The importance of understanding how the personal values of candidates for senior positions align with the organization’s culture was emphasized in an Australian study of 200 companies which found that up to 80% of poor recruitment decisions were attributed to poor culture fit with the candidate’s values. The Australian study also found that 90% of companies rated recruiting for cultural fit to be very important or essential; however 64% of them seldom if ever assessed candidates for cultural fit. When asked why not, some of the main excuses given were “we dont know how to” and “we are under pressure to fill the position and dont have time”.

Organizations typically make changes to their executive leadership when they go through periods of significant change such as mergers and acquisitions, reorganizations, or new strategic direction. During these times the organizational culture and leadership values, especially the behaviours associated with recently ousted leaders, typically get questioned. However, to make an effective selection decision it is essential to understand what the “new” team and leaders will really value (even though a unified culture is still forming) to determine if a new hire will fit the environment, stay, and add value.

Leaders have a significant impact on the organizational culture/values and it is critical for leaders to be aware of their own value systems before embarking on selection of potential candidates. The value systems of organizational leaders can be likened to complex belief systems about what is desirable and important, and what is not. Many leaders and mangers tend to live their values without necessarily examining them too carefully and therefore dont find it easy to articulate when asked what they value (outside some obvious terms e.g. having integrity). It is therefore useful to ask key stakeholders of the company including board members, the boss of the potential new hire and significant peers to complete a Values Orientations questionnaire.

Once the values systems profiles within the group are determined, it is essential to provide feedback and then determine the values to look for in potential candidates. This greater awareness of the targeted values systems of candidates can be helpful in making better informed hiring decisions while reducing the risks and costs associated with bad hires.