Over the past year it has been hard to miss articles and news stories focusing on employees rethinking their lives, making different career choices, valuing financial packages less, reprioritizing their work lives, etc. Everywhere you turn, you’re hard pressed to miss something about the ‘Great Resignation’ or the ‘Great Reevaluation.’ Job seekers embarking upon new opportunities for whatever reason typically have identified a type of company culture they’re seeking, or in some cases, running from.

First, we must define culture – what do we mean when we say company culture? The most basic of definitions would suggest company culture describes the overall environment within an organization. In the most formal sense, it’s a company’s mission, goals, values, and underlying belief system driving their day-to-day work. You might be thinking that’s easy enough to determine, a simple internet search of a company will quickly find these attributes documented quite prominently on a company website; however, there is much more to identifying a good company culture than what is in print. A company’s culture can often be defined by characteristics that are less discernable to an external job seeker such as type of work expected of employees (no, not what’s written in a fancy job description, the actual work expected of employees), leaders who walk the talk (or don’t), leaders who overlook bad behaviors, and acceptance of policy violations/misconduct. The actual experiences and satisfaction within the company are far less likely to be found in a quick internet search, but finding ways to assess these are essential to a effective job search.

Seek Real Reviews

There are some quick and easy ways to start to dig deeper into a company’s culture. Check your network. Do you have friends, family, or professional connections who have direct experience or know anyone with direct experience at that organization? Reach out and see if they’re willing to have a quick conversation.

Company review websites resembling Glassdoor or Indeed will offer general reviews from current and past employees. Keep in mind these are only one side of the story, but they generally give a good sense of trends and potential turnover concerns that may raise a red flag.

Evaluate the Application and Onboarding Process

When beginning to engage with an organization through applications and initial phone screens, make note of the experience. What is the professionalism of those you’re interacting with? How innovative is the process? Is the overall process smooth and organized? You can begin to get a feel for the culture by evaluating these initial experiences.

Ask, Ask, Ask!

Keep in mind an interview process is just as much you interviewing the company as much as them interviewing you. Ask questions directly pertaining to the culture and what you prioritize. A Harvard Business Review Article suggests planning granular questions to really understand what lies beneath the surface of an organization. The article quotes Michelle Kim, CEO of Awaken, “I’m a fan of asking specific questions during interviews. You can use scenarios to get more detailed answers on the culture. Otherwise, people may default to overly generalized descriptions like ‘We’re very collaborative!’ ‘We’re results-oriented.’ or ‘We care about diversity and inclusion.’”

Take note of published initiatives and benefits

An organization’s social media presence or other external communication campaigns may reveal information regarding priorities driving their company culture. Do they advertise incentives that promote work / life balance? Are there public signs of community engagement? Can you find reactions to current events impacting our world today? Dig deep into the internet and other communication mechanisms to get a feel for what values are prioritized.

Assessing culture or any other aspects of a job search strategy can be overwhelming, the team at The Wilbanks Consulting Group can help you organize a job search strategy and coach you through important stages of the job search. We offer Career Exploration Coaching to plan your career development and job search strategy. Reach out to a qualified career coach today.

 - Career Consultant, Emily Elking