Learning Objectives
- Differentiate between person–organization and person–job
fit.
- Understand the relationship between person–job fit and work
behaviors.
- Understand the relationship between person–organization fit and
work behaviors.
Individual differences matter in the workplace. Human beings
bring in their personality, physical and mental abilities, and
other stable traits to work. Imagine that you are interviewing an
employee who is proactive, creative, and willing to take risks.
Would this person be a good job candidate? What behaviors would you
expect this person to demonstrate?
The question posed above is misleading. While human beings bring
their traits to work, every organization is different, and every
job within the organization is also different. According to the
interactionist perspective, behavior is a function of the person
and the situation interacting with each other. Think about it.
Would a shy person speak up in class? While a shy person may not
feel like speaking, if the individual is very interested in the
subject, knows the answers to the questions, and feels comfortable
within the classroom environment, and if the instructor encourages
participation and participation is 30% of the course grade,
regardless of the level of shyness, the person may feel inclined to
participate. Similarly, the behavior you may expect from someone
who is proactive, creative, and willing to take risks will depend
on the situation.
When hiring employees, companies are interested in assessing at
least two types of fit. Person–organization fit refers to the degree
to which a person’s values, personality, goals, and other
characteristics match those of the organization. Person–job fit is the
degree to which a person’s skill, knowledge, abilities, and other
characteristics match the job demands. Thus, someone who is
proactive and creative may be a great fit for a company in the
high-tech sector that would benefit from risk-taking individuals,
but may be a poor fit for a company that rewards routine and
predictable behavior, such as accountants. Similarly, this person
may be a great fit for a job such as a scientist, but a poor fit
for a routine office job. The opening case illustrates one method
of assessing person–organization and person–job fit in job
applicants.
The first thing many recruiters look at is the person–job fit.
This is not surprising, because person–job fit is related to a
number of positive work attitudes such as satisfaction with the
work environment, identification with the organization, job
satisfaction, and work behaviors such as job performance. Companies
are often also interested in hiring candidates who will fit into
the company culture (those with high person–organization fit). When
people fit into their organization, they tend to be more satisfied
with their jobs, more committed to their companies, and more
influential in their company, and they actually remain longer in
their company (Anderson, Spataro, & Flynn, 2008; Cable &
DeRue, 2002; Caldwell & O’Reilly, 1990; Chatman, 1991; Judge
& Cable, 1997; Kristof-Brown, Zimmerman, & Johnson, 2005;
O’Reilly, Chatman, & Caldwell, 1991; Saks & Ashforth,
2002). One area of controversy is whether these people perform
better. Some studies have found a positive relationship between
person–organization fit and job performance, but this finding was
not present in all studies, so it seems that fitting with a
company’s culture will only sometimes predict job performance
(Arthur et al., 2006). It also seems that fitting in with the
company culture is more important to some people than to others.
For example, people who have worked in multiple companies tend to
understand the impact of a company’s culture better, and therefore
they pay more attention to whether they will fit in with the
company when making their decisions (Kristof-Brown, Jansen, &
Colbert, 2002). Also, when they build good relationships with their
supervisors and the company, being a misfit does not seem to lead
to dissatisfaction on the job (Erdogan, Kraimer, & Liden
2004).
Key Takeaways
While personality traits and other individual differences are
important, we need to keep in mind that behavior is jointly
determined by the person and the situation. Certain situations
bring out the best in people, and someone who is a poor performer
in one job may turn into a star employee in a different job.
Exercises
- How can a company assess person–job fit before hiring
employees? What are the methods you think would be helpful?
- How can a company determine person–organization fit before
hiring employees? Which methods do you think would be helpful?
- What can organizations do to increase person–job and
person–organization fit after they hire
employees?
References
Anderson, C., Spataro, S. E., & Flynn, F. J. (2008).
Personality and organizational culture as determinants of
influence. Journal of Applied Psychology,
93, 702–710.
Arthur, W., Bell, S. T., Villado, A. J., & Doverspike, D.
(2006). The use of person–organization fit in employment decision
making: An assessment of its criterion-related validity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91, 786–801.
Cable, D. M., & DeRue, D. S. (2002). The convergent and
discriminant validity of subjective fit perceptions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 875–884.
Caldwell, D. F., & O’Reilly, C. A. (1990). Measuring
person–job fit with a profile comparison process. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75, 648–657.
Chatman, J. A. (1991). Matching people and organizations:
Selection and socialization in public accounting firms. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36, 459–484.
Erdogan, B., Kraimer, M. L., & Liden, R. C. (2004). Work
value congruence and intrinsic career success. Personnel Psychology, 57,
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Judge, T. A., & Cable, D. M. (1997). Applicant personality,
organizational culture, and organization attraction. Personnel Psychology, 50, 359–394.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., Jansen, K. J., & Colbert, A. E.
(2002). A policy-capturing study of the simultaneous effects of fit
with jobs, groups, and organizations. Journal
of Applied Psychology, 87,
985–993.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., Zimmerman, R. D., & Johnson, E. C.
(2005). Consequences of individuals’ fit at work: A meta-analysis
of person–job, person–organization, person-group, and
person-supervisor fit. Personnel
Psychology, 58, 281–342.
O’Reilly, C. A., Chatman, J., & Caldwell, D. F. (1991).
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assessing person–organization fit. Academy of
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Saks, A. M., & Ashforth, B. E. (2002). Is job search related
to employment quality? It all depends on the fit. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 646–654.