I don't think there have been any hires finalized yet, but there have definitely been a lot of follow up interviews. I'll try to post as we hear about hiring successes on the site.
"Cultural fit" is probably more important in other industries - ones that require softer skills. They are in NYC, so - advertising, publishing, PR, fashion, etc
Congratulations on your apparent luck in only working with groups where you did have some semblance of 'culture fit'.
My experience has clearly been different than your own.
I can't speak to whether it's a bigger issue in other industries, but it's a sufficient issue for me personally that I've turned down jobs based on it.
I would agree that culture is important for any line of work. Sure, skills matter more in certain industries, but I don't think this is a replacement for that, but rather an additional step to start from.
I think this is a great idea (and it seems like this was talked about a before on HN a couple times) IF the actual manager of the position is the one who is attending. If I could meet 20 potential managers in an hour I know there would be a couple that I would really want to work for and a lot more that I wouldn't want to.
Yes. For software jobs it's really knowledge/skills or particular industry experience which employers are looking for rather than cultural match. Culture does matter to some extent, but in all the industries in which I've worked skills were more important.
I'm not really in favour of applying a speed dating style to job interviewing. This is the third world factory employment model, where there is large oversupply of low skilled workers with near identical skills.
