This situation makes it increasingly important for candidates to look at factors beyond salary and benefits packages. Finding a company where they'll "fit in" to the corporate culture ultimately is a serious career consideration. New hires that don't embrace the company's culture are not likely to be happy in their job or advance their career if superiors see them as working from a very different frame of reference.

Corporate cultures differ almost as widely as do people - which allows for many happy matches. Fortunately, the variety of corporate cultures that exist means that different job seekers can find the right company to work for - as long as they are willing to possibly sacrifice higher salary and/or greater benefits in order to achieve the right "fit." Of course, it's important to spend some time and determine what kind of cultures would make you happy.

Different people look for different things. Some want a creative environment where their imagination can run free, while others thrive on structure. More progressive candidates like a 'play it as it lays' approach to business, yet others desire a traditional, no-unexpected-surprises atmosphere.

To understand how corporate culture impacts business, consider the many tales in today's press about newly hired, quickly fired CEOs, each of whom failed by not being able to fit in. Brought in from the outside rather than promoted from within, he or she and the company's culture turned out to be a bad match. Previous success means little when a CEO is unable to work his or her magic at a new company with a different way of doing things - one unfamiliar to them. Unable to work within this altered framework, they are stifled and are forced to leave.

While an entry-level employee who finds him- or herself in a bad cultural match doesn't usually suffer such a quick and drastic departure, the long-term result usually sees them leave, too. Or even worse, stay in a place where they're miserable and incapable of performing the best job possible.

At many companies, corporate culture can differ from department to department. Marketing will have one specific way of doing things, while accounting will have a decidedly different work approach. This is also evident when HR personnel will sometimes confide in a candidate that the department they're seeking to join is a fun one, with a lot of interesting people, or one that's always off doing its own thing apart from the overall team. Paying attention to these passing comments can provide a job seeker with insight into the department they seek to join and how others perceive that group.

In the end, a candidate should gain as much information as possible about a company's corporate culture before accepting a position. The culture of the company sets the tone for the environment he or she will work in everyday. Giving this factor as much consideration as salary, job responsibilities, advancement opportunities, etc. will ultimately result in the most informed decision and best career match possible.