During media interviews to mark his first 100 days as POTUS Donald Trump was asked, “What do you know now that you wished you had on day one?”.
He went on to comment that;
-Things happen slower than he would like
-The rules in congress and the senate are archaic
-Democrats are constantly blocking him
-There are things about being CEO of his own company he misses
-He can’t drive himself anymore
The list was quite long as you listened between the lines of a 30-minute interview. OK, OK I hear you say so what exactly does this have to do with Sales Force, Marketing Automation, Big Data and Business Intelligence recruitment?
It’s quite simple: Do Your Homework!
Over the years the team at Resource on Demand have interviewed thousands of candidates. One of our many questions we ask is “What has made you decide to start looking for a new role now?”
It’s not unusual to hear stories being recounted of a candidate 2 to 3 months into a new role realising that they have made a BIG mistake. Their exciting new role isn’t quite what they thought after all, or as one recent candidate I was chatting to put it “the company …SO…isn’t for me!”.
So what’s gone wrong or in the words of a wise mentor: What’s happened: What’s missing: What’s next?
Let’s take them one by one.
What’s happened:
Generally when candidates, whether they are Salesforce, Workday or Big data specialists, accept a new role, they are sure it’s right for them. Many have aspired to certain levels of roles for some time and are excited to start the next stage in their career.
Their first day arrives they are still super excited; the people are great, the induction programme goes well and then they quickly start to get to grips with the day to day activities in their new role. Suddenly it’s feeling like the honey moon period is ending rather too soon and yet they don’t want to make any hasty decisions. Then it’s ten weeks in, and they have decided they have given the job and company a fair go and …it’s not for them.
What’s missing:
Homework. Is it really that simple? To be honest yes.
Going back to America and Mr Trump for a moment. OK so America isn’t quite as old our country, and for the record, the Constitution is 226 years old. It was signed on September 17, 1787. The current era of Congress and the Senate dates back to the 1970’s according to Wikipedia. So it’s somewhat surprising for Donald Trump to state that being POTUS it’s not quite the same as being CEO of Trump International.
Did he really thing that the systems in Washington would change overnight to match his entrepreneurial ways of working?
It does beg the question, how much did he and his close advisers actually know about the political system they were going to have to operate in. If he had realised the reality of working the Washington system, would he still have put himself forward?
Back to our candidate looking for a new role because the old one was a mistake.
What homework had he done? I would politely suggest, not enough.
What’s next?
What research do we recommend that you do to ensure when you say YES and accept your next offer, it is the Right One for You?
1. Know the company
The good news is that companies share varying degrees of information on their website, generally in the “About Us” section. One way companies share how they stand out is through their vision, mission or values, which are typically prominently displayed.
Look for what’s different in this copy. For most Salesforce consultancies or marketing agencies “commitment to client service” is probably something that it shares with competitors. However, if you see something along the lines of;
As well as donating some of our profits to Charity X we offer our time, and hold regular fundraising events. We encourage all our staff to volunteer with Charity X. We also collaborate with our local college providing career guidance and by taking interns on board.
Make a note as this indicates some strong core values are coming through and it’s an area you can explore during your interview.
2. Why work for Company Y?
Some and not all companies have a Work For Us Page. Don’t worry if not as there are lots you can still explore. It’s highly likely that at some point during the interview process your potential new employer has Googled you.
Likewise, it’s good to return the compliment. While Google will be a great source of company, product and service information, go read corporate blogs as they can be gold mines. For example, take young companies that are growing. Whether it’s a post welcoming new team members or detailing new features of a recent software update, or software product launch, this is the kind of stuff you want to know about. This is what’s good to demonstrate you know during your interview.
Let’s not forget, social media. LinkedIn is also a good tool for learning about what kind of news the company communicates—and therefore wants you to know. Check out the company’s Twitter and Facebook profiles. Is the tone professional or casual? Is it nonstop promotion with zero interaction?
Are the company responding to complaints? Make a note of positive news with examples that you can referee to in your interview.
3. Become an undercover detective
While social media will give you a perspective, look for additional and external sources of information about the company’s culture.
What company videos can you find on YouTube that are less corporate videos and yet show employees talking about their company?
Head over to Glassdoor, can you find out what employees past and present are saying about the company? Better still, how could you find a past or current employee you can speak with, and try to build on what you already know.
You can ask something like, “I understand the company is working on growing its presence in Europe —can you tell me more?”
Or
“I am super keen to develop myself, what’s your experience of how the company supports its employee to develop, grow and progress in the business?” …Assuming you are of course!
Great candidates go the extra mile to research the company they plan to make their next career move to. Do your homework, demonstrate this in the interview, ask more delving questions
about what’s different and you will put yourself in the best possible position to avoid your own
‘Donald Trump’ 100 day moment.
Resource On Demand (ROD) is Europe’s first specialist Salesforce Recruitment Agency. They were founded in 2007 and are highly respected across the entire Salesforce ecosystem. Their specialist areas of recruitment include; Salesforce (SFDC); digital marketing and marketing automation technologies, which include Eloqua, Marketo, ExactTarget and Pardot; Human Capital Management (HCM) technologies such as Workday and SAP HCM and SuccessFactors.
For more information contact ROD on rod@resourceondemand.com or on 020 8123 7769.