What Is a Culture Fit Test?
A culture fit test is a type of personality test used by a companies to evaluate whether the character traits and values of a candidate are compatible with the workplace culture and values in that company.
To do this, they often use psychological tests, also known as personality tests, to try and figure out what kind of candidate they are dealing with. Typically, these tests will present you with statements describing you and ask you to determine which statements fit best, by either:
- Ranking the statements.
- Choosing the ones that fit best.
- Answering ‘true’ or ‘false’, which statements fit you best.
JobTestPrep Will Help You Ace Your Culture Fit Test
Some people believe it is not possible to prepare for personality tests, or that there is not really any ‘right or wrong’ answer. Happily, this is not true.
You can study for personality tests by figuring out what personality traits the employer wants for the position you are applying for, and determining what types of answers are compatible with these traits.
Contact a JobTestPrep professional to help you determine what you need to prepare for your test and land the job you want.
Additionally, take a look at the provided culture fit assessments and sample practice questions below.
Amazon Culture Fit Test
One of the best examples of companies that use workplace culture as a screening tool is Amazon. Amazon takes the idea of promoting its workplace culture very seriously. Employees at Amazon are expected to follow the Amazon Leadership Principles in their work.
Leadership principles posters appear at the Amazon offices. Amazon job interviews are designed to evaluate whether the candidate’s personal values and work experience are compatible with its leadership principles. So it’s unsurprising that Amazon also uses an online personality test called the Amazon Work Style Assessment to evaluate employees.
The Amazon Work Style Assessment presents the candidate with pairs of simple statements and they are asked to choose which ones describe them best.
Note that there is no option for staying ‘neutral’ – if you want to work at Amazon you need to pick something!
The Culture Index Survey
The Culture Index Survey presents the candidate with a list of different adjectives, asking them to describe themselves by selecting the ones which most apply. Candidates are typically given a very limited time to do this, in order to ensure candidates answer ‘spontaneously’ to the questions.
Sample Culture Index Survey Question
Please read down the columns and check the words that you believe describe yourself.
- Self-confident.
- Anxious.
- Decisive.
- Analytical.
- Fashionable.
- Life of the Party.
- Crisp.
- Nitpicky.
- Savvy.
- Endearing.
- Compliant.
- Exacting.
- Righteous.
- Playful.
- Self-pressured.
- Placid.
- Respectful.
- Self-reliant.
- Frail.
- Polished.
- Supportive.
- Strict.
- Moody.
- Loquacious.
- Steady.
Harver Cultural Fit Test
This test takes a somewhat different tack from the ones we’ve seen before on this page. Rather than ask questions about the candidate’s own personality profile, it asks you to rank the importance of different traits that the organization you’d like to work at should have, from one to five stars. This is what it looks like:
Source: harver.com
Despite looking as if they’re polling you for your opinion, the reality is that this is a test intended to check whether your preferences and values are compatible with those of the company using the Cultural Fit Assessment.
Conclusion
While it is often believed that you ‘cannot prepare for’ culture fit tests, nothing could be further from the truth. Culture fit tests exist to evaluate whether you fit a set of prearranged criteria, and you can vastly improve your chances for success by learning what your employers expect and how to meet these expectations.
If you have questions about a specific culture fit exam contact us to consult a professional and discuss which preparation materials best fit your needs.
