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What Questions Should a Prospective Employee Ask?
Mortimer.CA writes "Even though things aren't great in the economy, it's prudent to plan ahead to when things (hopefully) pick up. In light of that, I'd like to update a previously asked question in case things have changed over the last four years: What do you ask every new (prospective) employer? When you're sitting in the interview room after they've finished grilling you, there's usually an opportunity to reciprocate. There will be some niche questions for specializations (sys admin, programming, PM, QA, etc.), but there are some generic ones that come to mind, such as: what is the (official) dress code?"
Similarly, what questions should you avoid? Read on for the rest of Mortimer.CA's thoughts.
He continues with these suggestions:
"What about my resume caught your eye? What hardware/software am I expected to use at my desktop (e-mail, OS, editor, source control, etc.)? Are there team lunches or get-togethers? What are your goals for the next six months, one year, three years? What ticket/issue tracking system do you use? Do you have separate build/stage/QA/etc. environments? How do you keep track of documentation? What are your full names (so I can Google them)? What are the typical hours of the team members? Those are some of the ones I've thought of after some digging around. Are there the generic ones that you ask? What are some question for various niches? (e.g., for sysadmins: what config mgmt software do you use?)"
"What about my resume caught your eye? What hardware/software am I expected to use at my desktop (e-mail, OS, editor, source control, etc.)? Are there team lunches or get-togethers? What are your goals for the next six months, one year, three years? What ticket/issue tracking system do you use? Do you have separate build/stage/QA/etc. environments? How do you keep track of documentation? What are your full names (so I can Google them)? What are the typical hours of the team members? Those are some of the ones I've thought of after some digging around. Are there the generic ones that you ask? What are some question for various niches? (e.g., for sysadmins: what config mgmt software do you use?)"
n/t
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
Do you have manditory drug testing?
Are you a slashdotter?
"I've worked in England and the policy on assault is pretty strict there. If you hit somone, immediate dismissal. What's your policy here? [cracks knuckles]"
Legendary question in by a candidate for a job in Sweden.
echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
Like bandwidth caps 'n stuff?
Just how [in]competent is the management here?
So that i don't dirty my lips when i kiss them!
... then ask them to call it, heads or tails?
Run and catch, run and catch, the lamb is caught in the blackberry patch.
No, that makes it sound like you already don't like the job you haven't even been offered yet. Instead, ask about career paths, ask where your co-workers came from (internal new-hires, transfers/promotions, etc.), and where former group members are now. Asking how often people get promoted makes you sound like a civil servant "wannabe", probably not your best interview tactic.
So I guess asking: "If I start working for you now, how much time will I have until your next round of mass layoffs is planned to unfold?" is out of the question too?
The only question I can think of is,
"Are you hiring?"
www.eissq.com/BandP.html Ball and Plate System. Amuse your friends. Crush your enemies.
I agree. To some people, this is rather imporant.
Many companies don't have any staff cantine and you can only get bagles within walking distance.
If you're not the packed lunch guy, this is pretty bad.
Ask them if food in the refrigerator is considered communal.
echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
Spit or swallow?
* Carthago Delenda Est *
Better than where I work! Our policy is "no blood on the carpet".
OTOH, your contract allows the beating of customers. They've both got their pros and cons, I guess.
If I mod you up, it doesn't necessarily mean I agree with what you've said, sorry.
1. Do you use source control?
No, we expect the source to exercise self-control. It's a grown-up like the rest of us.
2. Can you make a build in one step?
That depends on what we're building. We've built some monumental cluster-fucks with one step. I mean, if you don't want the self-destruct button pressed, then don't make it a big red button that just screams out to be pushed.
3. Do you make daily builds?
On some days.
4. Do you have a bug database?
The biggest on the planet, if not the galaxy!
5. Do you fix bugs before writing new code?
Sometimes, but we usually fix bugs after writing new code.
6. Do you have an up-to-date schedule?
Yes, and it says I'm due at the gym now, so make this snappy.
7. Do you have a spec?
A spec of what?
8. Do programmers have quiet working conditions?
I'm told that some do, somewhere.
9. Do you use the best tools money can buy?
Yes, we use the best commercial tools we can find on Usenet.
10. Do you have testers?
Yes, I never eat a meal without having someone else try it first. If I had a dollar for every time I dodged a cyanide bullet...
11. Do new candidates write code during their interview?
Yes, "SOS" is a code, isn't it?
12. Do you do hallway usability testing?
We used to, but we found our hallways to be quite usable. So we stopped.