How to fast-track your marketing and advertising career growth

It’s no secret: The job market is hot. Companies are clamoring for top talent now more than at any other time in recent memory.

For marketers and creatives, the moment is especially ripe with opportunities. Employers need your skills to help them stay competitive in a digital-first world. And with the record-high quit rates of The Great Resignation showing no signs of slowing, the law of supply and demand is working in your favor.

Employers are getting the message loud and clear; the world of work has changed — probably for good. More companies and agencies are adapting to this new reality, offering remote work and higher compensation, building stronger company cultures, and making other efforts to attract and retain top talent.

This presents a unique opportunity to make rapid progress towards your long-term career ambitions, or find a role or employer that better suits your current professional needs or desire for work-life balance.

But before you jump at the next offer, don’t forget to account for your big-picture goals. No matter how tempting it might be to chase more money or a better title, check in with yourself first.

Where do you see yourself in the long-term, and how does this rung on the ladder lead you there? Is this the right next move for you, and are you prepared to step up in the specific way this role requires? Keep in mind, with higher salaries and bigger opportunities come higher expectations and greater responsibility. 

And if you are fortunate enough to work for a company making a genuine, good-faith effort to improve their culture and morale, remember that a good fit goes both ways. It takes two to tango! 

Rewarding your employer for their efforts by being a stellar team member is a win-win. Not only will it help your own career progress faster, your commitment and contributions will also prove to leadership that what they’re doing is working — and they’ll be more likely to continue investing in the things that make their company a great place to work.

No matter the job market conditions, the best way to quickly grow your marketing career is still by proving your value (and your values) through the actions you take at work every day to help you and your team succeed.

Here’s how to advance your marketing career and position yourself for long-term success in any market.

1. Know what’s expected of you, and master the basics.

The first order of business in any job is to make sure you know exactly what’s expected of you — specifically, how you will be evaluated at performance reviews: what key performance indicators (KPIs) you’ll need to meet, and what other qualitative inputs will be considered, like feedback from clients, other team members, or leadership. 

Be proactive and ask during your interview, the onboarding process, and every step of the way, especially as your responsibilities evolve. 

It’s imperative that you understand what success in your role looks like and ensure you’re focusing your efforts accordingly, whether it’s your first day on the job or thousandth.

Of course, if advancement, including a promotion, is your goal, it doesn’t stop there. These expectations are only a baseline, and that level of output is considered table stakes for the role you have now. 

To move up, you’ll need to show your employer that you have what it takes to shine in the role you aspire to have — but you still need to master the one you currently have. This may seem obvious, but it can be tempting to skip this step when your sights are set on higher ground — and doing so could derail your progress.

2. Contribute strategic ideas and creative solutions for company growth.

To truly stand out as a star member of the team, you’ll need to go above and beyond your existing duties.

But simply working harder or putting in more hours may not get you very far, especially if your added effort is misdirected or not aligned with your company’s strategic priorities or your individual KPIs. 

For example, voluntarily picking up the slack for an underperforming coworker may not garner the recognition you’re after if there are more urgent or important projects on your team’s plate, or your strengths are better applied elsewhere.

This is as much about what you choose to work on as it is how much work you do. Take the initiative to identify the highest-impact contributions you can make, and operate proactively. 

Think like a futurist, looking around your industry to try to predict what obstacles your employer may face in the months and years ahead.. Behave like an “intrapreneur,” continuously seeking out opportunities and solutions for company growth. And equip yourself to make higher-value contributions, which might include learning new skills or getting relevant certifications. 

Consider it your job to do your part in crafting a vision for the future of your company — one in which you are a key contributor. Share your ideas generously with the goal of sharing in the company’s success.  

But don’t stop there. Map out how your suggestions could realistically be implemented, rather than simply identifying issues. 

You should pitch a solution for every single problem you encounter in your job.

No one wants to hear your complaints, no matter how valid they are. You’ll gain significant respect by always having at least a suggestion for improvement when talking about an issue.

— Jack Appleby (@JuiceboxCA) October 14, 2021

In doing so, you’ll demonstrate to your manager and team that you’re both pragmatic and creative, that you understand the business and market realities in a way a leader would, and that you’re committed to your company’s success.

