The Company
January 15th, 2009
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- What’s the gross profit margin of the division I will be working in? What percentage of the total profit from the company does it generate? Is it increasing or decreasing? It’s critical to know the contribution of your division or department to the total profit of the organization.
- What’s your company’s “killer application”? What percentage of the market share does it have? Will I be working on it? Every company has a core product that often generates the lion’s share of the revenues. If that’s where you want to be, make sure that’s where you will be placed.
- Can you give me some examples of the best and worst aspects of the company’s culture? Does the hiring manager have enough insight to know that every corporate culture has both positive and negative qualities?
- What makes this company a great place to work? What outside evidence (rankings or awards) do you have to prove this is a great place to work? What is the company going to do in the next year to make it better? This is a fairly aggressive question, but if it’s fair for the company to ask you to prove you are the best, the reverse is also true.
- What would I see if I stood outside the front door at five o’clock? Would everyone be smiling? Staying late or leaving early? Would everyone be taking work home? Why not conduct this experiment before you ask the question? See if the interviewer’s answer squares with your observations.
- Lots of your competitors have great products and people programs.What is the deciding factor that makes this opportunity superior? Are you willing to make me some specific “promises” on what you will do to make this a great experience for me if I accept the position? The superstar is asking for the interviewer to “sell” the company.
- Can you show me that the company has a diverse workforce and that it is tolerant of individual differences? Does it have affinity groups or similar programs that I might find beneficial? Is there a dress code? Can you give me an example of any “outrageous conduct” this firm tolerates that the competitors would not? How tolerant is the company for the kind of chaos that many superstars generate in the course of greatness?
- Does your company offer any wow! benefits? Does it pay for advanced degrees? Does it offer paid sabbaticals? On-site child care? Relocation packages? Mentor programs? How are these superior to those of your competitors? What about job sharing? Flex-time arrangements? Telecommuting? Workout facilities? If these practices are important to you, by all means ask.
- When top performers leave the company, why do they leave and where do they usually go? This is tough for the interviewer to answer because he or she doesn’t want to give you names of other employers to consider. But if the interviewer is confident in her case, she will.
- When was the last significant layoff? What criteria were used to select those to stay? What packages were offered to those who were let go? Layoffs are a fact of life even in the most stable companies. It’s fair game to talk about the company’s management of layoffs.
- Does the company have a program to significantly reward individuals who develop patents/ great products? Is there a program to help individuals “start” their own firms or subsidiary? Will I be required to fill out noncompete agreements? You plan to generate great intellectual property for the company. It’s fair to know how those assets will be managed.