ASSESS THE TEAM'S CULTURE

by Johanna Rothman, Senior Consultant, Cutter Consortium

Each team's unique culture is key when deciding whom to hire. And you can't know if a candidate will fit into the culture without first knowing what the culture is.

We often talk about "corporate" culture as if that's the only culture in the organization. Of course the corporate culture encompasses the gross definition of what is acceptable behavior, but what each manager and each team deems acceptable is also part of the culture.

Here's an example of corporate culture and how each team's culture puts a stamp on that corporate culture. One organization, TeamCo, has a corporate value of teamwork. Part of what managers are evaluated on is the degree to which their groups work as high-performing teams.

One manager, Tom, and his highly collaborative team enjoy working with each other and playing foosball at the local pub. They don't just relax (and drink) at the pub. They use their socializing nights to discuss and identify problems, develop solutions, and plan the next few days' worth of work.

Stewart, another manager, believes in physical team building, using laser tag, rope courses, and the like as techniques to maintain and build the team. Every quarter, Stewart's team identifies another physical challenge and makes the time to participate in a physical group activity.

Yet another manager, Cindy, believes the best way to build a team is through constructive dialogue. Each week, one person identifies a problem or issue the team will discuss. At the team meeting, everyone has a few minutes to present their arguments or solutions, and then the team discusses the issues -- sometimes loudly enough to disturb people outside the conference room.

Each of these managers is successful at TeamCo, and over time, each team reinforces its own team values. People who don't like hanging out in the evening over a beer don't work for Tom's team. People who don't like rope courses don't work for Stewart's team. And people who don't thrive on discussion don't work for Cindy's team.

Tom, Stewart, and Cindy have integrated their cultural requirements into their hiring practices. Part of Tom's interviewing style is to invite candidates who've passed the initial screening to a pub night. Stewart probes each candidate to determine how the candidate appreciates -- or doesn't -- the physical team culture. Cindy invites candidates who've passed her initial screening to participate in one of her group's lively debates.

When Tom, Stewart, and Cindy hire people, they each look for people who know how to be members of a highly collaborative team. But each manager is looking for people who can thrive in very different cultures of teamwork.

If you asked these managers to describe their group's culture, each would say it has a culture of teamwork. But each of their cultures is unique. Instead of asking a manager to describe his group's culture, I ask this question: "Tell me about your greatest successes. What caused your success?" The answers illuminate what's distinctive about each work group. Once you understand what characterizes your group's collaboration, you can make your hiring practices reflect that collaboration.

-- Johanna Rothman, Senior Consultant, Cutter Consortium