10 items to look for before accepting a job offer.
When we consider the time spent working, we realize that we spend more time with our job more than our family, friends or hobbies; but most of the time, we are not thinking thoroughly enough when we receive a job offer.
What I have observed is that most people tend to focus on job interviews themselves, but not the interviewer company. If someone makes a good offer, they just accept it. Actually, an interview is two sided and it is also about the candidate evaluating the company.
My personal criteria and their priorities for evaluating a company would be as follows. Of course, this is a highly personal matter and may change from person to person but I have witnessed that many successful people are following a similar set of criteria with similar priorities.
1. Vision: As the vision and the objectives of the company will also be your direction, the vision should be your initial perspective point. What is the company looking for in the short term and the long term? Is it reasonable and achievable? Will you be able to contribute to these objectives?
2. Company Output: What is the output of the company? A product or a service? What is being produced and how relevant is it? It is important for you to be able to proudly say that “I did it”.
3. The Founders and The Culture: The character of the company is set by the founders. The founders’ vision and the communication style is one of the most important factors to define the company culture. If the founders are open to sharing, good team players, visionaries, etc; then it is propagated to the cells of the company and the team and the product is built on these.
4. The Team: One man shows are usually not successful. You may go faster by yourself, but you need a team to go further. The team consist of all the members of the company and every single member must be successful for the success of the whole.
5. Work-life Balance: The life is not about work, of course. You might be a workaholic like I am, but you should still be able to spend quality time outside the work hours for charging up.
6. Comfort Zone: The benefits as well as the flexibility provided to you are important so that you can dedicate yourself to your work and grow together without distractions. You can have direct impact on the output and get even more motivated with success.
7. Location: The proximity of the company to your home is important since too much time spent in traffic may have a negative impact on your performance and motivation. Would you prefer to move to a larger city? Are you willing to move your home closer to your work or will you look for jobs only in closer locations?
8. Focus Area: The focus area of the company should align with your career objectives, which directly impacts your motivation and will to work. Is it a target market that you want to work? Do you have any specific concerns such as ethics?
9. Benefits: You shouldn’t aim for the benefits but aim for success and as you become successful, the benefits will come to you as rewards. Your contribution and your value add will eventually be rewarded.
10. Technology Stack: The technology stack of a company is also important in making a decision. Will you be comfortable with the stack? Would you be able to adapt to a new stack or are you already familiar and you can be highly productive?
For this reason, you should also question the company in an interview and don’t hesitate to ask questions. One point to take care is that the questions should be based on research, not just blind or generic questions.
If you don’t want to be seen as a candidate that changes jobs frequently, you should be more inquisitive and selective about the companies with which you are interviewing so that you can identify the right match.
