This is an anonymous post from an Elpha member.

Best tips on how to vet a company before accepting an offer.

Leona2·Dec 21, 2022

Posted in:Advice

Companies sell themselves very well when they are keen for the talent, but several times I've joined companies and they don't live up to the image they portrayed in the interview.

Is it all just a leap of faith or can anyone give me some tips?

Candice142·Dec 21, 2022

I'd recommend finding their employees via LinkedIn and reaching out to them! Or better yet, reaching out to your maybe-future teammates. Ideally your recruiting contact would be happy to help schedule short chats with folks within the company. If they're resistant, then I personally would get suspicious ("what are they trying to hide?")Asking pointed questions also helps. I've found that vague questions ("What's your culture like?") don't provide very useful answers. Even questions like "Tell me about what you'd improve" might not capture everything you're looking for, especially when the person on the other side has no idea what you value or prioritize.I've found that it helps me to identify things that make me miserable (not getting clear feedback, many meetings, long hours) and then ask about those topics directly ("how many hours of meetings do you have in the most meeting-heavy days? how often do you have crunch time and when do people usually sign off during those times?")It helps immensely to be willing to walk away. Otherwise I risk sugarcoating my questions or downplaying my boundaries for fear of being viewed negatively. I try to remind myself that employers can hire and fire however they like and that info isn't easily available. As employees, if we mimic that sort of behavior, it gets reflected in our resumes or background checks. In that regard, we have more to lose if we join a company that makes us miserable. It's bound to happen once in a while, and employers should be understanding when it does occasionally happen. It's best not to make it a pattern, which is why employers should be just as understanding when we want to put in our due diligence.If a company pushes back against you wanting to learn more about how they operate or they try to rush your decision, I'd personally view that as a red flag.

Iynna·Dec 21, 2022

This is excellent advice and I agree with you!

Morgan·Dec 22, 2022

I also suggest asking people who were former employees.

Otha140·Dec 21, 2022

Seek info about the company through different sources of info - for example don’t only get an idea of the company from their own image portrayal. Check from reviews from other workers, glassdoor, team blind, levels fyi, etc.

Sherie25·Dec 22, 2022

Easy beasy, be sure you go onto LinkedIn and look at tenure of folks that work there. Look at the demographic information, look at recent hires, recent departures, by gender, dept and experience level. Then cross reference on blind.com and glassdoor and google company name and lawsuit or the word discrimination. Also any other derogatory words that are of concern to you. Review their social media presence on all platforms and look for alignment or misalignment in messaging. Be sure to also see if you can find someone once removed from your network who has left the company who can provide unbiased- or biased reviews of what it was like to work there. Good luck and hope you can also use your common sense if you smell something askew.

ImanOmari20·Dec 23, 2022

Here is a great list that I just read on LinkedIn from the founder of a software co . I found it really helpful, you might find it interesting toohttps://www.linkedin.com/posts/kchiu1_opentowork-hiring-interviewing-activity-7012079525496791040-DMid?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios