[jsfg_cinti] CareerJournal article was sent to you from JSFG Training Committee Chairperson

A CareerJournal article was sent to you from JSFG Training Committee
Chairperson with comments: 
Hope you find this helpful.

  _____  


CareerJournal <http://www.careerjournal.com> 


http://www.careerjournal.com/jobhunting/strategies/20050203-wsj.html

        Easy Ways to Investigate
A Company's Office Culture              
          
By Karen Hube and Suma CM and Dimitra Kessenides and Elizabeth Herr and
Charlie Hasbrouck 
  
From The Wall Street Journal Online
<http://www.wsj.com/wsjgate?source=careersite&URI=/>            
Beyond Google, how else can you investigate a company's office culture?
Here, a trove of tips and tricks from people who know how to size up a
prospective employer.

Background Check: "Ask the interviewer or the company representative
about her own background, and compare the responses among individuals.
Does the company bring in people from eclectic backgrounds? That says a
lot about what you're likely to find at the firm."

-- Gerry Bollman, director of university recruiting, Booz Allen
Hamilton, Cleveland

Canvas: "Tell the interviewer you'd like to speak with someone in a
different department than the one you're interviewing in -- customer
service, for example, or distribution. Look for common threads."

-- Kim Ratto, recruiter, Birkenstock USA, Novato, Calif.

Fun Factor: "A company can make an effort to have its office reflect its
personality. You don't want to put streamers up, but if the reception
area is brightly lit and painted, and if the walls reflect what the
company does -- we have movie posters on the wall -- this is the first
thing you see, and it tells you this might be a fun place to work."

-- Ben Coplon, postproduction supervisor, Miramax Films, New York

Small Talk Is Big: "I got my best information by arriving early and
speaking to the receptionist. I learned that decisions at this firm only
came straight from the top."

-- Mary Anne Thompson, president of Going Global, Washington, which
compiles country-specific employment data

The Coffee Test: "If I offer someone a cup of coffee, I might get it
myself, or I might ask my secretary to get it. Does she respond
enthusiastically, or is she dejected? It's in the tone that she answers.
You have to keep your antenna up for these subtleties."

-- David Rauch, hiring partner, Snell & Wilmer, a 350-lawyer firm,
Phoenix

Wait Time: "If you have 10 interviews [for the same job] in three
months, figure decision making at the company is a tortuous process."

-- B.J. Gallagher, employment consultant, Los Angeles

Reading into Questions: "The questions asked by the interviewer might
indicate that the company focuses on particular things like leadership,
say, or creativity. At one company I interviewed at a long time ago, I
was asked, 'Imagine for a moment that you are blind. Describe blue to
me.'"

-- Gerry Bollman, Booz Allen Hamilton

Watch the Clock: "Get at lifestyle-at-work issues by asking, 'Will you
describe a typical week on the job?' If you can, schedule an interview
around lunchtime, or after hours, so you can see how many people are
still on the clock."

-- Gary Alpert, CEO, WetFeet Inc., an employment-consulting firm, San
Francisco

Family Affairs: "Look to see if there are pictures of families,
especially children, in lawyers' offices. I've not only got pictures of
my kids, I have a huge bulletin board with all their artwork. One of my
female partners once told me she believes this makes a big impact on
people who come in here. They see a male partner who's showing how
important his kids are."

-- David Rauch, Snell & Wilmer

Art of the Deal: "If you're interviewing at a nonprofit, see whether
there's art on the walls. Many firms don't have any. Having artwork up
can be a sign that 'you've made it' as a nonprofit -- in other words,
that there's funding."

-- Lauren Brust, managing director, City University of New York,
Institute for Software Design and Development, New York

Welcome Wagon: "How does the receptionist let the interviewer know
you're there? Is it 'Mr. Smith is ready to see you now'? Or 'Bill is
ready for you'? Or does she yell, 'Hey, Bill, he's here!'? Think about
what you could live with. A receptionist chewing gum? Perhaps. A boss
yelling at the receptionist? That's not something you want to overlook."

-- Ben Coplon, Miramax Films

One Bad Apple: "Sure, an interviewer is a representative of an
organization and its culture. But don't judge an entire organization's
culture on one person. If an interviewer doesn't maintain eye contact,
for example, maybe he's having a bad day, maybe he got in late last
night because of a snowstorm. Pay attention to several interviewers over
the course of the process. You'll end up with a more accurate picture."

-- Richard McNulty, director of career development, Dartmouth's Tuck
School of Business, and former management consulting recruiter, Hanover,
N.H.

Look Around: "We conduct a lot of interviews on a big, open patio
outside. Out there, candidates can see our employees walking around our
campus, sitting outside talking, going for a run -- it's a good
indicator of what it's like to work here."

-- Kim Ratto, Birkenstock USA

Congratulations: "A good question: Ask how the organization celebrates
success. Is this an organization that has a culture that recognizes and
rewards people for the value they contribute, or do they just say, 'It's
in your paycheck'?"

-- Gerry Bollman, Booz Allen Hamilton





You can unsubscribe from the list by sending email to 
jsfg_cinti-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. 

Web archive: http://www.freelists.org/archives/jsfg_cinti 

Questions to:  jsfg@xxxxxxxx

Other related posts: