Staffing in Europe: Cultural
Differences Affecting the Hiring
Process
6 Sep 2019
www.tec-bridge.com
Cultural differences play an important role while hiring candidates from different regions. Therefore,
it is essential to understand and consider those differences for optimal onboarding experience of
candidates belonging to different countries. Understanding these differences makes the staffing
process more powerful and boosts the success rate of hiring candidates.
Understanding Different Work Cultures
Let’s talk about Europe. Out of 51 countries in the continent, each country follows a different
culture. 28 countries out of these belong to the European Union where people also work in out of
office premises. Now, hiring the right candidate for the right job is not an easy process in a culturally
diversified continent like this as each country has its own job board with different expectations from
the candidate. If you use the same approach for all candidates in all countries, it is difficult to achieve
maximum results.
Belgians expect to meet the manager level of a person from a company during their interview. While
the Dutch believe in keeping in touch with the person that had interviewed them first throughout
the entire interview process.
The cultural differences between candidates also influence what information they give during the
job interview. In Scandinavia, applicants even put the name of their pet or children on their CV,
where candidates in Germany are much more formal and send a whole bundle of information,” says
Jolie den Boer, APV recruitment Continental Europe & Africa at Cognizant.
Cultural Norms Influence Power Distance
Due to different culture and history, candidates in Europe carry different values and beliefs. So,
when we analyse the belief for power distance in different zones of European countries, people in
the southern and eastern region follow a high level of power distance among the employees in the
company. This means organis ations operating in this region will have a minute level of the hierarchy.
Employees in this region have to rely on the decision of the boss before moving ahead with any
assignment.
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Staffing in Europe: Cultural Differences Affecting the Hiring Process
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In the Netherlands and Sweden, there is a lower power distance. Everyone in the organisation is
approachable and there is an informal atmosphere on the floor.
According to the international study by The Global Talent Acquisition Monitor, in countries with high
power distance, such as Slovenia or the Czech Republic or Slovakia, over 63% of people will carry
out any assignment without asking any questions. Whereas, in Northern and Western European
countries they emphasize on flat hierarchy in the workplace and therefore employees ask questions
without any hesitation.
Wrapping Up/Concluding…
From the above insights, we can conclude that there are two ways to hire the right candidate for
the right job.
● be versatile and well-acquainted with different cultures of European countries
● Partner with staffing solution provider and hire candidates based on temporary, permanent or
software factory setup staffing.
Want to hire the right candidates that fit best to your job description? We Are Here for You!
At TecBridge, we suggest you with professionals who have experience of working exclusively with
European clients. It helps them to cope with the work culture of all European countries and
understand different aspects of business dealings with ease. Collaborate with us and get the right
workforce for your next project! For more information, visit tec-bridge.com.
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