3. Focus on your team’s success, not just your own.

More professionals are feeling empowered to speak up for what they want, and to demand fair treatment and compensation — and though the Great Resignation hasn’t been easy for employers, we celebrate this transparency as a win-win. When workers are candid and clear about their goals, it’s better for everyone’s long-term success.

Ultimately, we all have ambitions and aspirations for our careers, and we know that it’s up to us to make those happen. (If you didn’t feel that way, you probably wouldn’t be reading this!)

But as you consider your individual growth, don’t forget that your network is your net worth. 

And the network that truly matters most to your career success is not the one you only associate with at industry meetups or happy hours: It’s the one you’re building with your co-workers every day at work.

Few people will be more able or willing to speak to your strengths in specific terms, or connect you to ideal opportunities in the future, than the colleagues you have right now. So be sure you’re nurturing those relationships (and your reputation!) through your daily actions.

Stay connected with colleagues through daily informal chats, particularly if you’re on a remote or hybrid team. (You’ll generate more ideas and solutions if you understand what your colleagues are working on, anyway!) Then work collaboratively with your team towards your common goals and strategic priorities, and pitch in where you’re needed.

After all, having a “that’s not in my job description” attitude is sure to keep you stuck in your current job — if you’re lucky. 

Being a “team player” means looking out for the team, and not just yourself. Having a collaborative approach encourages problem-solving, boosts efficiency and productivity, and contributes to a positive workplace atmosphere. Regardless of how observant your manager is, that attitude won’t go unnoticed by the people working alongside you — and you never know when you may need their help in the future.

4. Quantify your achievements and advocate for yourself.

Don’t be shy about your professional goals. Your employer can’t help you grow your career if they don’t know what you want or where you’d like to be in 3 to 5 years. 

As The Great Resignation has brought to light, one of the leading causes of job dissatisfaction is a lack of growth opportunities or an unclear path for career advancement. More employers are now mapping out career growth opportunities in an effort to recruit and retain top talent in this market, but they’re not all there yet. 

Before assuming there’s nowhere for you to grow in your current company, express your ambitions directly with your manager. Approach the conversation openly and in good faith, assuming that your manager values you and wants you to succeed within the company. 

Employers are not going to promote you or create new opportunities just to keep you satisfied, of course; you’ll need to make your case and focus on the value you bring. Actions speak louder than words, but it’s still up to you to track, quantify, and communicate your achievements. 

Certain achievements may go unnoticed unless you speak up and “merchandise” your work in a way that affirms its value. Do what it takes to make sure your boss knows that you’re going above and beyond.

Take it upon yourself to schedule regular check-in meetings, send email updates that include a summary report of what you’ve accomplished, and forward any praise you receive. And every month or quarter, calculate the numerical results of your work as much as possible. 
It may feel uncomfortable, but a little self-promotion goes a long way. Remember, your boss wants to hear about the good things you’re doing and the praise you’ve received — it reflects well on them! One way to avoid feeling like you’re always tooting your own horn is to praise the contributions of others while you’re at it.

5. Lean into your leadership skills, no matter your role.

To thrive in your career, you’ll need to work on more than your marketing or advertising skillset. Employers want to hire marketers and creatives who are able to present ideas confidently, represent the company or agency in a client-facing capacity, and manage people, projects, and change. They want leaders.

Even if you’re not in a formal leadership role, demonstrating leadership skills will accelerate your career. Effective leadership has nothing to do with a title or position on an org chart. It doesn’t even reflect seniority or experience level. 

Instead, effective leadership is about taking personal responsibility, being proactive, and solving problems. It’s about demonstrating integrity, being dependable, building relationships, and motivating the people around you.

You can be a leader at any stage of your career by stepping up for your team and working towards shared goals, not just your own individual achievements.

If the past couple of years have taught us anything, it’s that adaptability and resilience matter, especially when your back is against the wall. Performing well under pressure shows that you have the emotional intelligence and confidence of someone your team can depend on to lead the way when stakes are high.

6. Build trust by being consistent and reliable.

This moment in history will pass; the labor market is always in flux. But the actions you take now will have ripple effects in your career for years to come. Be consistent in how you show up to work every day and contribute to your team’s success to cement your reputation.

Leaders need to know they can rely on you before entrusting you with greater responsibility.

