How to find the best company to work for: Finding the best company to work for can be like finding your significant other. You want to find someone who will help you to grow, learn together, and achieve your goals. By contrast, if you choose the wrong person—like the wrong partner—you’ll both likely end up unhappy, and you may miss out on achieving all that you could have achieved.
Just as good relationships with friends and family contribute to adult happiness, finding the best company to work for enhances your accomplishments and improves your career prospects.
Working in an environment that does not support or inspire you can have a negative effect on your productivity and attitude.
The reasons are
When you take on a new job, there will inevitably be some sort of learning curve on both your part and that of your employer; it is important to determine as early as possible whether the efforts you are putting into the job and what you are receiving in exchange are in balance with one another.
To ensure that you make the right decision when choosing a company to work for, we’ve put together five criteria to help you narrow down your choices.
5 Simple Tips to Help You Find the Best Company to Work For
- Do detailed research.
- Compare the company with other companies.
- Research the company’s leadership.
- Ask questions during the interview.
- Check out previous employees’ and customers’ experiences with the company.
Do a Detailed Research
Although job-seekers should always be prepared to accept an offer, they should not accept any offer until they have thoroughly researched the company and fully understand the position.
Before applying for a position or accepting a job offer, investigate the company and the industry to ensure that you will be satisfied with your choice.
- Research the company’s work model and location to see whether you can work with its system.
- You would know if a company’s values align with yours if you consider the company’s values important.
- The challenges the company has faced in the past can help you anticipate what it may need from you, should you get the job.
- Before applying for a job at the company, research its competitors to understand the solutions they provide and their brands. Research the company’s revenue sources to see if it is a place that will grow your career, and look into its benefits and rewards to ensure you get a good work/life balance.
- Before accepting a job with a company, take the time to research the benefits package that they offer. This information will affect your decision to work for the company in the future.
Compare the company with other companies of your interest
Many candidates find it hard to choose a company when applying for roles or to decide between offers.
When evaluating companies that offer a product or service you would like to sell, compare them using such criteria as certifications, reputation, and number of years in business.
You can easily evaluate a company by looking at the following qualifications:
- The company rating on company rating platforms like mysalaryscale.com. See how employees and other people have rated the company.
- Check the company’s career opportunities with that of others.
- When making a comparison between companies, ensure you take into account the benefits and compensation provided by potential employers, as well as their policies regarding work/life balance.
- Comparing senior management staff among competing companies can help you determine your potential co-workers.
Ask questions during the job interview
The interview is an opportunity for both you and the company to determine whether you are a good fit for each other.
After the interviewer has asked you all his/her questions, he/she will give you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have.
When you are given the opportunity, don’t say: “I don’t have any questions”
Ask questions that will help you determine if the company is a good fit for you. These will ensure that you find out enough useful information from the interviewer to help you make an informed decision about whether or not the job is right for you.
- How does this position contribute to the organization’s success?
- What does a typical day look like?
- What would my first week at work look like?
- Can you show me examples of projects I’d be working on?
- What are the skills and experiences you’re looking for in an ideal candidate?
- What would my day-to-day routine look like if I got the job?
- What attributes does someone need to have to be successful in this position?
- What types of skills is the team missing that you’re looking to fill with a new hire?
- What are the biggest challenges that someone in this position would face?
- What sort of budget would I be working with?
- Is this a new role that has been created?
- Do you expect the main responsibilities for this position to change in the next six months to a year?
- What are the primary responsibilities of the position?
- What would I be expected to accomplish in my first month/year on the job?
- What is the key to succeeding in this role?
- Would I need to travel for the position?
- What kind of hours are expected for me to perform the role at maximum capacity?
- Is overtime expected and/or allowed?
- Could you tell me a little bit about the person I would report to directly?
- How many people will I be working with?
- What is the typical career path of someone in this role?
- How does the company culture affect this role?
- What are the most immediate projects that need to be addressed?
Strategic questions will help you learn the most important aspects of the job and company.
Research the company’s Leadership
Many job seekers don’t border to find out information about the company’s leadership before accepting an offer.
Before taking a job, research the company’s leadership. A company appears to be a reflection of its leaders. No doubt, if your leaders have some bad habits, these habits will likely rub off on you. You may notice these habits in the culture and even in the company’s policies.
Although it’s easy for employees to assume that a company with an experienced leader is a good place to work, that assumption is not always correct.
You can discover some information about a company’s leadership by knowing some details, such as how the company has progressed, operational methods, etc.
For example, If a CEO has founded three companies in the last five years, that suggests that the person admires decisive decision making, problem-solving, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit.
If you see that the person who leads your organization has developed their skill in a logical, organized fashion, then it suggests that they will likely value commitment, dedication, etc.
Researching the company’s leadership gives you an idea of whether or not the company will be a great place for you to thrive.
Check out previous employees’ and customers experiences with the company
Do you know that a company’s culture and values show in its customers and previous employees?
Companies can gauge the success of their products and services by observing the values they influence in the lives of their employees and customers.
It is good to know what customers think of a company you intend to work for. Here are some resources:
- How do customers respond to the company’s services?
- How do customers feel about the company’s products?
The best way to affect change within an organization is to influence fellow employees. That is why it is important to get a sense of the company’s impact on its customers.
You may want to know about customers’ experiences with the company, but you will also want to know about the experiences of previous employees.
You can search for the company on the professional networking site LinkedIn to find out details about its current employees, such as:
- Where previous employees worked before they joined the company.
- The positions that they occupied in the company.
- How long do they tend to stay in the company?
- Additional roles they had to take on.
- The company and roles they moved into after leaving the company.