First, there can be a fine line between a strong culture and a cult. By definition, culture is narrowing to some degree. Building culture into your hiring processes means that you’re excluding people by design, and you have to be careful not to restrict your hiring to the point of total homogeneity. Successful organizations need a combination of conformity and diversity. The right kind of sameness (e.g., smart, driven, intelligent, hardworking, mission-driven) can give a company an edge, as was certainly the case at PayPal. But too much sameness can result in groupthink, bias, and stagnation.
