A friend has been approached by a competitor of their firm and is pondering whether to take the job offer, despite not knowing the salary details. How can he or she make an informed decision about this opportunity?
Your friend must be doing a good job for the competitor to approach them. Since you are considering moving within the same industry, you must be aware of the challenges that the competitor is going through. If you don’t, it would be prudent to approach a current employee and get to understand the strategy of the company, their turnover and profitability, challenges they are experiencing and most critically, the culture of the organisation.
What do the employees say about the culture that exists? Are there training opportunities offered by the employer? The average length of service is also an indicator of the culture in the organisation.What about the role? Is it a new role in the organisation and if it is, what informed the decision to create it? If it is an existing role, it is important to understand how the former holder of the post left, how long they were in the role and how their career evolved over the period. All these are factors that your friend should consider to avoid making career blunder. They might move and find that they stagnate in the role.
The role that you report to is critical because it gives an indication of the seniority of the role under consideration. If possible get feedback on the kind of person who will be your boss. You might get a good position but if you don’t strike a rapport with your boss, you may not enjoy your stay in the organisation. Ask them to request for the job description to fully understand the role.
In the digital era, some employers are adopting hybrid working, where employees can work for some days at home and others in the office.Find out if the prospective employer has such an option. Also seek to understand the benefits offered compared to the current benefits. Any shortfall in benefits should be compensated in the salary offered by the new employer.
Your friend should not take a job blindly as they might jump from the frying pan to the fire. How are they even considering taking the job without information on the salary? What if they find that the pay is less than what they are currently earning? Are they willing to take a pay cut? I would like to understand the motive for moving. Is their current role under threat? Are they running away from a financially troubled organisation?
Advise your friend to only consider the offer if given in a formal letter with all the details on salary and applicable benefits enumerated.
