There are worse things than another month of unemployment. “Look before you leap” has never been more true in the talent marketplace than it is now. Keep your spidey sense on full power, ask lots of questions and trust your sturdy gut to guide you before you settle for that job.
Here are ten critical questions to ask before you accept a job offer:
-
What are the working hours? What are your expectations in terms of arrival and departure times?
-
What are your expectations around reaching me after hours? I normally respond to emergency email messages and texts, and I check both infrequently on the weekends. Does that work for you?
-
What are the rules and/or norms here about taking time off? How do vacation, personal and sick time work? What about occasional hours I might need for a doctor’s appointment or something else?
-
What are your norms for working at home, especially when the weather is bad or I’m not feeling well but not sick enough to take a sick day?
-
What about flexible hours?
-
Who are my internal clients, and what are the expectations around my interactions with them? How can I communicate my off-hours availability to those folks?
-
Who will be evaluating my performance in this role? What are the evaluation criteria?
-
Tell me about my most important internal clients and other contacts. What do I need to know about working with each of them — their particular requirements, quirks, communication styles, etc?
-
What do you think will be the most challenging part of the role? What is your advice for surmounting that hurdle?
-
What else do I need to know about the culture, the management team and the company?
