I believe that the candidate himself should ask questions during the interview, because he has to work there. It is impossible to understand what is happening in the company from the standard job description, and it is customary to embellish everything a little during the interview. I think that the job seeker should make the most of the interview in order to find out the real state of affairs in the company. Few people want to get into uncomfortable conditions or into a loss-making company with no prospects. If you are interested in how to get a real idea of the company during the interview, then welcome to cat. I will give a list of questions that interviewers usually do not expect, perhaps they will help someone make the right decision when looking for a job.
I'll start with a block of general questions that will help you find out how the company is breathing.
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And, of course, no one canceled the search for information in advance. You can just google information about the company and its employees. In extreme cases, you can even write to former employees if you want to find out something.
About the attitude towards employees in the company.
- Are you in the business of growing people? How exactly do you do it? There are very few companies that have an answer to this question. And the general words as an answer here will most likely say that they have no clear plan. If the company is really engaged in the growth of people, then you will be able to show a clear plan.
- Do you have a promotion system? Tell us, what was the last time you promoted a person or gave bonuses? What criteria do you have for this? Can't tell? It means they do not understand or do not appreciate the benefits that employees bring. Everyone can answer yes, but with specific criteria it is usually more difficult.
Team Questions
- Is it possible to meet and chat a little with the team? If they react normally, then most likely the team and company have no problems. If not, then there is a reason to suspect something was wrong. And as a life hack: find the most tortured employee and talk to him for 5 minutes. You will learn the most from him.
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- What do you do if your production has fallen? If they answer that their service is so stable that the sales do not fall, then most likely they simply do not have a plan for such an emergency, and you will have to deal with the consequences and, perhaps, you will have to answer for it.
- How often do you have releases? What day of the week? On any day, it means when it is on, then we spread it, if, of course, there is no CD / CI.
- Are you writing tests? What types of testing do you use? Why don't you test everything? If there are no specific answers about the tools and types of testing, but there are only allegations that all code is covered by tests, then everything is probably bad with testing. What this is fraught with for the developer, I think, is clear.
Another set of questions about the equally important - leadership.
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- What aspects of my experience do you think will be the most valuable to the company? For example, you are hosting a podcast and the employer says he likes it and hires you as a programmer to write code. How will this help the company? It turns out that you are being hired for other skills that are not related to a specific job.
And more questions about the work process and the atmosphere in the team.
- Do you have a job description and what does it include? What are my responsibilities? Even if general words are written on paper, you should at least be told what needs to be done in fact.
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Pay attention to how they communicate in the company, whether they show respect for employees. For example, if someone distracted the interviewer with a message or question during an interview, and he ran away without any excuse, then this is an alarming bell.
And one more aspect: be sure to ask for feedback after the interview. If they can't give you it, then maybe it's good that you didn't go there to work.
Interviewers at interviews are usually not at all ready for such a shaft of questions, so try to warn in advance that you want to inquire in detail about the company. And then there may not be time for this. And I do not call to arrange an interrogation with bias and ask all the questions, act according to the situation, it may be enough just a few questions.
You can’t even imagine how many people cannot give answers to these questions. And in general, remember that you are not going to hard labor, but choosing a place where you will spend almost a third of your time, you should be comfortable there.
As a conclusion, I will answer the question why I wrote all this. If you look from the outside, then I put a pig on my colleagues with this post. Because many people simply do not have answers to these questions. When I am looking for people, it is important for me that people come to me who do not just want to get anywhere, but those who are interested in the project and like their work. I gladly spend time with people who want to develop and grow. If you haven’t worked together and left, it’s also bad for the company - an extra waste of time and money. And, probably, the most important thing is that the work should be liked, and if not, then why is it needed?
PS Do you ask questions to the employer during the interview? I would be glad if you share your questions.