The Wrong Ingredient Can Ruin the Dish

Have you ever set out to make your favorite recipe, only to find you've run out of a key ingredient? If this happens in the middle of preparation, it's tempting to substitute an ingredient that seems similar.  Occasionally it works and once in a great while, if you're lucky, the dish may be improved.  However, changing ingredients without careful aforethought can ruin the dish.

The same is true when it comes to hiring employees. Great workplaces know that a key ingredient in the great place formula is the organization's employees. As organizations grow, the continual challenge is to attract and retain staff who share a true commitment to the organization's values.

It can be difficult to accomplish this. After all, most applicants work hard to project the best image possible. Savvy job seekers study the organization ahead of time, know its values and prepare to respond to interview questions with answers that they believe the organization will appreciate. How can an employer protect its culture and ensure that new hires represent the right ingredients?

1. Understand Cultural Anchors:  These are the key values that support the organization's culture. Cultural anchors are not mission or vision statements. They are single words or small phrases that describe values that differentiate the organization. Cultural anchors are those attributes that can never be sacrificed or compromised. One organization where I have worked is, above all, compassionate.  When faced with difficult times, the organization would always make decisions that placed compassion above all else. Hiring individuals who don't share this key value will, over time, erode the organization's prized culture.
2. Find Employees That Fit:  Vacancies are costly, but the impact of a poor hire ripples through the organization.  The recent case of  Jack Griffin, Time, Inc. CEO illustrates this point. Without casting blame on anyone, it is apparent that Mr. Griffin did not fit the culture. In just six months, a clash of styles escalated into a very difficult and uncomfortable situation for all
3. Involve Many in the Interview Process: Tempting as it may be to expedite the hiring process by involving only a few, there is great benefit derived by gathering opinions and perspectives from a cross-section of current employees. Some organizations go to great lengths to place applicants in real-life situations, so that true behaviors can be accurately assessed.  Not every organization has this luxury, but all can and should ask employees at various levels to participate in the interview process - and value feedback on an equal scale.

A close friend told of trying her hand at an old family meatloaf recipe. She inadvertently used quick oats instead of breadcrumbs.  "It was edible, but it just wasn't the same," she said.  When faced with hiring challenges, you may elect to compromise your tried and true recipe by opting for candidates who don't quite fit your organization's culture. But the outcome may just destroy the "family recipe" that your organization has worked so diligently to preserve.

Best Places to Work and Star Athletes

What do we know about star athletes?  All have the following traits in common:

• A relentless passion to be the best
• Commitment to invest necessary resources to be the best
• A drive to constantly assess and repair any personal shortcomings
• It's not about a single competition - it's an ongoing journey

Organizations desiring to achieve best place to work status can learn valuable lessons from star athletes.  Becoming a best place to work and more importantly, maintaining the status once attained, is a process not a single event. It is a commitment to upholding a specific kind of workplace culture.

Let's examine each of the aforementioned star athlete traits, in the context of best place to work status:

1. A relentless passion to be the best:  The first step to achieve best place status is to examine the underlying motive of company executives.  Is it a drive to win an award or a desire to create an meaningful employment experience? Awards are won and competitions end.  Employees feel the tug of "flavor or the month" programs that have no depth.  A high-value employment experience is woven into the fabric of the culture.  Employees constantly feel the effects, through the actions of caring leaders and a healthy organizational climate.
2. Commitment to invest necessary resources to be the best: Even the best places experience business challenges. During the Great Recession, many best places to work had to make difficult decisions that impacted workers. Best places to work invested the key resources of time, attention and fiscal balance to preserve the business without persecuting the people.
3. A drive to constantly assess and repair any personal shortcomings: Employee needs are not static. Best places to work are constantly examining the organizational climate, assessing what employees value most and working to bridge the gaps between the two. Yesterday's approach to the workforce may not engage today's workers. Best places know this and commit to continuous improvement.
4. It's not about a single competition - it's an ongoing journey: Being named a best place to work feels wonderful. It is validation of hard work and attention to employees. Yet many best companies never enter these competitions. They simply do what's right for employees, because it's the right thing to do. With the proliferation of small or local best place to work competitions, it's possible for many companies to achieve some level of best place status.  But the awards are of secondary importance to those companies that are truly best places to work. Their gold is found in creating and maintaining an exceptional employment experience.

Star athlete status involves hard work and continuous improvement. The same is true of best place to work status.  If you're truly committed to being a best place to work, you'll be embarking on a journey, not just entering a single competition.