A Gallup Poll which surveyed over one million employees across diverse industries, found that the two most common reasons that people leave their jobs is not related to salary but due to poor working relationships with their supervisor or lack of cultural fit. The results show that most employees recognize that job satisfaction is due to more than money alone.

Because of the importance of other factors in long-term job retention, it is important to carefully evaluate each employer with regard to these “intangible” factors before accepting a job offer. When you understand how to evaluate a company during the hiring process, you will be well-positioned to ask relevant questions that can help you make an educated decision based on your career goals.

Below we outline five such intangible factors to help with your research.

1. Company size. The size of the company is an important consideration since it affects salary ranges, scope of benefit package, work culture, as well as management style. While larger companies are able to offer higher salaries and more comprehensive benefits, the benefit of working for a smaller firm is that you will be exposed to many areas of operation. What this means is that you will be eligible for faster promotions than employees in larger firms who are limited to advancement within their particular vertical.
2. Company History. An important consideration is how long the company has been in business as this indicates how secure your job will be. While large companies do offer a greater degree of security, they also tend to be more hierarchical in nature with a rigid management style.
3. Whether the company is private or publicly owned. Publicly owned companies will be easier to research since they must publish quarterly and annual performance reports for the benefit of shareholders. Before accepting any offer of employment be sure to research the firm’s financial viability, market reputation, planned initiatives over the next 2 to 5 years, staff changes (especially at the management level), and industry trends over the next few years (you don’t want to be in an industry which is expected to experience a downturn). Information on many public and private companies can be found on such Web sites as Dunn and Bradstreet and Hoovers Online. Another option is to “Google” the name of the company for current news and press releases, along with visiting the company Web site and LinkedIn profile.
4. Career growth opportunities. Both large and small firms offer opportunities for career advancement. However, there are also firms that promise the world in terms of promotional opportunities and professional development during the interview process, only to fall far short once you actually start working with the firm. Best to speak with current employees of the firm to determine the extent to which the company does foster a promote-from-within policy. For those employers that do offer such opportunities, try to find out if you will receive a salary increase or bonus upon program completion and whether the firm offers tuition reimbursement.
5. Company culture and management style. Company culture can refer to dress code and range from casual (think blue jeans) to conservative (think Brooks Brothers). Company culture also involves the management style and can vary from rigid and autocratic with limited opportunity for input on the part of employees to transparent and supportive management that values employee contributions. Another component of culture involves the degree to which the company fosters a team environment as opposed to one which is overly competitive.

©Copyright 2012 Lisa Ann Burke. All rights fully reserved