Job Seekers: How to Understand What You’re Getting Yourself Into
Have you ever walked out of an interview knowing for certain that there’s absolutely no way you would ever want to work for that company? Perhaps the company’s Facebook and LinkedIn profiles implied a great company culture, but what you saw didn’t quite match that. Or maybe the job post you replied to was able to describe the job in a much more alluring way than your interviewer was able to.
Whatever your reasons may be for feeling not-so-impressed after the job interview, these hypothetical scenarios all stress the importance of really understanding what a given company is all about before you take an interview (or a job!) there. There are several things you can do in order to “pre-screen” a company you are considering
Every time I get a call for an interview, I always do a quick Google search on the company before deciding if I’ll take the interview or not. One of the companies that I almost interviewed for had a blog post written about them in which the writer warned job seekers that this company was a scam that took advantage of college-aged employees. How glad I was to have found this before taking an interview!
Glassdoor, which is a website that offers free company reviews for more than 274,000 companies, is another great tool to use. Reviews are written by both former and current employees. Some reviews also include salary information and typical interview questions for a given position.
Once you get to the interview, you can continue to investigate! Don’t be afraid to ask the employer nitty-gritty and specific questions if you feel unsure about an aspect of the job. For example, if you applied for a sales position and the job description advertises “an alluring salary,” then perhaps it would be a good idea to ask if this refers to a base salary or to the earning potential based on commission.
Lastly, if the company has a Jobma profile, their profile and company video will be great resources for you to utilize. Pay attention to what different companies emphasize in their video, as this may provide great insight into the companies’ missions and company cultures.
