Netskope CEO says he checks references candidates leave off their lists

Netskope CEO Sanjay Beri says the software company looks beyond the references job applicants provide, seeking out people who can speak to how candidates behave at work. The practice matters because Beri told Fortune that cultural fit can outweigh technical strength in hiring decisions at the $4.8 billion company.

Beri told Fortune that Netskope conducts extensive background and reference checks, with many focused on culture. He said the company tries to find people a candidate knows, including contacts the candidate did not list.

The checks are meant to test what applicants say in interviews against what former colleagues and managers report, according to Fortune. Beri said he asks candidates to describe their interpersonal style and how they respond to disagreement or conflict, then puts similar questions to people who worked with them.

He told Fortune he wants to know how candidates act during difficult periods, including how they respond when asked to do work they disagree with. Beri described company-building as uneven and said he values evidence of how people behave under pressure.

Culture carries weight in hiring

Beri told Fortune he also asks references how candidates worked with peers in departments that may have natural tension, such as marketing and sales. He said those conversations help him understand whether a person can work through healthy conflict without damaging the organization.

Since its 2012 launch, Netskope has grown quickly, Fortune reported. The company reached unicorn status in 2018, went public on the Nasdaq last year and now has more than 3,000 employees in more than 220 countries, according to Fortune.

Beri said that pace of growth makes hiring discipline important. He told Fortune that openness, collaboration and being “good people” matter because people can build companies and also damage them.

He said he would choose a candidate with stronger cultural fit and less domain expertise over the reverse. Fortune reported that Beri framed the choice as preferring someone rated nine out of 10 on culture and seven out of 10 on domain knowledge over the opposite combination.

Netskope also measures cultural traits after people join, according to Fortune. Beri said employees are assessed on traits including openness, collaboration and innovation, and those traits are discussed at all-hands meetings and reflected in annual reviews.

He told Fortune that top performers on cultural measures are recognized across the company and displayed on walls. Beri said those assessments can include feedback from peers and from people who report to the employee, not only from managers.

Other CEOs test behavior outside standard interviews

Fortune reported that other executives also use informal settings to judge personality and judgment. Twilio CEO Khozema Shipchandler interviews senior candidates over 45-minute dinners, according to Fortune, watching how they carry themselves and listening for heavy use of the word “I” as a possible sign they are less team-oriented.

Fortune also reported that Bupa CEO Iñaki Ereño uses six hours of testing and observes candidates ordering wine at a meal because he believes it can show initiative. The publication cited other interview tests involving how candidates treat restaurant staff, handle a coffee cup or respond to a changed food order.

Saira Demmer, CEO of SF Recruitment, told Fortune that such skills are important indicators of whether someone will have a positive effect on others. She said she supports leaders who take care to look for details tied to workplace culture.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.