There’s an old saying that cash is king. But is it really? We are so used to the notion that the size of the paycheck is all that matters when it comes to finding a job. And sure that may have been certainly true in the past, but as we all know, things change with time.
You might be wondering just how much things have changed. In recent years, the economy has taken some hits so salary might seem important to employees. But despite that fact, there has been a cultural shift in how people view work and what is important to them.
And what we found was that company culture really does matter compared to cold hard cash. Let’s take a deeper dive into these findings.
A Cultural Moment
Many people have come to the viewpoint that it’s better to enjoy what you do each day for work, rather than to put up with a job you don’t like or a company you don’t fit in well with just for a bigger salary. In fact, nearly nine in 10 Americans who are employed or unemployed but looking for work consider “good culture fit” to be important when considering a new job (85%). And that’s not to mention that 37% would consider relocating to another state for a company with a great culture! We even found that 10% of respondents said they would take a lower salary if the culture was a better fit for them. Whoa!
The Benefit of It All
Furthermore, we also found that strong cultural fit is more important to an employee than a high allowance of paid time off (84%), having a flexible schedule (82%), or even the flexibility to work from home (60%). But what about other benefits like a shorter commute or a 401K? Both have an impact on an employee’s pocketbook (gas money and retirement). When faced with the choice of a short commute or a good cultural fit, over half chose a good cultural fit with a company. And when given the choice between a 401k, more vacation days, or a job title, working at a company with a good cultural fit bears about the same level of importance.
Break it Down
You might be thinking that since things change over time, there must be a huge gap between younger and older workers in how important culture is. But you really can teach an old dog new tricks, it seems. There isn’t as big a gap as you might think. Nearly half of Millennials or 48% to be exact, feel that cultural fit is very important when considering a new job, which is only slightly higher than Gen Xers at 43% and Baby Boomers at 38%.
And we found the same small gap when it came to how women and men feel about cultural fit. Close to half of women (47%) found cultural fit to be very important compared to two-fifths of men (41%).
AKA…we ALL care about cultural fit!
Why Culture Matters
We mentioned a shift in thinking about what people want out of their jobs and how they would rather enjoy what they do each day. For many, good cultural fit leads to higher job satisfaction (44%) and can even make or break the employee’s enjoyment of the job (38%).
But we found that it wasn’t just good for the employee, but the employer too! When asked why company culture is important, nearly three-fifths stated they were more likely to stay with an employer if aligned on culture (57%). When a company wasn’t a good fit for an employee, we found that an employee only planned to stick around with the company for one to two years. And this can lead to higher turnover rates, meaning companies spend more resources on hiring.
Beyond that, we found a positive impact that a good cultural fit has on how well an employee does their work, with over 90% of respondents saying that a good cultural fit had a positive impact on productivity, motivation, and even mental well-being at the office. There is even a positive impact on creativity (90% of women and 89% of men).
Don’t Wait to Find Out
It used to be that someone had to start a new job before they or the company found out if they were a good match on culture. But not anymore! How? Workzinga’s goal is to make the hiring process better for everyone with our unique cultural assessment test. Our proprietary algorithm tests both soft skills and personality, giving you more insights than ever before! To get started, schedule a demo!
