Questions to Ask About Company

Questions to Ask About Company

Getting a job in this fast-moving world is not at all easy. The very process of seeking a job makes people give up. You are selected from a whole crowd based on your academic performance, or your work experience, if cleared, you are called for an interview. By the time you hear from the company, you almost give up and start looking for other jobs. Here, let’s know about the Questions to Ask About Company.

In this lengthy process, it would be a shame that you clear all these rounds and end up at a company that does not suit your tastes, or maybe you will be disappointed to see the inner world of the workplace. Either way, it is very beneficial if you could ask a few questions to your interviewers or any superiors about the company, to prepare yourself. 

WHY ASK QUESTIONS?

Asking questions is not a bad thing, it would not mean you are suspicious of the company or trying to look superior to it. On the contrary, asking questions about the company to the interviewers or a superior presents you as a cautious, curious person, somebody who had done their research before making a decision. 

A company would always prefer a person who is cautious of their decisions, rather than the one who blindly follows the crowd and accepts what comes around without any vigilance. This trait of researching about the company and putting forth your doubts presents that even if you join the company, you will remain alert and careful about the decisions, and this overall works for the benefit of the employee as well as the company.

In addition, it would help you understand the dynamics of the team and the company. The responses by the interviewers or the superiors, the people who have been working for the company for quite some time, will also show you how the company workers might work around one another, and treat each other, and give a reflection of the overall work environment. 

Below we have presented a list of questions you could ask your interviewers (or maybe your superior) about the company: 

QUESTIONS REGARDING THE JOB DETAILS

In this section, you could find questions that you could ask the interviewer about the job, the types, and the expectations. 

  • What are the day-to-day duties the employee will be expected to fulfill?

This may include the task you will be required to fulfill daily. It could be anything, such as submitting a report every day. Knowing in advance what the workload could be, will help you in the long run.

  • What are the expectations from the employee?

From this question, you could understand from the responses what is expected out of you. How you are supposed to work and what are the qualifications they are looking for.  

  • What are the projects the team is working on right now?

This could give you an idea of how the company sets its goals. Knowing the current goals the team is working on, if selected, you could follow up on this question, keep in mind the responses, and research about the same. This could be very helpful to you on your first day at work.

  • Do the employee join the official team immediately or after some time?

This would be helpful for you to understand the team dynamics of the company. You could get an idea of who joins the official team, and how. If you were to join the official team right away, you can research more about their current project to catch up with them immediately, and if not, you can work on your ideas and present them before the team on your first day. This will show to the earlier employees that you are rightly eligible and capable of being a member of the team. 

  • Is there any training period the employee is required to go through?

The response to this question could prepare you mentally. You will get to know if you shall be joining the workforce immediately or get a period of training to get used to the workplace. 

  • Do we get access to previous projects?

This is an important question if received positively. Going through the previous projects acts as a knowledgeable source. This could help the new employees or even the original employees working on the same topic to catch on and the documents could come in handy. 

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE COMPANY

  • How does the company feel about the current project?

This could reflect the company’s prioritization. In a project, their feelings about the project, and what they keep as a priority reflect what the employees focus on. This could be helpful for you to find out if they prioritize quantity or quality. 

  • How is the company aiming to profit from the current project?

In terms of prioritization, you could question how the company aims to go for-profit or quantity. This could help you mentally prepare yourself to work with the point of view, with an aim.

  • What are the plans for the company for the future?

This could help you understand the above two questions in a more detailed way. And as earlier said, you could consider the response and research your own. 

  • What are the expected future projects?

This comes in continuance of the earlier question. If there are no finalized immediate plans you could ask about what could be expected in the future, at the least.

  • Are the employees expected to stay within these future projects, or come up with their own ideas every now and then?

This could help you understand if the company works within a defined bubble or appreciate new ideas and concepts for a change. Much of the interviewees expect to work with an “out of the box” mindset, but when the expectations are not met, they get disappointed and work as a slave, with a loss of interest. 

  • What are the core values that the company abides by?

This will help you understand the behavior and other moral codes the company follows. These could range from loyalty, to team spirit and respect for all the employees.  Many of the companies these days offer these core values. However, if something does not fits right with you, feel free to not accept the job. 

  • How does the employee respond to those values?

This comes in continuance with the earlier question. Even if the core values of the company are stated, the real question is, does the employee behave according to them or not? If not, then what actions can be taken against them.

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE POSITION

The queries about the position could come in continuance with the queries related to the jobs, as these are very much inter-related. 

  • Who takes charge of the team?

The response to these queries reflects the team dynamics of the company. It puts light on the hierarchy of the team as well, such as do the team members perform with equal status or work under someone else.

  • Who do the new employees report to?

This query highlights your position in the hierarchy. The position of the person, you will be required to report to, reflect your position in the overall hierarchy at the workplace. 

  • Is there any quality in the employees, the company is looking for?

This could help you present yourself better. If there is required quality and you do not have it mentioned anywhere in your resume, then this is your chance. 

  • What could be the qualifications an ideal employee shall have for this position?

This comes concerning the earlier questions. The response could help you showcase your strong qualifications for the position, and present a good image of you for the position.  

QUESTIONS REGARDING THE PERFORMANCE OF THE EMPLOYEE

  • What are the performance expectations from the employee within the first month?

If no training period is required by the company, that means they already have set some expectations out of the newly recruited employees. It is best to take your chances and be aware of the expectations you are expected to meet. 

