After recruitment, then what? Five executives' experiences seen in relation to organizational culture

Abstract: Increasing demands in the market create a need for retaining highly qualified leaders in companies today. The undesirable consequences and high costs of a mismatch between a new hire and a new company underline the need for an investment of time and resources in the recruitment of potential employees. This leads into the aim of this study, which is to investigate what executives consider to be important aspects in their recruitment, position and new companies. The aspects emphasized will then be presented, analyzed and discussed in relation to theoretical concepts in the field under study. Research on organizational culture is introduced and seen in relation to aspects such as recruitment, innovation and creativity. The concept of leadership is also discussed, followed by an account of some of its different facets. A qualitative inquiry method is used, entailing in-depth interviews with five executives with different types of positions and from diverse companies. The results show that various aspects, such as the perceived level of procedural justice in the new company, the level of influence and decision-making, the quality of the superior-subordinate relationship and the overall organizational culture, have an effect on the executives' abilities to perform their work responsibilities, as well as on their contentment with their position and company. Key words: Organizational culture, Leadership, Executives, Procedural justice, Superior-subordinate relationship, Decision-making, Influence