Recommending someone for a promotion or other advancement opportunity comes with risks, and doing so when you haven’t proven yourself could be a costly mistake affecting your manager’s own career. The same applies to introductions, referrals, and recommendations by colleagues within your network; your work becomes a reflection of the person who recommended or introduced you.

Building trust takes time, and it happens through repeated encounters. It happens when your actions consistently match your words.

Don’t expect overnight recognition; be patient. Your career will take off when people know they can truly trust you to perform and excel with integrity, and that trust can be built only by you being a reliably high performer, not just some of the time, like when you’re feeling particularly motivated to advance or when there’s something clearly in it for you.

Don’t go it alone. Build a career advancement team.

Getting on the career fast track is not something you can do on your own. Not only will you need your professional network of colleagues, but mentors, coaches, and other professionals can offer guidance and support and open doors for you along the way. 

No matter how competitive the market, a talent expert can help you advance your career and position yourself for long-term success.

It’s important to build relationships with recruiters, even if you’re not actively looking for a new role.

We know the market well, and can be realistic with you about what’s possible for the next step in your career. 

Because our team has such deep expertise in the world of marketing and advertising (many of us came from the industry before landing in staffing!), we understand what you do and where you want to go better than you may expect. Let us be your career advisor.

Never hesitate to reach out to the Freeman+Leonard team on LinkedIn to start a conversation or to follow up on a job application.

Where will your career take you next? 

We have a few ideas for you at: jobs.freemanleonard.com

The Great Retention: How to retain top talent — even in a candidate’s market

Between the 11.5 million U.S. workers who left their jobs in spring of this year and the 48% considering resigning, it’s no secret that employers are facing The Great Resignation.

Across industries, the events of the last two years have changed the way many people look at their lives and how they spend their working hours. A global pandemic has a way of putting things into perspective, and that’s led many workers to realize they want and need more from their professional lives.

The current labor market conditions have only made it more tempting for workers to consider a change. The competitive job market has caused salaries to skyrocket. Top marketers and creatives have realized they have the power to find work that fits their life, not the other way around.

As a result, many companies are struggling to hold onto their employees.

In a Freeman+Leonard survey of marketing and advertising professionals in August 2021, only 41% of workers employed full-time at the start of the pandemic were still with the same employer. Of those workers, just 31% said they’re happy with their current employer and position.

This should serve as a wake-up call for employers and employees alike. Just as your workers are redefining the significance of work in their lives, leaders of companies have a fresh opportunity to reevaluate their relationship to their most precious resource: their people.

As employers, we can either resign ourselves to The Great Resignation, or we can resolve to make this moment one of Great Retention for our businesses.

After all, we all know how expensive turnover can be. Strengthening your employee retention not only reduces hiring and training costs, but also cultivates a healthy team culture and can help keep your customers happy. And if you can keep your best people during these competitive times, imagine the stability and employee satisfaction you’ll enjoy when the market shifts.

So, what do marketing professionals want from work now — and how can companies and agencies retain their best employees?

1. Rebalance your financial compensation and benefits.

Money talks, and so do your employees.

More workers than ever before are embracing salary transparency, opting to share compensation information candidly with colleagues or friends in the same industries. It’s not uncommon for workers to discover they’re underpaid when they go looking for a new job, but now that information may come to light even if they’re not. Regardless, it’s time for a fresh look at the compensation you offer not just to your new hires, but to your existing team.

And while money is not the only factor in job satisfaction, it still tops the list.

48% of respondents to our survey indicated that higher financial compensation is their number-one most important consideration for their next job.

One survey respondent had grown frustrated with the slim pay increases and limited growth opportunities at their job of five years, saying, “The best benefit I had was a growing number of PTO days.” When they took a new job during the pandemic, they almost doubled their salary. This tracks with the dramatic salary increases we’ve seen across the board.

Another respondent prioritized financial compensation over all other factors because it allowed them to maintain their lifestyle and save for retirement, while another stressed the need to support their family and save for college.

Many also see their financial compensation as an indicator of how valued they are by their employer. “I want an employer that appreciates good employees and rewards them for a job well done,” one respondent said.

Check out the latest Freeman+Leonard Marketing & Advertising Salary Guide to find out if the salaries you’re offering stand up to your competitors.

