Tips for choosing employers
When we are looking for new professional experiences, it is difficult sometimes to choose the company that is going to be the right fit for us. Finding the perfect environment where we will be able to fully develop as professionals while still learning and growing professionally should be our goal, beyond the how much we would be making or how fancy the job sounds.
A good way to find your best fit is to take a look at the company’s internal culture and try to see through what they want you to see, to find the reality and determine whether or not that’s the job for you. So what ware those things to pay attention to? Here are our main tips to find them:
Pay attention to the overall age of the company
The average age of a company might tell you a lot about your future there. Some companies want you for the long run and focus more on how devoted and committed workers are with the company rather on actual recent achievements. Keep your own age in mind and what your plans with that specific company are.
The bureaucracy within the company will tell you a lot about their mindset
When you approach an employer through a job application you will soon discover how many layers of management and bureaucracy exists in the company. The longer the chain of management and decision-making is, the more probably the company is conservative and rule oriented in general.
Again, whether or not this works right for you is a decision only you can make.
How rules work
The existence and level of rules applied in a company will also tell you a lot about the dynamics. As much as a very strict system can get in the way of work and not be functional, so can be a total lack of control and order. Finding a company that has a great rule following formula is like finding gold when it comes to choosing your next employer.
Do some research on how the company has been doing and their upcoming future
Although some specific information might not be easy to access, there are many ways to discover how a company has been doing lately and what their future (and therefore your possible future) will look like.
A good way to do it is check the employees list, and compare it, has it grown? Are they expanding? Sometimes if the company bids for public projects you can check and see if they won any. Also don’t be scare to ask why are they looking for more people and what are their upcoming projects.
The size of your future team
A good question to make during your interview is the size and shape of your future team, what their profiles are and what is the work dynamic. You want to make sure you fit in, and that you can bring something new and enriching to this new company. Also, it’s important to know that great professionals will surround you too.
This will tell you a lot about what your role would really be and what you can learn what they expect you to bring to the table.
The company’s financial strength
Doing an extensive study on the company’s financial strength is definitely highly advisable.
When you accept a job you are committing to a company, but also investing your time and involving your name with it. You want to make sure that this company will look good in your resume in the future. Even if your job is in no shape of form related to finances, you want to put yourself in a company that has a bright future ahead. That doesn’t mean that you should disregard small upcoming companies and only go for safe bets, but just do your homework and make sure you get behind a company with a growing future ahead.
All in all, choosing the right employer is about understanding the complexity and the impact your decision will make on your resume. That is why we want to always make sure we are looking beyond the money and all the shinny things they might offer, and go for the company that meets your expectations and will be worth your work investment.
