Should a Recruiting Agency Target Skillset or Cultural Fit when Recruiting?

This is a great question and will ultimately shape how a recruiting agency helps companies fill important positions. It will also depend on the requirements that the company sets but generally speaking, the recruitment company will have a process in place that targets skillset while ensuring that the candidates are a good fit for the hiring company’s culture. Finding the right balance is important.

The hiring process is complex and has more twists and turns than a blockbuster movie. But one of the common concerns with recruitment agencies, and what makes successful recruiters unique, is finding candidates that have the skillset to perform the job while also ensuring that they are a good fit for the company’s vision.

This blog post is going to debate whether skillset or cultural fit is more important for a recruiting agency to find when searching for employees.

Skillset is Easier to Identify

Let’s start by looking at the easier of the two. Skillsets are easy to identify since they are plastered all over a job application and resume. Every candidate will list their skills. The traditional job approach is to filter out resumes from candidates who have the necessary skills and call those people in for an interview where their personality is assessed. What exactly is it that hiring managers are assessing when interviewing applicants?

They are determining whether the person is a good fit for the company. Top recruitment agencies understand the cultural needs of their contractors and will take steps to filter in the individuals who are the most likely cultural fit.

Experience Does Not Automatically Equal a Good Fit

Some people tend to lump experience and skillset under the same banner but the two are not always one and the same. The majority of new hire failures is a result of attitude and not lack of skill. When we stop to think about it, it makes sense. Skills are easy to identify and verify. We have testing methods, background checks, and a wide range of tools to ensure that an applicant is qualified before hiring them.

It’s not about finding the bare minimum. Companies that build teams to go above and beyond tend to be the most successful. In short, employees who match a company’s values are going to perform better. Top recruiting agencies understand this and will help filter in those types of employees.

How a Top Recruiting Agency Identifies Cultural Fit

This presents a unique challenge so top recruiters will develop their whole system around this one thing. So what metrics are used to identify job applicants who are a good cultural fit?

Culture is a subjective concept so it’s quite hard to identify. Companies should have a mission statement, vision, and values all listed somewhere publically. That’s the best place to start.

A business only recognizes that an employee is acting contrary to their values after they have been hired. This is an archaic approach and is quite inefficient.

That has caused many businesses to seek recruiters who can help filter out prospects who might not be a good cultural fit. In short, we’re seeing companies put more focus on cultural alignment than ever before. Job recruiting agencies are expected to do the same.

Goals can Change Across Departments

A company is like a puzzle with numerous pieces working together to perform one overall mission. However, each department will have their own internal culture. For instance, the marketing department will likely have many different practices than the IT department. Even though these two will work together in some capacity, their approach might be much different. Marketing is done in front of customer’s eyes while IT personnel tend to work behind the scenes.

I mention this because it provides a clear example of why it’s so difficult to measure culture and values. You wouldn’t expect IT employees working behind the scenes to have great people skills, unless they are leading the team. You’d just want them to fit into the culture of your company based on inter-company relationships.

Understanding this unique aspect of the specific job is essential, so be sure to relay that to the recruiting agency so that they can filter in the right type of applicants.

How to Bridge the Gap Between Corporate Culture and Skills

As I stated earlier in this article, the traditional approach for job recruitment has always been to put an emphasis on skills. But using skills alone to gauge the value of an applicant makes it a toss-up in finding the perfect fit. Since there are dozens of applications that will showcase adequate skills, finding employees who match the corporate culture is a much more appealing option.

Top companies are putting more emphasis on the attitude of their teams in today’s business world because of the value it holds. It’s essential that leaders are hired and cultivated into the culture.

Should a Recruiting Agency Target Skillset or Culture?

We’ve taken a close look at this question but haven’t given a concrete answer yet. While there is certainly room to argue for or against either approach, the fact is that skillset and culture are equally important to uncovering the real trait that top companies want. That defining trait is talent.

Talent should always be the ultimate goal for a recruiting agency and is ultimately what defines whether someone is a good fit. Candidates who possess the skills to perform the technical tasks require for the job and match the overall views of the company are going to be far more talented in their positions than everyone else. They are highly motivated to improve and will enjoy their job.

Look at it this way. Individuals who lack the qualifications for the job might have a great attitude, but they won’t be able to perform the work. On the contrary, someone who has all of the qualifications but doesn’t mesh with the corporate culture might be able to meet the technical requirements for the job, but they won’t be motivated and their performance will suffer.

Someone who possesses both will go above and beyond. They will work well in a team and their decisions are more likely to match the mission.

Remember, we measure talent by success in today’s world, and a person lacking either of these important traits will not be successful within a company.

On that note, I will say that matching a company’s culture is slightly more important though. For instance, if one candidate is a perfect culture match for the company, then they are going to further develop their skillset with experience. Someone with a positive attitude will always look to grow and develop! Keep that in mind!

A Top Recruiting Firm will Find Talented Applicants

Hiring agencies who find top recruiters are going to face one problem though. The candidates they interview will all be so talented that it’s difficult to make a decision on who to hire. That’s the position you want to be in!

It’s very tempting to hire based on skill set alone but real talent goes far above and beyond simply skills. It comes from the motivation to keep improving and growing.

As a business, it’s essential that you provide a recruitment agency access to your company mission and values so that they can send you the right recruits.

On the other hand, if you’re the one applying for the job, then be sure your values match that of the company. Otherwise, you’ll both be unhappy.