Define the work, not the vibe
Culture fit can hide a set of unstated preferences. The team knows what feels right because it has worked together for a while. A candidate cannot see those preferences and cannot answer against them. Start with the work instead. Which decisions does the role make, with whom, and in what format?
Write a few criteria that describe the working style: how information is shared, how disagreement is handled, how deadlines are planned and how feedback is given. Keep the criteria separate from the person. A criterion such as shares a written plan before a meeting is easier to test than fits our culture.
Ask about work with difference
A useful cultural add question asks what the candidate did with someone who worked in a different way. Ask for a specific example: a colleague who preferred another process, a client who changed the brief, a team that disagreed about scope. Listen for what the candidate noticed and what they changed in their own approach.
Follow up with a question about the result. Did the work move, did the process change, or did the candidate decide to leave the difference alone? An answer that only describes the other person as difficult does not show how the candidate works with difference.
Use a small set of questions for every candidate
Ask the same questions in the same order. A structured format gives the team a shared basis for comparison and keeps the conversation from drifting into small talk about hobbies or background. If the role needs a specific technical example, add one question for that skill.
Write down what a strong answer contains. For a question about disagreement, a strong answer names the issue, the person or group involved, what the candidate said and what happened next. A partial answer describes the issue but stops before the action.
Score the behaviour, not the familiarity
After the interview, ask each reviewer to score the answer against the criteria. Do not use a general would I enjoy working with this person score. That question measures similarity, and similarity is not a job requirement.
When reviewers disagree, ask them to point to the part of the answer that supports the score. A difference in reading can point to a vague criterion. It can also point to a preference that the team has not named. Both are useful to know before the next interview.
Keep the criteria explicit
Review the criteria when the role changes. A team that says it wants independent decisions may still expect a check-in before every step. If the role needs a check-in, write that down. A criterion that hides the real expectation gives the candidate a false picture of the work.
Do not use cultural add as a reason to relax the criteria or as a reason to reject someone who meets them. It is a way to describe the range of working styles the team needs, not a separate test with an unclear bar.
Make the conversation practical
Tell the candidate how the team works and what the interview will cover. Give them a chance to ask about the parts that matter to them: decision rights, meeting habits, feedback and planning. A two-way conversation gives the candidate useful information and gives the team a view of what the person chooses to ask.
The goal is not a team of identical people. It is a team that can do the work and handle difference without losing the thread. Clear criteria and specific questions keep that goal in view.