Something commonly discussed after an interview is “They’re great, but are they a culture fit?” Usually, that’s code for: “Would I want to have a beer with them?” or “Are they going to make life easy by thinking exactly like the rest of us?” While that sounds like a nice way to build a harmonious team, it’s a fast track to becoming a “Safe Brand.”
“I always get this feeling around people having to try to change or tone themselves down in order to just fit in. One of the things that we actually talk about is bringing this culture add.”
– Bryden Campbell, Founder
We see it happen all too often. Talented people shrinking themselves to fit into “safe” organisational. But we think that’s a massive waste of talent.
The cost of toning yourself down
When someone feels they must quieten their personality and over-filter their thoughts just to fit the mould, you lose their best work. It is a massive waste of energy. If someone is spending half their day worried about fitting in so they don’t rock the boat, that is creative energy being left on the table.
Focusing on “culture fit” is usually just a way to protect the status quo. In a marketing firm, this leads to that bland, approved by committee feeling. It creates a loop where no one ever says an idea is boring because everyone in the room has been hired to think exactly the same way.
Choosing to “Culture Add”
We are moving away from looking at this through a corporate lens. Culture add is not about finding a missing puzzle piece to fill a gap. It is about asking what new perspective a person can bring that we don’t already have.
When you hire for the “add”, the chemistry of the office changes:
- People stop just doing a job and start belonging to a mission.
- You move away from fake conversations because you have people in the room who aren’t afraid to disagree.
- It changes how people feel. True belonging happens when you don’t have to change who you are to be part of the team.
Why we value friction
If your brand language feels safe, it’s usually because there isn’t enough friction in the creative process. Friction is what makes things interesting.
Hiring for a culture add means bringing in people who will challenge your assumptions. The best teams aren’t made of identical people. They are made of individuals who bring something the rest of the group is missing.
How to spot a “Culture Add” in your next interview:
- “How will this person make our culture bigger, more thoughtful or more collaborative?”
- Ask them about a time they noticed something could work better, and how they approached it?
- Right now, we’re a team of [x] types of thinkers. What do you think you’d add that we don’t already have?”
