Great questions can prompt great insight – What should you ask?

More often than not how you convey your value and abilities can determine whether you end up at the top of the consideration set of a job interview.  If you are prepared, can tell compelling stories of your career and chemically connect with the hiring managers, more than likely you have struck a resonant tone for a positive outcome.  

To cement that connection and fully bond with your job suitor, what you ask can also contribute greatly to the interview and a positive reaction to your candidacy.  One of the many young brilliant folks with whom I have connected, Ethan Wilson, has done some great due diligence and come up with a list of questions that are both smart and savvy.  Often what you ask can directly communicate to the hiring executives what are your critical thinking skills, how you strategize about issues and what are your interests and passions.

Bottom line is the quality of the questions asked may make the difference in whether you get an offer.  And what is learned from the answers will also give you great clues to whether it is a good fit.  So consider these:

• What is an example of a client challenge you have recently faced? 

 

• Where do you see the company going in the next year? 10 years?

 

• Can I watch the other departments work so I can get a sense of their needs?

 

• What is the question you really want to ask me but haven't?

 

• What impact would I have on the team if I get hired?

 

• Looking at your social media presence, I can see that your brands have been more active over the past few months. Has your strategy changed?

 

• What would make someone really successful in this role?

 

• What has been the most difficult part of filling this position?

 

• Can you describe a typical day in this type of role?

 

• How long have you been at the company and what makes you stay?

 

• How would you describe the work environment and corporate culture?

 

• What are some of the goals for the company in the short and longer term?

 

• How would my performance be measured?

 

• What types of career opportunities may open up down the road for a person starting out in this type of position, assuming they perform well?

 

• What are some of the company's initiatives regarding learning and development?

How to Avoid a Yahoo Moment

Ignominious is how one might describe the latest Yahoo mishap, one of a long line of failures and foibles the company has endured over the last few years. The experience is rife with teaching moments for managements of traditional companies and soon-to-launch startups. Fact is, there are lessons for everyone if we just take the time to think and learn. I have given it a great deal of thought since the latest fiasco began and here is my take on avoiding a Yahoo moment.

"I am what I am" was a well-worn phrase from the Popeye cartoon series of the 1960s. Be who you are, because that is the only person you can be. Everyone else is spoken for.

Be proud of your track record and accomplishments. They have served your employers well and allowed you to be a talented ___________. You fill in the blank.

Avoid the temptation to embellish. Perhaps the biggest teachable moment is this: Say or write only what is the truth. Gilding the lily never got anyone anywhere, save maybe a fat fine or time in the hoosegow.

"Just the facts, ma'am." State what is and not what is not. You need never defend or explain your words if they are based on fact.

Be your own editor. Always check and recheck what is said and written by you or on your behalf. Ignorance is no excuse and will not save you when the fact checkers come calling. If it is about you, insure that what is said or written is the honest truth. The onus is on you, not your staff, the headhunter, the PR person, HR, or your personal assistant. The only time you need not check is if it is your obit.

Apologize and mean it. If you do get caught in a situation of obfuscation, a misnomer, factual untruth, or Yahoo moment, provide the facts, admit the mistake, and be sorry for the error. An honest mistake will not hurt you. Hiding it will. 

Look Before You Leap: Factors to Consider before Accepting a Job Offer

For certain we are enduring one of the worst job markets since the 1930s. Unemployment is still near double digits and we are now only seeing early buds of a recovery. Jobs are far and few between and those landing are bolstered by solid networks and a great ability to communicate their accomplishments to employers only too willing to hire the best, the brightest and the most economical.

With that as a backdrop you would logically think that landing any job under any circumstance would be the order of the day. Not so Kemosahbee! In my view, we operate in an era that I will loosely call “employment trust,” whereby employee and employer are on equal footing with each having the right of first recusal. This means that both the job seeker and the employer have equal rights to find each other unfit or unqualified. Sure jobs and job offers are hard to come by. But jumping at the first job that comes along might well be fool hardy at best or a disaster of major proportions at worst.

 

So what is the litmus test to ascertain if an employer is unfit to have you grace its presence? Look before you leap.  Here are some red flags to ponder.

1. Learn the history, assuming the position is one that lights your fire and about which you have much passion and interest. What is the background of the position you are filling? Who was in the job and did the person leave voluntarily? For that matter, has the role been a revolving door? Have you spoken with your predecessor and how many folks have held the position? Unless your predecessor was promoted up the ladder or went on to greener pastures, you may want to take a pass. These are warning signs that there is danger looming ahead.

2. Examine management stability. Look at the top as well. Has the CEO been at the company for some time? If not, how long has that person been on the job? And what is the history of the CEO slot? If the company has had a string of leaders, chances are the company is operating without a rudder. Let that ship sail without you.

3. Study the company’s vision and values. If they are not in sync with your own goals and objectives, don’t be blindsided by the offer. It may not be a good fit. Make certain there is resonance with your own thinking, chemistry and personality. Do not compromise your own integrity.

4. Is your potential employer really an “unemployer.” Do your Google or Bing research. Does the company have a record of layoffs, restructurings or strategy shifts? These are an indication of poor management. If uncertainty is not your cup of tea, run and do not look back.


5. Consider profitability. Unless the company is a startup and in the formation mode, the company ought to be making money. If not, make haste and forget that loser.


6. The office ambience is cloudy with a chance of rain. Pay attention to the office environment. Do the people look happy or is everyone running around shoulders slumped and eyes to the ground? Unless you encounter enthusiastic smiles and energetic movement, you may want to think twice about a gig where the atmosphere is likely gloomy and grey.

7. Your salary negotiations are a marathon. Are you spending a lot of time debating your salary and or justifying your desired level compensation package? Are you being nickel and dimed to death in benefits? Is a contract an issue? Look, if you are the right fit and you have the skills the company needs, there should be no need for lengthy negotiations. Take a walk; it is not worth the aggravation.   

8. The customers have unanswered gripes. Before you take the final step. Talk to some customers. Find out if they are pleased with the product as well as the service. Let’s face it, the “customer is always right.” So if you encounter complaints of any sort that remain unanswered, where there is smoke there is fire. Just walk on by that frying pan.

9. GlassDoor.com gives the company a thumbs down. Glassdoor.com is a web site that takes an inside look at jobs and companies from anonymous sources. What you may find is a broad spectrum of opinion from disgruntled former employees or delightfully happy current employees. Consider the source but stay the course. Read all of the reviews and judge for yourself. If you find two or more red flags you may have a lemon on your hands. Forewarned is forearmed.