Importance of cultural fit in pharmacy technician recruitment

In the healthcare sector, where precise patient care is necessary, hiring the right pharmacy technician is crucial for your pharmacy to excel in the long run. While technical skills, professional orientation, and practical exposure are mandatory, culture fit is another key factor that can significantly impact the success of both the individual and the pharmacy. 

When you hire Pharmacy Technicians, understanding and prioritizing cultural fit can enhance team cohesion, improve patient interactions, and foster a more positive workplace environment. According to a Harvard Business Review, 30% of new hires leave the company in the first 90 days, and 32% of these employees leave because they feel that the company’s culture is not a good fit for them. Let us explore why cultural fit is so important and how it can be effectively integrated into the recruitment process.

What is cultural fitness, and why does it matter in pharmacy technician hiring?

Cultural fit refers to how compatible the individual hired is with the workplace. A potential candidate can be called “culturally fit” if the ideas, values, and professional ethics align with the motto of the workplace. While interviewing to hire Pharmacy Technicians, it is essential to check the values and culture of the potential candidates to create a cohesive work environment. Creating a culturally fit workplace does not mean having a homogenous group of individuals. Diversity and inclusiveness should also be kept in mind while building a dynamic workforce with varied perspectives and ideas.

Cultural fit matters to a great extent in the healthcare industry. Let us see why cultural fit is important when you hire pharmacy technicians for your facility.

1. Enhanced team dynamics: To efficiently drive the operations of a healthcare facility, a dynamic workforce comprising physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other allied health professionals is necessary. Pharmacy technicians work closely with other allied health professionals, and having a culturally fit pharmacy technician can facilitate better team collaboration and well-being. This will also enhance the operational efficiency of the facility in the long run. 
2. Increased staff engagement: Having a culturally fit workforce in your facility can create a sense of belonging and inclusiveness in your facility. Employees who feel aligned with their organization’s culture are generally more satisfied with their jobs and more likely to stay long-term, hence leading to reduced turnover rates. When you hire pharmacy technicians aligning with the values of the facility, they will have the motivation to perform better and experience less burnout.
3. Streamlined recruitment process: Proactively hiring pharmacy technicians who are culturally fit for your facility can save you money spent on the tedious recruitment and onboarding process. Since culturally fit employees tend to stay long, this reduces the demand to hire new pharmacy technicians into your facility, which can also be challenging because of the unavailability of skilled pharmacy technicians.
4. Enhanced facility performance: Having more satisfied and goal-oriented staff in your facility can ultimately lead to enhanced facility performance. Also, a pharmacy technician who is culturally fit with the belief system of the facility can help uplift those values to a greater extent. This allows facilities to achieve their objectives and maintain a collaborative work atmosphere.

Ensuring a good team fit: hiring the right pharmacy technicians

There are several things to keep in mind when you hire pharmacy technicians. A step-by-step guide for Pharmacy technician hiring can be found here. Hiring the right pharmacy technician who fits well with your existing team can be challenging. However, this can be ensured by focusing on two main factors.

• Cultural fit: It is the measure by which you can determine how compatible your newly hired staff is with your facility. It is crucial for better teaming, inclusiveness, and collaborative workspace building.
• Functional fit: Functional fit refers to how well the pharmacy technician’s qualifications, experience, and skill sets align with your facility’s specific requirements. This is especially important if you are looking to hire pharmacy technicians with specialized certifications or skill sets. 

Finding the right balance between functional fit and cultural fit is vital when you hire pharmacy technicians for your facility. This can ensure you have an efficient, adaptable, and well-equipped workforce.  

Here are some tips to ensure a good team fit when you hire pharmacy technicians for your facility.

• Define the values and beliefs of your facility as well along with the technical requirements while advertising for the pharmacy technician job requirements. This allows you to attract the right talent.
• Conduct behavioral interviews to check whether the candidate is culturally fit for the facility.
• Thoroughly assess the skill set of the candidates to verify whether they have the expertise to work in your facility.
• Encourage your existing staff for referrals and provide referral rewards for successful referrals. This is an ideal strategy to maintain cultural fit in your facility.
• If necessary, involve existing staff in the interview panel so that it is easy to determine whether the new pharmacy technician will work well with the existing team.
• Ask for reference documents from the previous employer to verify the credibility of the candidate’s experience.