In today’s competitive market, businesses are looking for a lot more than just the candidate with the best experience and technical qualifications. Enlightened companies are now considering cultural fit over competence. While corporate culture is somewhat intangible, it’s also a critical asset to an organisation, and one that is often now carefully considered as part of the hiring process.

Recruiters and human resources professionals are looking to hire candidates who will excel at what you’ve hired them to do and who will mesh well with their organisation’s way of doing things. Candidates who mesh culturally are also more likely to stick around, saving employers costly employee turnover.

While every business has their own set of values and behaviours that contribute to their unique social and psychological environment , one universal consideration when assessing cultural fit is whether or not the applicant is a team player, or what I like to call a "WE" person.  I would argue that today – perhaps more than ever – putting the company first is the best way for an individual to be personally successful. No matter how good the racer, no one can win driving a bad car. This is exactly the relationship between a team member and a team, and recruiters are now hiring with this in mind.

The delineation of a team player extends far beyond being able to work well in a team environment.  It’s also about who you are as a person.  To really understand whether you are a team player, you must first understand its definition in this context.

There are three types of people in a workplace:

The Singular Person: These people are the followers; they possess a herd mentality similar to sheep. Most of us have experienced this state of being; usually at the beginning of our tenure. It’s normal and to be expected for a short time. They begin by modelling themselves on others in the group so they can quickly assimilate and fit in.

These Singular people rely heavily on authority and are quick to mirror other people around them. Businesses need the right kind of people around these Singular people to ensure they are mirroring the right behaviours.

The Individual Person: (also referred to as the ‘Me’ Person). The Me person is self-focussed. This stage can also be an important part of a new employee’s evolution; however they should never stay here long. Me people have a short term view. They look after themselves first and foremost, they keep close to their own clique and they resist mingling or cross pollinating with other areas within the business. They tend to gossip and complain regularly, and they have the ability to negatively influence others. Me people resist going above and beyond for anyone unless they are pushed to. They can be moody, unpredictable; they go missing when the pressure is on and they rarely invest in or enquire about others.

The Team Player: (also referred to as the ‘We’ Person).

The true team players have a keen interest in upholding their company’s values and behaviours. They are genuinely invested, see the bigger picture and appreciate the power of unity and equality. They are proud to be part of the business, feel a sense of camaraderie, and consider the collective when making decisions. These people are interdependent and long-term thinkers. They are authentic, respected, and they lead by example. Instead of continually putting their hand out for more, they are asking “what more can I do?”  They care and they take the time to get to know their co-workers (including those that they work with indirectly).

If there are more team players in an organisation, then the ones who are modelling behaviour (because they are still in the Singular phase) will have no choice but to emulate the We people, which is what builds a thriving culture. If on the other hand, there are not enough team players, then the Singular people will end up mirroring the Me people, and this will be to the organisations’ short and long-term detriment. Smart companies now understand this.

Upon honest self-reflection, many people realise that they are in fact more Me than We. The first step in addressing this is acknowledgement. If you want to become a true team player, when you start out in your next role, put all of your colleagues (in close proximity) names on a spread sheet and add a relationship ranking scale of one to 10. Then over the next three months, while you are learning your craft, start building relationships and making note of how you are going. Every month check in and reassess your relationships, and if you have a few people with low scores then make sure you focus on them next month. This is strategic leadership and an excellent step towards becoming a team player. Keep this in mind – “no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care”.

Richard Maloney is the author of The Minds of Winning Teams – Creating Team Success through Engagement & Culture. He specialises in the development of high performance teams, individuals and organisations and currently leads a team of engagement specialist coaches as CEO of Engage & Grow.