When job hunting or simply studying prospects for a future search, determining whether a job is a good fit goes beyond obvious things like salary, benefits, and title. Often, less overt—and rarely advertised—factors hold greater weight in terms of your satisfaction and well-being in the day-to-day.
Here, we discuss three of these pivotal workplace factors: organizational culture, technology, and project and team dynamics.
While job listings might not cover these factors in detail, a company’s website and other public information can offer solid clues. To gain further insights, we suggest attending job fairs and interviews armed with targeted questions for company representatives.
Organizational Culture
Whether in a society or a small business, culture—that is, shared practices, values, and norms—influence human interactions and expectations.
In their Competing Value Culture Model, Robert Quinn and Kim Cameron identify four types of organizational culture and their basic characteristics:
- Clan: collaborative, team-oriented, close-knit, and supportive.
- Adhocracy: dynamic, risk-taking, innovative, and entrepreneurial.
- Hierarchy: efficient, orderly, process-oriented, and predictable.
- Market: outcome- and action-oriented, competitive, and driven to achieve in the market.
You can get a sense of a company’s culture by studying its mission statement and About Us information online, as well as through interviews with and social media posts by its leaders and managers.
Once you have an opportunity to meet with a hiring manager, consider following up on these impressions by asking one or more of the following questions:
- What would you say are the two most essential qualities of your company’s culture?
- Is your company hierarchical, or does it have a different structure?
- How does the company build a sense of community and inclusion among staff members?
- Does it engage in community work or outreach?
- What personality types tend to succeed best at this company?
- What do you like best about your company?
Technology: Stack, Approach, and Status
In the interview stage, you’ll be asked many questions about your own experience and skills with technology. But your knowledge about the company’s technologies and tools is also crucial information; asking one or more of the following questions can help you better understand it:
- What systems, languages, platforms, and tools make up your technology stack?
- What is your company’s general approach to new technology adoption?
- What is the overarching development methodology?
- What is the biggest software engineering issue you’re facing right now?
- How are you approaching the search for a solution?
Project and Team Dynamics
Understanding workflow, communications, and team structures gives you crucial insights into your potential daily work and how that work relates to other teams and stakeholders.
Questions to consider asking include the following:
- How structured are your project teams? What are the typical roles?
- How do you time project sprints and determine the overall roadmap?
- How do team members communicate with each other? With other teams?
- How do you handle code reviews?
- How do you onboard new team members on the code base, workflows, and standard procedures?
- How and when are people given feedback on their performance?
- How are conflicts within or between teams typically addressed?
Reflect and Get Involved
In addition to investigating these key job-related factors, consider reflecting on your personal experiences as well, including:
- What you value
- What previous jobs, projects, and internships have taught you about workplace factors that inspire or deflate you
Ultimately, knowing what makes you tick and thrive offers the best clues to finding a new job that will be truly satisfying once the new title loses its shine.
To find out more about possible career pathways, it helps to meet and talk with people from a variety of companies and organizations. One way to do this?
Get involved with IEEE Computer Society
In addition to local chapter activities, individuals can explore various volunteering and mentoring opportunities. Getting involved in your community can lead to valuable experiences and connections that support your professional journey.
Disclaimer: The author is completely responsible for the content of this article. The opinions expressed are their own and do not represent IEEE’s position nor that of the Computer Society nor its Leadership.
