4 ms·

Speaking from a googler's pov, our interview training explicitly instructs us to recommend hires based on "Culture Add", not "Culture Fit", which is a much more

Speaking from a googler's pov, our interview training explicitly instructs us to recommend hires based on "Culture Add", not "Culture Fit", which is a much more enlightened approach. It's a core component of our overall DEI initiatives, and I respect the fact that our organizational development folks think cultural diversity is such a notable hallmark of strong teams to reinforce the messaging across the board.

jfengel 6y ago
Have they given guidance on what that means? In the abstract, it sounds really good: "We're hiring you because you're different and we want that over another person who brings more of the same." In practice, it sounds like an opportunity to have managers add "s/Culture Fit/Culture Add/" to an outgoing message filter. You'll know it's real when managers start pushing back: "I don't want that person because they sound like a real jackass". That's what "culture fit" was supposed to mean. That's where the rubber really meets the road: teaching people to distinguish between the discomfort they feel because somebody is a jerk versus the discomfort they feel because they're attuned to people like them and everybody else introduces a tiny, almost subconscious air of uncertainty. It's really hard to do, because a lot of people don't want to think of themselves as racist/sexist/homophobic, but the cumulative effect of those tiny nudges causes a lot of harm.
- eitally 6y ago
  Guidance & case studies, yes. And yes, it's hard to do.
goldcd 6y ago
I was about to write something sarcastic about semantics - but then I engaged my brain. If your company is a bowl of 999 blue M&Ms and somebody asks you to find a new M&M that will Fit That Bowl I know what I'd be reaching for (feels like question #1 on an IQ test) I still think I dislike the 'Culture' word though. The company has a culture & minority staff have a culture - but these are not the same things. The actual company culture isn't even the same thing as individual summation of individuals in it. Back to the M&M bowl. Each person that added the previous 999 M&Ms didn't hate the other colours - they just fitted that +1 Blue that fit what they found. Then edict comes down that the big-blue bowl looks really unappetizing, and doesn't actually look like M&Ms. This bowl is not representative of M&Ms! Oh I'll stop now.. ..I just had mental picture of an experiment. Send people into a room with an unopened M&M packet and instructions to fit or add to the bowl. Then maybe vary the bowl contents (number in it, skew the colours). Then further fiddle with the ratio in their 'sealed' packet... OK, I said I'd stop..

jfengel 6y ago

Have they given guidance on what that means? In the abstract, it sounds really good: "We're hiring you because you're different and we want that over another person who brings more of the same." In practice, it sounds like an opportunity to have managers add "s/Culture Fit/Culture Add/" to an outgoing message filter. You'll know it's real when managers start pushing back: "I don't want that person because they sound like a real jackass". That's what "culture fit" was supposed to mean. That's where the rubber really meets the road: teaching people to distinguish between the discomfort they feel because somebody is a jerk versus the discomfort they feel because they're attuned to people like them and everybody else introduces a tiny, almost subconscious air of uncertainty. It's really hard to do, because a lot of people don't want to think of themselves as racist/sexist/homophobic, but the cumulative effect of those tiny nudges causes a lot of harm.

eitally 6y ago
Guidance & case studies, yes. And yes, it's hard to do.

goldcd 6y ago

I was about to write something sarcastic about semantics - but then I engaged my brain. If your company is a bowl of 999 blue M&Ms and somebody asks you to find a new M&M that will Fit That Bowl I know what I'd be reaching for (feels like question #1 on an IQ test) I still think I dislike the 'Culture' word though. The company has a culture & minority staff have a culture - but these are not the same things. The actual company culture isn't even the same thing as individual summation of individuals in it. Back to the M&M bowl. Each person that added the previous 999 M&Ms didn't hate the other colours - they just fitted that +1 Blue that fit what they found. Then edict comes down that the big-blue bowl looks really unappetizing, and doesn't actually look like M&Ms. This bowl is not representative of M&Ms! Oh I'll stop now.. ..I just had mental picture of an experiment. Send people into a room with an unopened M&M packet and instructions to fit or add to the bowl. Then maybe vary the bowl contents (number in it, skew the colours). Then further fiddle with the ratio in their 'sealed' packet... OK, I said I'd stop..