2. Proactively map out career growth opportunities for your team.

Though it’s tempting to view the candidate’s market as a symptom of short-term, pandemic-driven restlessness, that doesn’t quite ring true for the marketers and creatives we surveyed. Workers want long-term career growth, and they’re more likely to stay with your company when you show them how they can move up within your ranks.

One respondent said, “I want the opportunity to try for promotions and advancement. I’m looking for a company to stay with long term.”

Another stressed that they’re particularly motivated by having a clear path for growth and an understanding of the role they’re reaching for.

This is true at every experience level, too — not just with your more junior employees.

“I’m mid-level in my career — the next step is a major step up,” one survey respondent shared, “so healthy mentorship and leadership and opportunities are crucial.”

We’ve seen a growing number of employers map out career growth plans for their top candidates at the offer stage. Take this same “courting” approach with your current employees. Have frank discussions with your workers about where they’d like to be in the years to come, and then tailor growth plans for each individual.

Knowing what your team members want long-term, and demonstrating a commitment to helping them achieve that, is key to ensuring they feel valued, appreciated, validated and heard.

3. Build location flexibility — and trust — into your policies.

Gone are the days of listing work-from-home opportunities as a “perk” of the job. Today, remote or hybrid work is a necessity in the world of marketing and advertising.

The past two years have allowed us to witness firsthand the impact of remote work on productivity, on both an individual and an organizational level. Many have discovered that their fears about performance were unfounded, while some simply grew to prefer the comfort and convenience of working from home.

As a result, a growing number of marketers and creatives are pushing back on company cultures that demand in-office attendance for work that takes place largely on a laptop computer.

And why shouldn’t they? At review time, their performance likely will be measured by output and achievements, not the amount of time spent behind a specific desk in a particular building. It just makes business sense to let employees office wherever they’ll do their best work.

In our recent survey, 68% of respondents ranked work-from-home options and location flexibility among their top three most important job factors.

One survey respondent said, “Remote work has now become a priority, and 2-3 days in the office is where I am most comfortable.”

Another stressed that a lack of location flexibility would be a deal-breaker: “I would not return to the office full-time without a remote option.”

“I feel that I am more productive at home,” one respondent added. Another said, “Long commutes are expensive and greatly affect my quality of life.”

Fears about health and safety are not behind us, either. “Remote work seems to be the smarter way to go in maintaining my health until we get a handle on the pandemic,” said one survey respondent. “High risk family members mean remote work is essential right now,” another shared.

For some, the option to work from home is even more important than how much they’re paid. Of those who ranked remote work among their top three factors, one-third ranked it higher than financial compensation.

Keep in mind that what employees want from a remote work-friendly employer is more than location flexibility itself. After all, there’s no point in working from home if you’ll be micromanaged as a result, or even monitored.

One survey respondent recently took a new corporate marketing job for a 25+% pay increase. However, that combination of remote work and higher salary have not succeeded in keeping another move off the table: “Leadership doesn’t trust their employees and ends up micromanaging everyone,” they lamented, noting that while they’re not actively looking, they’re open to opportunities.

Trust is key in implementing successful work-from-home policies. Encourage leaders to establish clear guidelines for remote work and measurable performance indicators for each employee, but otherwise trust their team members to do the work they were hired to do.

4. Build a culture your team can be proud of, from the top down.

Competitive compensation, individual career growth plans and remote work flexibility are important starting points for retaining your marketing and creative employees. But sustaining loyalty over time goes much deeper.

Your employees are also feeling a new sense of urgency around doing work they love (or at least enjoy) for companies they respect. Workers want to be a part of a company they’re proud of and tend to be more productive when they can take pride in their work.

For some, it’s even more important than the pay. “I feel that the quality of the work and team are more important than advancement or benefits,” said one senior-level corporate marketer in our survey. “I am looking for a creative team where I can participate and hopefully be a mentor.”

Pride in the job often goes hand-in-hand with enjoying who you work alongside. “I am really looking for a place where I really enjoy my colleagues and enjoy what I do daily,” said a survey respondent in upper management at a creative production agency.

Do your employees know what your mission and core values are? Do they believe in them? And most important, do they see the mission and values being embodied by their leaders? After all, a thriving, growth-minded culture begins with good leadership.

