When it comes to hiring, employers have more tools at their disposal than ever before. They utilize psychoanalytical assessments, online network analytics, and complex selection processes to identify the best talent that fits their organization. But what about employees? What tools do employees have to decide whether an employer is a fit for them?
Employees are often left to their own devices to figure out whether a job opportunity will go beyond meeting their base needs. It is often after orientation and the first few months in role that we find we’ve sub-optimized our choice — leaving much of our brains and heart at home and fragmenting our contributions in the workplace. What seemed essential and attractive during the “courting process,” now feels like the bare minimum to keep us engaged. The dreams and desires we once had for holistic fit among ourselves, an employer, and a role are once again dashed, and all too soon we fantasize about what’s next.
So how do you go about determining whether an employer and an organization are right for you?
All too frequently we short-sell our vision and focus instead on the tangible components of an offer (salary, benefits, reporting relationship) without realizing they are only the table stakes for creating “personal employment fit.” Sometimes this happens because we have not done a thorough enough exploration of who we really are, what makes us tick, and how this next opportunity will both challenge and engage. Other times we’ve been fooled by the interview process and received a hollow promise that, while well intentioned, does not resemble the reality of what an employer can deliver.
Regardless, we want jobs that fit us like a glove, not a burlap sack. So what then do we do to ensure this tight fit? Here are six ways to explore personal employment fit (without sounding entitled) and make a holistic decision for yourself.
- Know yourself. Yes, you are in “sell” mode, but at least in your own head be very clear what you do well and what you don’t; and don’t be swayed by an employer’s sales job that doesn’t match who you are, or you’ll both be disappointed.
- Know how this opportunity furthers you toward who you want to become. Think of your career as a series of chess moves. You don’t have to have a 25-year vision for yourself; but understand whether this is just the next move or there is potential for three more moves. Then think about what you will learn in the meantime.
- Rehearse your future. Show employers, don’t tell them, who you can be and what experience, capability, and contributions you bring. Invest the time in deep conversations about how they see the role evolving, and allow yourself to act as if you are already in role, rather than auditioning.
- Through the interview process ensure your exposure to the whole, not just the seat you’ll be filling. Through interviews, reading and research, and casual conversations, develop a good picture of the organization end to end. Make sure it is clear where you fit into creating value and what potential there is for moving up or down or across that value chain.
- Find the “white spaces.” As you hear the job, opportunity, and organization described, make sure you are filling a capability need, not becoming a replacement person or role. An employer who wants you to take a job “because Sally quit” is usually not providing an opportunity that allows for your own definition of what need you can fill or one that takes best advantage of what you bring to role.
- Above all else, become an anthropologist or archeologist during the process. Explore and catalog the artifacts and stories you collect as you interview. Does it all “add up” to the story they want to sell you? Does the reality of what they are offering as an experience match the promise?
While the “perfect” role is an elusive target, we can all do a better job assessing fit and making sure from the get-go that we will be holistically engaged and utilized, allowing for our contribution and the joy we get from it to be maximized.