Everything You Should Google About a Company Before You Get Started
You have no idea: finding a job has become incredibly difficult. These days, companies are taking longer than ever to fill positions. While one reason for this shift is the rise of remote work, which removes some geographic barriers and increases the pool of potential applicants, the main reason why getting a job today is such a nightmare is the “ never-ending ” interview process that is so common these days. days. And it’s not just endless interviews with rotating groups of people, it’s empty projects, long presentations and all those cheerful thank you notes and follow-up emails. Finding a job has become a full-time job .
Therefore, it is extremely important not to waste your time, and your time is just as valuable as the time of any potential employer. If you’re going to put that much effort into a new job, you better be sure that you really want to work there, and that means finding out everything you can about your potential new employer.
Mission Statement
First (and probably easiest) check the company’s mission statement. Even if it’s “just a job” for you and you’re not looking for a role that aligns with your personal values, you can get a sense of a company’s culture by reading their open company mission statements. This is usually fairly easy to spot; many companies have dedicated mission statement pages on their official websites, and a simple search of the company name and “mission” should find them; alternatively, Indeed maintains information pages about many companies, which typically contain values statements.
If you can’t find any mission statement, that in itself tells you something about the company and whether you will fit into it.
Employee reviews
If you want to know what it’s like to work somewhere, get that information directly from people who have already worked there. Looking at reviews from current and former employees on sites like Glassdoor , Fairygodboss , or CareerBliss can give you a good idea of the internal culture and day-to-day experience of working there. They can also give you insight into another important aspect of a new job: the interview process. While you might think about the possibility of “sour grapes” when people don’t get hired, looking at these reviews can give you an idea of how grueling and difficult the hiring process is—and whether you want to commit to it.
Position history
A key metric to look at when researching a company is the attrition rate. How many employees have recently held the same position you are interviewing for? If a company has hired four people for the job in the last year, or if a large number of employees have left after a short tenure, that doesn’t bode well for you in the same position. On sites like Indeed and Glassdoor, you can usually see expired job listings, which will give you an idea of how often a company has to relist jobs.
Checking out company reviews on sites like Glassdoor can also help here. If several former employees have already failed in the role you’re thinking of applying for, it could indicate a poor company culture, lack of support, or unrealistic expectations.
Advantages
People often make the mistake of focusing entirely on the salary when it comes to a new job. And while salary is the most important aspect of your compensation, it is not the only part of your compensation. The word “benefits” is deceptive: your benefits package is literally part of your compensation . Knowing the total cost of what you’ll be offered if you decide to take the job is a key aspect of your decision-making, so research things like vacation and paid time off, retirement accounts, healthcare, bonuses, and any and all benefits. such as pet insurance, free gym memberships, and even free meals provided by the company. All of this has a monetary value that you can roughly calculate, giving you a better idea of whether the position is fairly compensated or not.
Top management stability
Depending on the position you are applying for, you may never interact directly with members of senior management (CEO, COO, CIO, etc.). But that doesn’t mean these managers don’t influence your work. Most companies post information about their senior executives directly on their websites , or a quick Google search will usually turn up this information.
What you really need to know is how stable senior management is. Look for past press releases announcing new senior executive hires; If a company has four CEOs in three years, that’s a bad sign. If other senior people have resigned due to a cloud of scandal, this also indicates that the company is not being run very well. Even if the job itself looks perfect, joining an organization in chaos probably isn’t the best decision.
Public image
Finally, do a simple Google search. Look for headlines of any kind (ignore press releases and articles on the company’s own blogs or company sites, as these will obviously be biased). Is the company involved in a ton of lawsuits (especially from former employees)? Are they mired in a nasty labor dispute with the union? This kind of information can give you an idea of the reality of working there.
You should also become familiar with the company’s social media presence. It’s 2024, and any company worth working for should have at least some kind of social media game. If these accounts are stale—account X that hasn’t posted in two years, or a Facebook page that was last updated during a pandemic—it could indicate that the company isn’t paying attention to its image and customers, or does not pay attention to its image and clients. I don’t understand the modern world very well. And if the tone of social media feels off-putting for any reason, there could be a culture clash in your future that you might prefer to avoid.
Accepting a job offer is a big deal. You need to know as much about the company as they know about you before you can make an intelligent decision. The future You will thank you.