Good leadership is grounded in mutual respect, and marked by trust and transparency. This starts with good communication, but will be either fortified or undermined by the actions and choices made every day.

“Remote work is important, but I do need work-life balance,” said one survey respondent who added, “Strong leadership is important because it dictates your life.”

“Work-life balance has become the most important issue in my life,” echoed another respondent. “I need to find a company with management that truly adheres to that, does not suddenly change the conditions of my employment, and provides a reasonable level of work.”

Workers don’t just want their managers to help protect their work-life balance. They also want leaders with a strong vision and who take decisive action.

“My current position is at a startup with good compensation and unlimited PTO, but I am growing frustrated with the lack of strong leadership and strategic direction,” said one survey respondent,

A senior-level agency creative who responded to our survey stated they value “working for a company with a strong point of view and leadership that helps drive it.” Another said, “I will leave a well-paying position with a great benefits package if leadership is weak with no desire to level up.”

Encourage leaders and managers to take time to ask employees regularly (both formally and informally) what is, and is not, going well in their roles. Focus on establishing psychological safety so workers feel comfortable voicing their concerns and bringing new, innovative ideas to the table.

And most important, hire and promote managers whose actions build trust within their teams and actively demonstrate your core company values — rather than leaving those ideals to wither on the page of a sterile mission statement.

5. Remember that strong retention starts by hiring the right people in the first place.

Fostering a positive work environment with happy, productive employees is a steeper climb if your hiring strategy and onboarding processes don’t support your goals and values.

Use these five pillars to hold onto the marketers and creatives you already have — and partner with talent experts who specialize in finding the right match for your team, your values and your specific marketing needs.

The deep marketing expertise and personalized, strategic approach we bring to sourcing and vetting candidates at Freeman+Leonard is not only more effective, it’s more time- and cost-efficient — because getting it right the first time is a win for both of us.

Let’s get the conversation started.

Use the form below to get in touch with Freeman+Leonard and start making the right marketing and advertising hires for your long-term success.

How to hire for culture growth, not just culture fit.

As employers, we’ve been taught over and over the importance of hiring candidates who are strong cultural fits for our organizations. But what does that mean, and what if this focus on “culture fit” is actually holding your business back?

If you focus on hiring people who blend into your existing culture, then you’ll only maintain your current status quo — even as the world and business realities evolve.

Of course, it’s important that the people who work for your company share its core values, like respect, integrity and transparency, and that these values are not just words on paper but visible in the actions of its employees at every level.

Shared values are key to fostering enthusiastic, productive and happy employees, who feel empowered and appreciated as individuals, yet operate as a team to achieve a collective mission. This is what company culture really means and what a great one can do.

Culture is not about quirky office traditions, how often you socialize, the fun fringe perks you offer, or token signifiers like what kind of movies or music your team likes — yet it is too often understood this way.

Overemphasizing this kind of “culture fit” in your hiring decisions can be damaging to business growth because it can unintentionally limit the diversity of thought, experience and background on your team in ways that may be hard to see or measure. This is particularly the case for organizations without well-defined values or goals for their culture. Without anything to measure by, “culture fit” assessments are subject to the whims of a hiring manager or interviewers, a recipe for unintentional bias.

Your culture hinges significantly on how you hire, fire and promote people, and requires far more than a gut feeling about whether a candidate would “fit in” with the existing team.

Instead, consider hiring candidates who share your values and will add value to the future of your business by enhancing, challenging and strengthening the other aspects of your culture instead of just slotting neatly into it.

Doing this well requires a growth mindset, favoring the temporary discomfort that change can sometimes bring over the comfort zone of the status quo — or, “not rocking the boat.” It also means being willing to have hard conversations instead of burying potential conflict.

“Your culture is like your lawn,” said Jonathan Jones, Cultural Conversation Leader at DEMDACO, a Kansas City-based manufacturer. “You can choose to ignore it, but it’s going to do something all by itself and it won’t be beautiful.”

As a leader and a hiring manager, it’s imperative that you hire for the growth you want tomorrow, not just the culture you have today.

To reduce blind spots, foster innovation and prepare your organization for the future, you need diverse teams operating in an inclusive culture. This should start with, and go beyond, the more obvious factors that may come to mind when you think of diversity in the workforce.

