6 Helpful Ways to Identify a Company Culture & Environment that is a Good Match  

I’m a recent college graduate with a surprising situation – I was able to go through an abundance of job interviews, before I had actually even left campus. In a way, I had planned for it: during my college education, my main focus was on building my resumé, my networking skills, and my interviewing process in order to become a successful candidate for employment.

Also, while still in school, I juggled professional writing, editing and marketing positions alongside Honors coursework, peer tutoring and leadership in campus organizations – all of which led to the usual, “You have quite a lot on your resumé for a brand-new graduate” from almost all the employers who interviewed me.

But the truth was that I had been so focused on being an ideal candidate – on landing a job, any job – that I didn’t consider one of the most key aspects of choosing a position: workplace culture. Consequently, I ended up with a position that interested me – but in a workplace culture that didn’t fit.  Just weeks after announcing my new job to friends and family, I had to let them know that it didn’t work out.

So when I returned to the job market, I realized how important it was to truly answer this question before accepting an offer: “Will the company culture fit with my personality, career goals, strengths and weaknesses?” Since then, here are six key aspects I noticed to help figure out what the workplace culture will be at your prospective employer:

1. Ask about the company culture at every stage of the interview process.
Many organizations may have you meet several different key players in the hierarchy. Take every opportunity to ask each what he or she sees as the typical company culture.

2. Ask questions beyond just “What is the company culture?”
I used to ask this question because I found it on many lists of smart questions to ask during an interview. Now I ask this question because I need to know if I want to work for the company – but I supplement it with other, roundabout questions that provide a subtle way of divining this information.

Why this is important: most interviewers will tell you that their company culture is great and why they think that’s so – but the truth is, it could be great for them and still be a terrible fit for you. So ask other follow-up questions during the conversation, such as, “What are three personality traits you’d use to describe your current team?” or “What is the onboarding and training process for this position?” If an interviewer stresses that there is no structured training process or that everyone on the team works individually and you know that isn’t you, it’s better to find out before you accept a job.

3. Consider taking the job for a trial period.
The best test of whether an employer is a good fit is by working with them for a trial period before officially onboarding. Many people are afraid of temporary-to-permanent positions or internships that may lead to full-time positions, but these kinds of jobs can be an excellent route to see whether a business is the right fit.

So if you’re particularly interested in a full-time, permanent position with a company or organization, you can always suggest a trial day or week of work. Let employers know that you want to not only prove your skills and abilities, but see how the workplace culture fits. Employers don’t want to hire someone who won’t enjoy working there, so it’s likely they will consider your offer.

4. Research online, and ask former or current employees.
There are excellent websites, such as Glassdoor, where you can find free content about working for an employer. (Difficulty can arise when you are looking at a smaller or newer employer, and there are no reviews online.) In those cases, you can try to reach out to current or former employees via LinkedIn, and see if they’d be willing to tell you what it’s like to work there.

5. Pay attention to the language that is used in the interview process.
I was dismissive of the language used during the interview process, and this was the main reason I failed to see a bad workplace culture fit before it happened: in that scenario, the interviewers talked a lot about how difficult the position was, and how necessary it was for the employee to be “perfect.”

I thought of it as a challenge to take on (since I have overcome many other professional challenges), instead of seeing the misplaced fit, given that I’m the type of person who doesn’t believe in perfect, but rather in constant improvement and effort.  Thus, I missed the cue that “perfect” was a word that indicated the company held very different values than I did!

6. Ask about lunch breaks, company teambuilding and out-of-work activities.
It can be indicative of close-knit, relaxed company culture if they host lunch breaks that employees take together — whether they eat at the cafeteria or go out for a meal at a restaurant.  It goes without saying that scenario would not be everyone’s choice on a regular basis, so consider that when envisioning your daily routine at the potential company.

Also, it can be helpful to ask how employees spend their downtime, if you won’t have a chance to see for yourself: do people hang out in the break room, signing karaoke and drinking beer?  You want to know if the workplace culture is the right fit for you: some people prefer very relaxed cultures, while others like to remain professional and extremely work-focused while they’re at work.

All of this is to say that the notion of workplace culture is just as important to enjoying your job as the actual duties – if not more.  Why? Because if you love your employer and what they do, you’re more likely to be passionate about even the most mundane tasks, such as drafting emails and scheduling events.

So keep a list of questions and pay attention to the answers you receive during the interview process: it’ll help you decide if this is the job for you — or if you should keep searching.