Archive for March 2018

Be specific When you’re asking about culture in an interview, be specific about timing with your questions. Ask what the team has done together in the past month, instead of leaving the timeframe open-ended. If you ask “What does the team do together outside of the office,” you risk hearing about a retreat they did years ago or about the company’s past culture instead of their current one. A few new employees or changing workloads can quickly and easily influence the culture of a smaller company, so make sure you’re getting current information on the team you’ll be joining instead of hearing about “the good old days.”

Create your own business cards It may seem strange to create business cards if you’re thinking of changing roles, but if you have an online portfolio, electronic resume or even an up-to-date LinkedIn page, they can help interviewers remember your name and find your work. Design a simple business card with your contact information, applicable social media links and the path to your online samples to hand out to everyone you speak with during the interview process. They’ll serve as an easy reference if they want to follow up with you prior to another meeting or making an offer. Your resume may end up in a stack with others, but a personal business card will be sure to set you apart.

Read about the company instead of spring cleaning: Don’t limit your online research to the company’s website. Take the time to find current news and articles about your prospective employer, the good and the bad. Maybe they’ve recently completed a merger, or won a promising award in the industry that would make a good topic of conversation. Being up to date on a company’s latest news will prove that you care about the direction and trajectory of the organization you’re joining, not just the position you’re applying for. This tactic will also bring to light any existing red flags if they’ve been named a bad place to work or have recently experienced layoffs.