  • Where do you see the new employees’ performance in a year?

Even with the training, during and after the same period, there will be some expectations set for the employees. This comes regarding the core values, contribution in the projects, and the fulfillment of the day-to-day requirements. It will be best for the employee to know what are the expectations out of them. 

  • What are the performance review processes?

We all know the employees’ performances are reviewed. It could be weekly, or monthly, or even annually, but they are reviewed for sure. This helps the employee superior to you or the CEO to decide a promotion or bonus for you based on your performance. Thus, being aware of how and by whom you are being reviewed would only help you maintain your behavior and overall, your performance. 

  • What are the criteria for the evaluations of the employees?

This comes in continuance with the above question. Knowing the criteria for the evaluation would help you perform better and get a much better outcome on the evaluations. 

  • How often will my performance be reviewed?

This again comes in continuance of the above two questions. If you know when and how often your performances are going to get reviewed/evaluated, you will be more alert and cautious during those times. 

  • What are the pointers the employee shall keep in mind as “do(s)” and “do not(s)”?

This is an important question and can help you maintain your behavior in the workplace without offending any superior, colleague, or junior. 

QUESTIONS REGARDING THE WORK CULTURE

Concerning the core values stated by the company, it shall be helpful for the employee to be aware of the work culture in the company.

  • What is the work culture of this company?

This could help you know about the pressure that the employees might face from the company or the superiors in general. 

  • How would you describe the environment of the company, overall?

The response works fine for the interviewees to know if the environment abides by the core values or not. This could also help them make up their mind, in response to the first questions, on whether they wish to work with the company or not such as a stressful but friendly environment.

  • What is the hierarchy that the company follows? 

Understanding the hierarchy is very important in a workplace. And knowing whether the very system is rigid or not in a workplace can be very helpful. It could also help you maintain your behavior. 

  • Are there office traditions that the employees abide by?

Every company has some traditions, close to its heart. Knowing the office tradition would help you understand the overall environment. These traditions could be, dinner together after the launch of every project, a compulsory retirement party for all the employees, and so on.

  • Is there a specific calendar, with the list of holidays, the company follows?

It would be very helpful for the employee to know whether the company calendar lets them rest enough or not. Nobody wishes to work as a slave for 7 days straight. Knowing some fixed holidays or off days are there for your survival can only help you decide better. 

QUESTIONS REGARDING THE TEAMS

These queries would help you understand how you and your team, collectively, would be expected to work. 

  • Do we form teams or work independently?

This is very important to know, since knowing this could help you prepare yourself for the better. If it is teamwork, you know only your opinions alone would not completely matter, and if it is independent work, you will prepare yourself to take the load on your shoulder, alone.

  • Who leads/supervises the teams?

This comes in response to the hierarchy of the company, such as whether a supervisor or head in charge will guide you, or there will be no one to lead as such, and the team has to work collectively with equal participation and consensus. 

  • What is the team dynamic in this company?

Understanding the team dynamics of any company would help you behave better and be more productive as you are aware of what the team expects of you. You will be able to express yourself better and for good.

QUESTIONS FOR THE INTERVIEWERS

Asking the older or the official employees would only give you a reflection of how the company treats its fellow employees. Even though the question in itself needs no explanations, we will try to explain them briefly for you.

  • What is the reason for you to choose this company?

The personal reviews by the interviewers will reflect the expectation they had and if these expectations were met or not. This could be a reality check for you. 

  • Have you ever thought of leaving the company?

This could highlight the challenges the employees might face, to the extent that they prefer to leave. 

  • What much has changed ever since you joined the company first?

This particular section could highlight for you all the goods and the bad that have shaped the company. It could also showcase how the company has turned everything on its side ever since its founding, and how it still is standing strong.

  • What is different about this place, from any other place you have worked for?

For any interviewer who has worked in many other companies, or fields, this question proves worth it. It could present to you why you too should prefer the respective company over the others you were recommended. 

  • What is the most challenging thing in the company?

This again could highlight the faults at the disposal of the company. The response could help you make your mind about joining the company or not.

QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES ABOUT THE NEXT STEP IN THE SELECTION PROCESS

  • When can I expect to hear from the company next?

This could be all the interviewees’ queries if there is no mention of the same. Asking such a general question would be appreciated, and make you look like an “aware” candidate.

  • Is there any other round in the selection process?

You could ask your query about the selection process. Whether this interview will be the final, decisive round or will there be a few more to go. 

  • Do the newly selected employee(s) go through any training?

As mentioned earlier, some employees can go through a training period before joining the team officially, some might not. All of it varies from company to company. It is better to be aware of whether you will be required to go through any training or not. If yes, you could rest and prepare yourself for the training, if not you might get a little bit anxious but hey, be excited because you might become the official employee at the company right away. 

  • Is there any other document I am required to submit?

In case you came across a qualification requirement you did not know earlier, it is better if you submit a document regarding that. This could only work in your favor. So be tension-free and ask if anything else by you is to be submitted. 

  • Do you have any questions regarding my qualifications for this job?

This you can to the interviewer in an attempt to highlight any of your qualifications. However, try not to sound very overconfident, or else you might be rejected. 

Here, we end our list of questions you could ask about the company to your interviewer or any superior. Hope this was of any help.

Remember to not be afraid of asking questions, instead know that appropriate questions are always appreciated as they make you look aware and curious. So go ahead and clear your doubts!

Anyway, good luck with the job!

Questions to Ask About Company

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to top