Struggling with what core values you want to focus on, or what culture you want to build? If you’re the kind of person that likes examples, consider the infamous Netflix Corporate Culture deck, or the HubSpot Culture Code. Then, to temper your enthusiasm, read Dan Lyon’s excerpt from “Disrupted” titled My Year In Startup Hell. Take what you think will work for you and your organization and leave the rest behind.
Interviewing With Culture in Mind
Our hiring process was pretty conventional, on the surface. We wrote a job description — but took extra time to make sure it came across like a human wrote it. And we focused more on what candidates would get out of the position then what our demands were as a company. We’d then follow up with a phone screen and, if things went well, an in-person interview.
The in-person interview was fairly typical, featuring behavioral questions. The phone screen was anything but typical. And it was during this phone screen that we asked THE question that, in my cases, answered all others.
The phone screens we conducted lasted anywhere from 15 minutes (if it was quickly obvious there wasn’t going to be a fit) to an hour. Every phone screen followed seven steps.
Step 1: Verify the Basics (~1 minute)
“Hi, this is [Interviewer] from [Organization]. I believe [Scheduler] set up a phone screen for us for the next forty-five minutes to an hour for a [Job Role] position. Do I have that right — and is this still a good time?”
Wires get crossed. Save yourself time by making sure these tiny details are all correct up front. Usually your candidate will validate all of the above and be ready for the call. Once in a while though there will have been an administrative error or something just recently has impacted the candidate’s schedule and they’ll appreciate a way out.
Step 2: Set the Agenda (~2 minutes)
“Great, glad to hear it. As an agenda I’d like to start with some introductions. I’ll walk you through my background so you know who you’re talking to and then I’ll ask you to reciprocate. In fact, I’d appreciate if you could walk me through your history in some detail — What were the major events or turning points that have shaped your career? Likewise, for each transition from one job role to another or from one company to another… what was it about the place you were leaving that motivated the move? What attracted you to the new role or company? That may lead to a few follow up questions I have, and I’ll want to make sure I leave some time for you to ask me questions as well. Finally, as a wrap up I’ll set your expectations about next steps and timelines. How does that sound?”
This step speaks for itself, and to date I have never heard any response substantively different than “That sounds great.”