From Wasteland to Promised Land

If a company can provide your work culture “must-haves,” your dream job may await you.

Anxious about that next job interview? Who isn’t!

?You may feel more confident if you remember that interviewing is not just about what a company needs from you, but also what you need from a company. Part of what we all need to succeed at a new job is a work culture that complements and supports who we are.

Work culture is complex. It permeates all parts of an organization and has profound effects on employees. Like living in any community, a “work community” has the power to make us very happy, fulfilled and energized—or the opposite. The same culture can evoke a range of different responses in each of us—it can be one person’s blissful paradise and another’s stress-filled purgatory. It all depends on our unique combination of work experiences, background, personality, working style, and lifestyle.

If you want to know more about work culture before diving into your own top culture “must-haves,” This Is The Way is a quick read that explores my take on what a great work culture is all about.

A Place Where I’ll Thrive …Or Barely Survive?

It’s hard for anyone to assess the possibilities of succeeding or failing at a place they have never worked, with just interview conversations to rely on. Identifying the most important parts of a work culture, exploring them through research, then asking more targeted questions during job interviews, can help you decide whether this may be your dream job, or not. Whatever you discover will help you think more calmly and logically about that upcoming interview.

In job interviews, you may have very limited time to ask questions, let alone to bring culture into the discussion.?As a first step, consider identifying two or three aspects of work culture that are “musts” for you.?Plan to focus your pre-interview research and questions there. The goal is to make sure your top priorities match with what the company highlights as important.

The list below contains common aspects of company culture that may help you consider and prioritize your own “must haves.” Tips on how to learn more about the company in each category as also included. There are no right or wrong choices here; your personal “must-haves” are based on your desired job role and your own unique persona—your real self.

So consider who you truly are and have fun choosing your “must-haves.”

“I Know I’ll be Successful if I Work with…”

GREAT PEOPLE

A Good Manager—Someone who not only practices fairness but who will also understand your true capabilities; can expand or change your role; expose you to development opportunities; guide your team’s dynamics and put you forward for raises, promotions and recognition.?Pre-Interview Tips: Read everything you can find about them online, their LinkedIn page About section and note what they post about. Do their staff like, share and comment on them??What do they celebrate and whom do they advocate? Have they won any recognition for leadership? What do they say about company culture and values?

A Dream Team—The willingness of colleagues to help each other with a business or even personal challenge. The commitment of the team to huddle in urgent situations that require them to think and act together quickly in support of a teammate. Pre-Interview Tips: Check the About or Jobs sections of the company’s website to see if Teamwork is a core company value, how its expanded description reads and any associated stories. Note if and how teamwork is mentioned in the job description. Also prepare to address this in interviews with potential peers/teammates.

Strong Leadership—A CEO and direct reports who are industry-savvy, inspirational and approachable for conversations and questions—and who make the best strategic decisions.?Pre-Interview Tips: Research the CEO and their reports online. What media are covering them? Is the coverage 100% positive? What are they discussing in any recent videos? Do you find what you read or view thoughtful, confidence-building and exciting? Have they won any industry awards and for what reason?

Listeners—A place where your ideas can have impact. You know that your manager or the company at large will consider your ideas and suggestions, move them forward if possible—and will recognize you for taking initiative. Pre-Interview Tips: Search on your browser for the company name and “employee idea sharing.” ?Check out the company’s recognition programs and which values and behaviors are acknowledged. Ask the recruiter how frequently the company asks employees for feedback and how leadership and managers are guided by this information.?Also be prepared to address this in the hiring manager interview.

Empowerment and Autonomy—It may be extremely important you to have enough trust and empowerment from managers and leaders to work towards set goals and objectives in your own way. Pre-Interview Tip: You may possibly know some company employees who can informally share any stories about how they or colleagues are empowered.?You could search on your browser for the company name along with “empower employees” and possibly get results. If not, save this topic to address with a real person during manager and teammate interviews.

INSPIRING AND SUPPORTIVE PROGRAMS/PRACTICES

Work/Life Balance—Companies may have standard working hours, or require employee presence on certain days, months or times of the year (like quarter end).?A number are requiring people to work onsite while others allow fully remote work.?All have different degrees of flexibility in scheduling work around personal commitments. Pre-Interview Tips: Check the About or Jobs sections of the company’s website to see if this is a core company value and how it is described. How the company helps employees manage their work life balance is also a good question to ask during the recruiter interview. ???

Ethics—Many job roles deal with challenges to integrity where customers or governments are concerned—or decisions on transparency and honesty with employees. In our AI era, company responsibility for its AI creation or employee and customer use is a big focus. Pre-Interview Tips: Check the About or Jobs sections of the company’s website to see if honesty, ethics or business integrity is a core company value.?Research online to see if the company has an AI ethics council or policy. If the company website has posted ?an Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report, or has a governance web page, look for an integrity policy and other statements there.

Fairness and Commitment to Share – Equity in employment, development and promotions; great pay and benefits such as wellness or sharing financial success through company stock and options—are all ways we want to be treated fairly. In addition, members of gender-, race- or nationality- based groups or others like veterans or persons with disabilities may be seeking an employer with a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).?Pre-Interview Tips: Check the About or Jobs sections of the company’s website to see if any component of DEI is a company value, how the expanded description reads and if there are employee stories and quotes around this theme.?Look for Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) in your area of interest and search for online stories about the executive champion of the group. Have they won any recognition for this special passion? If the company website has an Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) or Social Responsibility Report or even a web page on DEI, look for diversity statistics, stories and policies. Glassdoor and Indeed may also have information about DEI and ERGs. Does the company celebrate international observances like International Women’s Day or Black History Month???

Development and Career Opportunities—You may be seeking a company where you can learn skills to jumpstart your career, and where managers support employee development goals in creative ways, like shadowing, special projects or events like hackathons, where achievements might be visible to leaders, or sending them to events and conferences. ?Pre-Interview Tips: Check the About or Jobs sections of the company’s website (or blog page) – or company social posts -- to see if there are employee stories about upskilling or contests that challenge employees to stretch and learn new skills or employee conference experiences.?

Giving Back—Many people want to work for a company strongly committed to sustainability and/or social good. Pre-Interview Tips: Check the company website for a Social Impact or Sustainability page and read any Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) or Social Responsibility Reports. Visit the company’s social media pages and also the company’s blog page on its website to find stories about employees’ volunteer efforts and any overall corporate focus on a specific area of philanthropy. Check to see if there is mention of a Volunteer Time Off program and if the company has a social impact or sustainability office. Has the company won any social impact awards?

Other things you value.?Your list may include personal priorities not covered above. For example, if you are entering or re-entering the workforce—or--involved with orienting new employees or interns, how a company welcomes and nurtures prospective employees and newcomers may be very important to you. Pre-Interview Tips: Search the company website for an interns page and company social media for accounts of recruiting events and interns’ experiences at the company. ?

If your interview duration is short, and you may be pressed for time, be selective and focus on your highest priorities.?For me, that’s the manager relationship, teamwork and leadership.?During my conversations, I’d expect to pick up additional information on many of the other categories above, simply because everything “culture” is interrelated.

?

What Deep Dive is Next?

Now that you’ve prioritized your culture “must-haves,” it’s time to think about the right questions to ask during your interview conversations.???