FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) July 8, 2008 -- Determining whether a candidate is the right fit for an organization’s culture and work style is a particularly important and challenging aspect of the recruiting process. The July issue of “Leadership Matters,” published by Bridgestar, a nonprofit initiative of the Bridgespan Group dedicated to attracting, connecting, and supporting leadership for the sector, presents best practices and interview questions to help hiring managers effectively assess a candidate’s fit with their organization.

The strategies presented in this issue come from insights Bridgestar has gained from its recruiting services and in-depth interviews with senior nonprofit managers. The feature article, “Making the Right Hire: Assessing a Candidate’s Fit with Your Nonprofit,” describes three

key steps for evaluating whether a job candidate will be a good cultural fit with your organization: assessing the organization’s culture, defining job requirements beyond the job description, and learning about a potential candidate’s personality and work style.

“Hiring managers need to look at more than just a candidate’s skills,” said David Simms, managing partner, Bridgestar. “An individual’s personality and work style are critical in determining how effectively he or she will fit with the culture of the organization.
These personal characteristics become even more important when considering candidates who would be making a cultural shift from the corporate to the nonprofit world. By considering these characteristics and finding opportunities to learn

more about the candidates formally and informally, hiring managers can have greater confidence that they will find the right senior manager for their organization.”

The article presents several ways that organizations can assess their own culture, including conducting an extensive organizational assessment and audit to considering the types of employees who have been successful at the organization to simply listing their core values.

Bridgestar suggests several categories of questions to assess the organization’s culture:
• Organization work style. Consider whether work is done collaboratively or independently; whether decisions are made by consensus or authoritatively and whether people communicate through email, voicemail or in person. Additionally, organizations should assess the degree to which meetings are structured and whether they are serious or lighthearted.

• Professional opportunities and advancement. Organizations should determine whether individual contributors or team players tend to do well, and whether they are more proactive or responsive. Consider whether the organization is hierarchical or flat; centralized or decentralized. Are there clear reporting structures? How does the organization reward people who perform well and what happens when employees don’t?
• Work hours and commitment to work. How many hours are senior managers expected to work and how many hours do they actually work? Does the organization provide flexible work schedules and allow for telecommuting? How much travel is expected of senior managers and are they expected to be available after hours? Is the organization looking for someone who will work for a certain number of years or be part of a succession plan for senior management?
• Architecture, aesthetics and atmosphere. Organizations should consider whether they have an open office environment or closed doors, whether dress is more casual or formal, and what they do for fun.

For the next step in defining what the organization is looking for in a senior manager, Kathleen Yazbak, Bridgestar’s managing director, national relationships, emphasized that “personal style and fit with organizational culture must be carefully evaluated in the job
search.” At the same time, it is critical for organizations to look for balance and build a team with a diverse set of backgrounds, experiences, ideas and work styles.

According to the article, organizations should consider some of the following questions in defining the qualities of a senior manager:
• What kind of decision-making style should the new senior leader have? Is the organization looking for an approach that is similar to the executive director’s or a different, complementary one?
• Is the organization looking for a leadership style that will promote the status quo or shake things up?
• Is the organization looking for someone who is more serious or someone who will lighten up the team?
• What types of personalities work well with the various stakeholders the organization works with and what types of characteristics will a successful senior manager need to have to be effective with these groups?

In the article, Bridgestar also recommends specific practices to help determine a candidate’s fit with the organization:
• Maximize interactions during the interview process. Have candidates interact with peers, and the people who will report to them as well as the people they will report to. Also ask the receptionist, and the person who scheduled the interview, their opinions of the candidate.
• Schedule back-to-back meetings. Kieran McGrath, associate director, talent and recruiting at Bridgestar, noted that while it’s very time-intensive, “scheduling a day of a long series of meetings with a candidate can ensure that any facades are worn through.”
• Ask good questions. Ask questions that reveal a candidate’s personality and work style, such as: “What did you enjoy most about the last place you worked and what did you enjoy least?” “When you think back on your favorite job, what was it and why?” and “Describe your favorite and least favorite bosses.”
• Seek out informal interaction opportunities. Try to find ways to get to know the candidate outside of formal interviews. Organizations can invite the candidate to brown-bag lunches, staff meetings or fundraising events. This also provides an opportunity to ask the candidate about his or her impressions of the events.
• Use reference checks to gather more information. Through reference checks organizations learn about a person from the perspective of five or six people who have worked with the candidate in a variety of roles and positions. According to Yazbak, “Speaking with this broad list of people should provide a rounded view of how a candidate interacts with people at different levels within and outside the organization.” Helpful questions to ask during the reference check can be found in the article, “The Reference Check: More than a Formality,” (https://www.bridgestar.org/Resources/Toolkits/HiringToolkit/ReferenceCheck.aspx) on the Bridgestar (www.bridgestar.org) website.
• Pay attention to gut instinct. The hiring manager should ask: “Does the candidate share the same values as the organization?” “Can I imagine this person working effectively with our team?” and “Would I enjoy working with this person?” If there are criteria that the candidate doesn’t fit, hiring managers should consider whether the candidate offers sufficient trade-offs to warrant forgetting other characteristics. Staffing a new position or considering bridger candidates who are shifting from the corporate to the nonprofit world can be particularly challenging since it may require the hiring manager to address different ways of approaching problems or even potential changes to the organization’s culture. After completing research and looking at how candidates would fit the organization, it’s important to follow your gut instinct about potential hires.

Each month, Bridgestar’s newsletter, “Leadership Matters,” focuses on a nonprofit leadership recruiting- or career-related theme. Available to Bridgestar members (or, for a complimentary subscription, please email subscribe@bridgestar.org), “Leadership Matters” is part of a robust portfolio of offerings that includes a free job board listing more than
250 nonprofit management and leadership positions across a range of service areas including the environment, human services, elder services, human rights, and youth services. Bridgestar has also assisted many organizations in finding new leaders through its recruiting services, which include executive recruiting and related advisory activities.

The current issue of “Leadership Matters” is available at:
https://www.bridgestar.org/resources/newsletters/2008/july2008.aspx.

About Bridgestar
Bridgestar (www.bridgestar.org), an initiative of the Bridgespan Group, is a nonprofit organization providing recruiting services, a free management job board, content, and tools designed to help organizations build strong leadership teams and individuals pursue career paths as nonprofit leaders. Bridgestar’s goal is to attract, connect, and support senior talent, leading to greater organizational effectiveness and social impact.