Things You Should Consider Before Accepting a Job Offer

Although the paycheck is the only thing people think about before accepting a job, there is more than this involved in the equation. Of course, salary matters, but other parts of the compensation package or even training opportunities matter enormously. Besides, you want to make sure that the employer is a reliable one. You want to be sure that for that paycheck you won’t have to take extra working hours or double shifts. And most certainly, you want to make sure that your employer’s workplace attitude is a positive one. Here are some things that you may want to consider before jumping into that boat and accepting a job offer.

Carefully assess the job offer

Before you say yes to any job offer give yourself some time to think of the offer as a whole. Consider the whole compensation scheme. The salary, benefits, work environment and working hours matter enormously, not only how much you’ll be paid from month to month. The monthly salary may allow you to pay your expenses and food, but the perks are those that will help you raise your living standard. Also, the work environment matters enormously. This is what will determine your workplace productivity and your future mental state. Think about how happy you will be working the job you are about to accept. Is the job description making you happy? The schedule is another thing you should pay attention to. If you will have to work extra hours on a frequent basis, you may want to reconsider your decision.

Think of the pros and cons of working that job and compare it to other offers you might have received. You may be surprised to find out that other jobs are better, although, at first glance, they didn’t look like.

Employee benefits matter

Health insurance, retirement plans, these are things that you should consider before accepting a job offer. Other perks that might make a job appealing are vacation plans and disability plans, sick leave and other similar compensations. Take your time and compare different job offers. You won’t be asked to accept the offer right away so this won’t damage your employment chances. A good retirement plan is more important than a bigger salary, in most of the cases. But make sure that you assess your retirement plan carefully. A great retirement plan should weigh more than a generous salary at another employer, so make sure that you make a good decision.

The history of your employer matters

Have you ever thought of checking your employer’s history and background? A background check matters enormously and you should perform it before accepting the job. This will offer more information on your future employer and the company if they previously had any sort of legal issues and so on. It will help you get a better image of how your activity in their enterprise will look like and the company’s stability.

Assess which are the perks and benefits you give up by leaving your current job

Unless you are working a horrible job, there are most probably some things that you love about your current employer. Assess the perks and see if you will still have them by switching jobs. Make a list of the pros and cons of your current job and compare those to the ones you will have at your potential future job. Maybe at your current job, you have short commute intervals. This should matter more than a couple of extra bucks offered by your future employer. In the end, comparing the two jobs will be fairly easy.

Will you have growth and development opportunities?

This is a topic that should be one of the main determinants before accepting a job. If you have growth and development opportunities, the company offers training programs for their employees and the promotion chances are real, you should most probably take the job. You have to think of your future career as well, not only what you currently have. It has been proven that employees that enjoy more development and growth opportunities are happier with the employer and their career choices. They also seem to deliver better in the workplace and be more productive.

New challenges and new skills will make you more valuable on the human resources market and will offer you more profitable and advantageous employment opportunities in the future. The pace at which employees are promoted inside the company also matters, thus, assess that carefully as well.

Do you feel comfortable in with your future employer’s corporate culture?

Everyone has their own idea about a positive corporate culture, so if yours doesn’t match your employer’s you may have a hard time in in the future. If you’re unproductive in an open-floor company, you will have a difficult time working in such work environments is you are the introverted type. If the workplace environment encourages collaboration, creativity and interaction and you’re not inclined to such behaviors, you will have a difficult time adapting, so assess this aspect carefully. Other variables that you should pay attention to are the noise level, the physical space available, the behavior of your colleagues and employer. These all will determine how comfortable you’ll be feeling in your new workplace but also how fast you will adapt.

Why do current employees leave your potential employer?

If you hate stress but this job is the one that makes people leave in herds because of it? Well, you may want to reconsider the whole employment opportunity. This is unlikely to bring any long-term benefits to your career or financial status. Search for a company that values diversity and pay big attention to why former employees have left the workplace. It may be a manager with a toxic leadership mentality or it may be something worse, but inform yourself.

These are some of the most important things that you should do and consider before accepting a job offer. If you don’t pay close attention, you may end up in the worst workplace environment until then and you will most likely regret the decision.