Choose Your Boss Wisely
11:53 AM Wednesday April 20, 2011
by Priscilla Claman
Most job-seekers aren't just looking for the right work — they're looking for the right manager, too. To a large extent a manager will control your assignments and your work environment, so it makes sense to try to learn more about her long before you're hired.
But in an hour-long interview with a hiring manager, you will be lucky to get fifteen minutes to ask your own questions. For this reason, as a job candidate you should not only be concerned with your answers to a hiring manager's questions, and but also a potential manager's answers to your questions.
It was early in my career when I first used this technique. I was the interviewee, and let's just say the hiring manager reputedly had a management style akin to that of a Mafia boss — ruthless, and obsessed with loyalty. I asked if there was someone working for him that he considered a real star that I could learn from. He was quick to answer:
"That would be Barbara. One time, I gave her an assignment and she came back to me pleading that I give it to someone else. She didn't feel comfortable doing it, and said that in all the years she had worked for me she had never asked for anything but this. Of course, I told her that I had given her an assignment, and expected her to do it. Barbara said, 'Yes, boss,' and did it. And that is why she is the star on my team."
I learned more about his management style in that answer than if I had asked him directly. I had enough information right there to make my own decision.
To make an informed judgment about your potential boss, it's important to ask the right questions during the interview:
1.Start out by asking about a past project or accomplishment in detail. Get into specifics. Instead of hearing responses like, "I believe in delegating to my people," you'll want to get to, "We had a weekly meeting on the project, and people came to me between meetings with something they wanted my help with..." Make it a point to find out what the manager did, not just what she read in the latest issue of HBR. This way you'll begin to understand how she actually conducts business in practice, and whether or not that's a culture you want to be a part of.
2.Ask about customers or colleagues. A good starting point is, "Can you give me an example of a typical customer, and what they are like?" Not only do you want to know what the customers are like, but also the manager's attitude toward customers. If you are great with customers and your manager doesn't respect them, your manager probably won't like you. And if you treat customers the way your manager does — i.e., without respect — your customers won't like you either.
Even before the Q&A section of the interview, look for repeated patterns of unconscious behavior. This will help you predict future behavior. Notice how the interviewer is saying things, not just what he is saying. Does he spend a lot of time talking about himself? Does he often use the word "I," and never use "we" to describe his department? You can expect that manager to be pretty self-focused. Or, does the manager talk about "the team" and compliment or refer to others on the team? If you are a team-oriented person, you probably will have an easier time working for the second manager, regardless of what the job is.
Listen carefully during the interview. Does the manager grill you? Challenge your answers? Not let you get a word in edgewise? You can expect that to continue on the job. Or, does the manager welcome you? Show you around? Give you a chance to present yourself? You can expect that in the future, too.
Just as in my interview with Mr. Mafia Management Style, get the data on your potential boss early on — then decide if he's the right manager for you. This way, when you accept an offer after you have learned what to expect from your manager, you are much more likely to be secure in your success.
And if you're wondering if I answered "yes" to the offer from the "boss" — well — that's a topic for another time.
Priscilla Claman is president of Career Strategies, Inc., a Boston-based firm offering career coaching to individuals and career management services to organizations. Priscilla is a former corporate Human Resources executive and author of the book, ASK: How to Get What You Want and Need at Work.
Something New Called Focus 2!
Focus 2 is a new program here with Career Services! We are very excited about it.
It helps you decide what your major should be!
OR if you have a job you want it tells you what major would be best!
FOCUS-2 is a self-guided, online career and education planning tool for use by college students. It will enable you to assess your interests, values, skills, personality, and aspirations as they relate to careers and college majors. FOCUS-2 is designed to help you choose the best major for you and explore occupations that match your profile. Students who use FOCUS-2 make better decisions about their goals and plans and learn how to manage their careers.
Be sure to check it out today!
Etiquette Tip of the Week:
Some people introduce a guest speaker, then make a run for it. Can't get away fast enough. They are moving at such a pace that they should be sponsored by Nike or Gatorade. The guest speaker has not even reached the stage and the person who introduced him or her flies by without even shaking hands. Or that person dives off the stage in the opposite direction. Where's the fire?
When introducing a speaker, wait at the lectern until the speaker gets there. Shake hands with the speaker, then walk --don't run-- back to your seat. If you are the guest speaker, wait for the emcee to return to the lectern and shake hands before departing.
As you know, it’s polite to give credit where credit is due. Thus these tips are from www.cultureandmanners.com
This will be the last blog post for this school year. It will start back up again in August. Be looking for it!
Thank you to all who have read the blog this year!
-Career Services Office
