Recruiting for Culture Add, Not Culture Fit

For many years, employers have talked about recruiting people who are a “good culture fit.” While the intention is often positive, the phrase can sometimes lead organisations to hire people who think, behave or communicate in similar ways.

Today, many organisations are shifting their focus from culture fit to culture add, looking for people who share the organisation’s values while bringing new perspectives, experiences and ideas.

In health and social care, where diverse teams support people from a wide range of backgrounds, this approach can strengthen innovation, improve decision-making and enhance the quality of care.

What is culture fit?

Culture fit refers to recruiting people who appear to align with an organisation’s existing culture. This might include shared values, communication styles or ways of working.

While shared values are important, culture fit can sometimes be interpreted too narrowly, leading recruiters to favour candidates who simply feel familiar or similar to the existing team.

What is culture add?

Culture add takes a broader approach.

Instead of asking:

“Will this person fit in?”

Employers ask:

“What strengths, perspectives or experiences will this person bring to our team?”

The goal is to recruit people who share the organisation’s core values while adding new skills, ideas, lived experiences or ways of thinking.

Why does it matter in health and social care?

Health and social care professionals support people from diverse communities, cultures and life experiences.

Teams that reflect this diversity are often better placed to:

• Understand different perspectives.
• Build stronger relationships with service users and families.
• Challenge assumptions.
• Improve problem-solving.
• Deliver more personalised care.
• Encourage innovation and continuous improvement.

Different viewpoints can help organisations avoid “groupthink” and make more balanced decisions.

Values should remain non-negotiable

Recruiting for culture add does not mean lowering standards or overlooking behaviours that are essential in care.

Every employee should still demonstrate values such as:

• Compassion.
• Respect.
• Integrity.
• Kindness.
• Accountability.
• Teamwork.
• Professionalism.

The difference is that organisations welcome diversity in backgrounds, experiences and approaches while remaining consistent about the behaviours they expect.

Challenge unconscious bias

One of the biggest barriers to recruiting for culture add is unconscious bias.

Interviewers may naturally feel more comfortable with candidates who:

• Share similar backgrounds.
• Have followed similar career paths.
• Communicate in familiar ways.
• Have similar interests or personalities.

These similarities do not necessarily predict future performance.

Structured interviews, diverse interview panels and consistent scoring criteria can help reduce the influence of unconscious bias and support fairer recruitment decisions.

Ask questions that reveal different perspectives

Rather than looking for people who simply agree with existing ways of working, consider asking questions such as:

• Tell us about a time you challenged an established way of doing something.
• Can you describe a different perspective you brought to a team?
• How have you adapted your communication to meet someone’s individual needs?
• Tell us about a time you learned from someone with a different background or experience.

These questions help identify candidates who are curious, adaptable and willing to contribute new ideas.

Build teams with complementary strengths

High-performing teams are rarely made up of people who are all the same. Some employees excel at:

• Building relationships.
• Solving complex problems.
• Organising projects.
• Coaching colleagues.
• Generating new ideas.
• Remaining calm under pressure.

Recruiting people with complementary strengths creates more balanced and resilient teams.

Inclusion doesn’t end with recruitment

Recruiting diverse talent is only the first step.

Employees are more likely to thrive when organisations create workplaces where everyone feels:

• Respected.
• Included.
• Listened to.
• Supported.
• Able to contribute.

An inclusive culture allows people to bring their authentic selves to work while sharing ideas confidently and constructively.

Better teams are built through diversity of thought

Recruiting for culture add is about strengthening an organisation, not changing its core values. By welcoming people with different experiences, perspectives and strengths, healthcare providers can build more innovative, adaptable and compassionate teams.

The organisations that thrive in the future are unlikely to be those where everyone thinks alike, they will be those where people are united by shared values while bringing different ideas, experiences and solutions to the table.

Leadership Insight

Strong organisational cultures are built on shared values, not shared personalities. When recruitment focuses on culture add rather than simply culture fit, organisations create teams that are more diverse in thought, more resilient in the face of change and better equipped to meet the needs of the communities they serve.

Looking to Support Your Team’s Wellbeing?

Join organisations across health and social care that are investing in happier, healthier workplaces with the Daily Round Wellbeing Employer programme.

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Download our Employer Wellbeing Brochure to discover what’s included, or become a Daily Round Wellbeing Employer today.