Comments on: 5 questions to ask before taking a job

By: Cherrie Bevelle

Cherrie Bevelle — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 00:16:09 +0000

Particulary stirring blog article.

By: Thinking some more about jobs and the workplace « Alchemical Thoughts

Thinking some more about jobs and the workplace « Alchemical Thoughts — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 22:02:18 +0000

[...] about the people in that workplace. So, from It’s all about the ecosystem, here are “5 Questions to Ask Before Taking a Job.” They focus on the people in the prospective workplace. I do find the questions intriguing; [...]

By: CS

CS — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:55:19 +0000

Are these questions to ask when they ask if you have questions? I would feel very awkward asking to meet the team before getting hired which means I couldn’t answer question #2. When the interviewer offers the position, I doubt he/she will allow you to talk to the staff about all this. People usually say yes or no right then, sometimes “can I get back to you?” I don’t believe any of these questions can be answered unless you’re actually working there. These are things you learn over time as an employee, not someone who hasn’t even started working there.

By: Micho

Micho — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:45:17 +0000

I wished I did this some 8 years ago when I took a job in Gap’s sourcing office in Miami. Lesson learned.

For what is worth, I recently accepted an offer for a position where I went as far as finding out the person that had the job before (he’s no longer with the company). His feedback on my soon-to-be boss, subordinates, coworkers, etc. was very helpful.

By: Jake

Jake — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 01:07:18 +0000

Hi, I’m a friend of Grace Tan who showed me this site…good post! One question I always ask is, “Do I want to be like the people I’m going to work with and for.” There are two parts to this. First, you spend a ton of time at work, and the people and job influence your personality. The current team’s personality may be reflective of what kind of person you’ll end up being and what type of work you’ll be doing. Second, if you want to be like the people you meet, chances are you’re a good fit culturally which is hugely important for day-to-day transacting.

I’ve seen too many people really hate the interview process and those interviewing them only to ignore that data point in their decision making and take the job because of firm brand, the position title, or other.

Good post! Keep it up!

By: Right Brain Resource Blog » Blog Archive » 5 questions to ask before taking a job

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 22:36:31 +0000

[...] of the people who you’ll be working with and how they influence job satisfaction. Koh suggests five questions you should ask before taking a new [...]

By: Gim

Gim — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 19:18:49 +0000

I usually ask a mean one: “What are the things you don’t like about this company”. If I get a negative reaction I correct myself and say something like “OK, then what are the things you would like to change…”

I’ve interviewed once with McKinsey and an interviewer obstinately refused to answer (it was asked during a group interview and her boss was watching ).

I think it’s an interesting question and I’ve had many good answers. Furthermore, the reaction to it may tell you a lot about the person you are facing.

By: Russ Wilson

Russ Wilson — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:38:40 +0000

Thank you, Shiyan, for your thoughts on this subject. I am at a point in my career where I have clearly outgrown my current position and am looking around for other opportunities. Asking myself your 5 questions, however, gave me a completely different perspective on that search and made me reconsider the diamonds in the field in which I am currently standing.

Thank you, thank you for your timely thoughts!

By: Are you walking the walk? « Shiyan Koh

Are you walking the walk? « Shiyan Koh — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 07:29:10 +0000

[...] you walking the walk? 14 07 2010 I got a lot of great feedback on yesterday’s post about the 5 questions one should ask before taking a job – and questions on what I was doing [...]

By: Things You Need To Know in Technical Interviews | Joshua Rhoades

Things You Need To Know in Technical Interviews | Joshua Rhoades — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 20:41:25 +0000

[...] I saw a post (via LifeHacker) on Shiyan Koh’s blog: 5 Questions to Ask before Taking a Job, and it covers some pretty good and salient points, many of which I would echo. And there are some [...]