good interview questions that reflect on company culture
By this stage of your career, you’ve most likely had good and bad bosses. You know what you are looking for here—the right mixture of support and oversight. So, here are some questions to help you assess work style fit:

How would you describe your management style and how do you offer feedback? Dig deeper into how involved your potential manager is in the development or completion of projects, and how feedback is shared. Is your manager your supporter and liaison to help leverage resource and overcome roadblocks? Is he or she hands-off and expect you to be completely independent? Or might your manager be someone who gets caught up in every little detail and micromanages?

Can you describe a successful person on your team and what work habits or communication style he or she has? Just as you will be judged on the same level, listen for keywords your potential future manager may use and what behavior examples exhibit success or effective communication.

What is your on-boarding process? No matter who you are, mistakes will be made especially as you start a new role. Conflict will inevitably arise. But how problems are overcome and solved together as a team will determine the success of the company. The rationale here is to understand how these mistakes are handled and tolerated, and what your support system will look like when things go sideways.

How would you describe the mission of your team, and how does this position fit into the overall vision of the company? If the position plays an integral part in driving a company’s mission forward, how exactly is that accomplished? If the answer here is vague, and you’re looking at a role that doesn’t align with or advance a company’s mission or make an impact, it’s best to keep looking.

How much flexibility is there in this job to bring forward new ideas? You want to be a valued team member and contribute new ideas, so understanding the process that is in place will ensure your voice will be heard and not drowned out.

Questions for peers and collaborators
What is the company’s view about work/life balance? A team that believes overworking is not only highly valued, but demanded, is a key indicator that this future employer will absorb an unlimited amount of work from you and show no appreciation in the end. A poor company culture will tip the balance all to the work side. The next unexpecting ‘victim’ may join the company, burn out, and leave like the rest.

What do you like the most about working for this company? What inspires you about your role? During the interview process, a casual lunch meeting is a great idea to gather these answers. Watch for signs if the conversation shifts from positive to negative. If he or she does not provide specific reasons they like working for the company, they might allude to things that need to be improved or changed. Take note of these conversations because they are very important and will be the same issues you will face if you join the company. 

Final thoughts
Let’s face it, no company is perfect. However, a healthy work culture is important to drive productivity, enthusiasm, and employee happiness. You should walk from an interview feeling confident there is a good culture match, in order to be successful in your career moving forward and to add significant value back to your potential employer from day one. With the right chemistry and culture, you will be more motivated to achieve results, and empowered to reach new heights in your career.