How to Evaluate a Job / Company
Kent R.
I have a job offer on the table and feel like I may have a couple more very soon. What should I be looking for when evaluating job offers?
It’s a job-seekers job market once again, so this type of question is coming up more frequently.
When you're pondering your next employer or interviewing for your next job, ensure that the organization you're interviewing with values – truly values – employees' reasons for joining the company. Organizations that walk the talk will have employee-forward initiatives baked right into recruiting materials and employee literature.
Here are three specific things to look at – beyond salary – that will help to ensure you're making a good choice:
1) Find out the details of the benefits package. Pay particularly close attention to how the organization handles time away. Do they offer vacation days and sick days in separate banks? Do they lump all time away into a single bank? What are the policies for actually using that time? Of course, also look closely at health benefits.
2) Ask about flexibility. How does the company handle your need for an occasional urgent appointment? Can you work from home on the day your cable is being installed? Does the flexibility you need match the flexibility that the company offers?
3) Know the boss. What's the #1 determinant of most employees' job satisfaction? Their leader. What's his/her management style? What kind of vibe does she/he create among the workgroup?
In my work as an HR Consultant, I can't tell you how many times I've come across established professionals who were so eager to leave a crummy job that they acted hastily and simply ended up in another crummy job. The salary looked good, so they said "yes!" without even thinking.
Imagine, though, going from a workplace with flexibility to one where – as just one example – your boss doesn't want you out of the office. Ever. This creates massive problems for many people who learn the hard way that, truly, salary isn't everything.