Ideally, diversifying your team means seeking out and hiring people from a variety of backgrounds and communities, and also ensuring a range of professional experiences, education and skillsets.

For example, do you find yourself subconsciously favoring candidates who went to the same set of schools or worked at the same agencies? This can over time contribute to a homogeneous, stagnant culture.

Even something as seemingly benign as preferring candidates whose industry experience mirrors your own could hold you back. After all, the best ideas often come from unexpected places. Candidates from other industries could teach you new strategies that give you an advantage in your own.

The business case for a strong, diverse and inclusive culture is clear: Happier, more engaged employees are more productive and stick around longer, leading to less turnover. When employees feel safe bringing new or challenging ideas to the table — because their employer has demonstrated that they value diversity of thought — creativity and innovation are encouraged.

Hiring for culture growth instead of culture fit should also naturally lead to a team that demographically represents the world we live in, not just one slice of it.

Diversity is particularly important for marketing teams, who must continuously evolve the communications, tools and campaigns they build to resonate with a growing and changing consumer base.

But how do you find and hire talented candidates who may fly a bit under your professional radar? It starts with a look in the mirror.

Step 1: Define your team’s existing culture and blind spots.

Every company has an existing culture, even if its leaders haven’t worked to proactively shape it. But if you want to improve it, first you must define it.

Start by evaluating your brand’s stated core values and principles, and weighing them honestly against the day-to-day experience your employees have. What feedback have you received in exit interviews, good or bad? Where could your culture stand to improve, or where might there be misalignment?

Observe how your industry is evolving, and where you and other experts believe it will be in the next 5 or 10 years. What skills will be required that aren’t so common now? Reflect also on how your customers are changing, both demographically and psychographically.

Now do the talents and backgrounds of your team reflect these changes, or do they resemble outdated cultural or industry norms?

With this in mind, review your current employees’ personal and professional backgrounds. What do they have in common? Where are the gaps, weaknesses or misalignments?

Filling these gaps are what your next hire should bring to the table, so rather than sweep those weaknesses under the rug, let them inform your hiring strategy and guide your search.

Step 2: Get everyone on the same page.

Change begins with you, but it doesn’t end there. Overcoming old habits at an organizational level means aligning everyone involved in the process of finding, vetting and hiring your next employee.

From internal HR teams to external partners, from colleagues to direct reports, if they will be recruiting, reviewing, communicating with or interviewing candidates, they need to understand your goals and priorities from the jump.

Explain your desire to hire diverse talent who share your company’s core values and will add something new and unique to your existing team, even if they may not seem like the perfect fit on paper. Make a list of your desired qualifications and traits in priority order, with more conventional factors like education and relevant industry experience towards the bottom.

Few things will align internal teams more than establishing key metrics and holding them accountable. If you’re not in a position to do this, you still can emphasize the ROI of a stronger, proactively improved culture.

Step 3: Craft inclusive and inviting job descriptions.

Clearly defined priorities and aligned teams are important, but communicating effectively can make or break your hiring goals. Attracting your ideal candidates is as much about what you say as how you say it.

When writing a job description, avoid language that might turn off certain candidates or signal a less inclusive, less accessible environment. Verbiage such as “demanding” or “aggressive,” for example, might deter top candidates from applying. Those words don’t really communicate anything helpful or specific, anyway. Instead, focus on the facts.

Make sure your company’s website and social media channels will resonate with a wide range of talent, rather than undermine your efforts. For instance, at a minimum, the photographs you use should reflect the diversity you seek.

If your company has made a DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) commitment, be sure to share this in your job descriptions and in the Careers section of your website, along with any reported results since that commitment was made.

Step 4: Shake up your hiring processes to ensure the best candidates aren’t overlooked.

Of course, broadening the pool of talent you’re willing to consider has an inherent logistical challenge: wading through a potentially even greater stack of resumes. And more resumes to look through may just create more opportunities to rely on imperfect mental shortcuts to help you narrow them down.

However, certain behaviors, skills and personality types are required for success in different roles and functions — and these can be difficult to discern from a resume alone.

That’s why we recommend filtering the first round of applications by whether the candidate shares your values and will be a good fit for the role itself. At Freeman+Leonard, we often turn to the Rembrandt Portrait® Personality Assessment to evaluate talent on how likely they are to perform well in the job and in your environment.

