Culture isn’t taught or transmitted. It’s hired.
The best teams are formed by the ASA model: attraction, selection, attrition.
Basically, the theory says people are attracted to teams/companies that function on their “level” — ie a high-strung person isn’t going to want to join a young startup, and a laid-back cool cat won’t be looking for jobs at a white-shoe firm.
Once the applicant has decided the employer could be a good fit, the employer decided whether the applicant is right for the job, based not just on “vibe” but also on skills, references, etc.
The attrition stage is the most natural part of the process: if all goes well, it doesn’t happen, and if the fit isn’t right, the candidate moves on to the next place. This final stage is the most crucial indicator of a company’s “cultural health” — whether the culture is the same “on the ground” as it seems during hiring, or whether the new employee realizes they made a big mistake.
Culture can be built and maintained, but it can’t be forced. It comes from building the right teams filled with like-minded people aligned towards the same mission — and not from happy hour or casual Friday.
Culture is human. Nothing more, nothing less.