The Rembrandt Portrait measures 14 inherent human qualities that contribute to job success. The assessment gives employers insight into a candidate’s personality and values, and helps identify skills such as problem solving, relationship building, communications and personal initiative.

When used early, especially at the application stage, the Rembrandt Portrait can narrow the stack of resumes to only your most likely top performers — without accidentally overlooking someone just because they didn’t seem right “on paper.”

Having your current employees take the Rembrandt Portrait assessment can also help you reveal their core values, which can either help to define those values at the company level or alert you to potential misalignment. Either way, you’ll have a strong baseline for evaluating the results of your candidates.

Best of all, with this filter in place, you can spend less time reviewing resumes and more time in the interview process, getting to know your strongest candidates on a personal level.

Step 5: Demonstrate your values in the interview and onboarding process.

Stated values must be more than words on a page — they must be lived and proven. The experience your candidate has in the interview and onboarding stages will impact the rest of the time they spend at your company, and this will be shaped by the actions of everyone they meet.

How your candidate behaves early on can also tell you what their values really are.

For example, one of Southwest Airlines’ differentiating core values is fun. This can be observed by anyone who’s flown with the airline and listened to a flight attendant’s goofy spin on the takeoff and landing safety instructions. Fun then is part of their interview process, even for corporate roles. One candidate we know walked into her interview at Southwest, sat down and realized she was facing a panel of interviewers wearing silly animal masks. The goal? To see how she would react. Discomfort, awkwardness or taking offense would likely not help her chances. Instead, she laughed — and she got the job.

Props and stunts aren’t required to judge a candidate’s values. At DEMDACO, it’s a simple conversation. “I interview everyone who makes it into an in-person interview, just to talk about culture and purpose, and mission and vision,” Jonathan said. “And I kick it off by explaining that our purpose is to pursue business the way it ought to be — and to seek the common good in all we do.”

Then, he listens carefully to their response. “I can tell if they’re tracking with me or not, but I also pay attention to their word choice, like how often they use the word “I” versus “we.””

Jonathan also asks questions in the interview to help determine whether the person in front of him matches the results of their Culture Index assessment (a tool that, like the Rembrandt Portrait, evaluates candidates based on their traits).

“I often ask if they’re already involved with their community, and figure out if they really understand what we’re trying to do with our purpose and mission. If they were trying to fake it in any way, it’s going to become evident very quickly.”

We all know that actions speak louder than words. By intentionally creating a hiring and onboarding experience that reflects your values and explores them in detail, you’ll set up both your organization and your new hire to succeed.

Step 6: Be willing to do the work long-term.

Hiring and onboarding are key aspects of culture growth, but will only be truly successful when applied consistently.

“Toxic cultures are like an overgrown lawn,” Jonathan repeated. “And when you let things go, it becomes that much harder and more expensive to make it beautiful again. But companies that work consistently and intentionally at pruning, trimming and removal will notice immediately when a weed sprouts up. It’s very conspicuous.”

“Shaping your culture is also a lot like a long-term relationship,” Jonathan continued. “Creating a healthy relationship is super, super simple. It’s just not easy. Creating a healthy organization is simple: Communicate well, give and receive feedback, make yourself accountable, and keep each other accountable. Celebrate well, and recognize others. That’s all simple — it’s just not easy. It takes hard work.”

Jonathan is likely onto something. Gallup defines an inclusive culture as one in which “everyone treats everyone else with respect, managers appreciate the unique characteristics of everyone on their teams, and leaders do what’s right.”

Simple, but not always easy.

Work with talent experts who understand your values and can source candidates who will contribute to growth and innovation.

Freeman+Leonard offers a hands-on approach to finding the right talent for the role while also leveraging data to reduce unintentional bias. Using a tool like the Rembrandt Portrait ensures only the strongest, most aligned candidates are considered, regardless of background.

We act as a strategic hiring partner throughout all stages of the hiring process to ensure everything — from the job description to the interview and the offer — will attract talent who will enhance your culture, not just fit into it.

Because a diversified team is key to a future-proofed business.

Contact Freeman+Leonard to start making the right hires to evolve your culture — and your business — into the best it can be.