Researching Companies

Over the last several years, I’ve been in college classrooms across the country talking with business students about finding the perfect job opportunity and researching potential companies.   I’ve been asked dozens of questions on the topic.  Here are few comments and questions from my last guest lecture at Loras College:   

• It would be so cool to work for Apple or Facebook 
• I really want a company that has a single mission and focus 
• Is it best to start in a small or large company? 
• How do I learn about what it’s like to work for this company?

There are many things to consider when researching companies.  What is their business?  How competitive is their product or service?  Are they a market leader or follower?  Are they a sustainable company?  Do they value philanthropy?  Are employees generally happy working there?  Do they promote from within or hire outside?  Is there are rotating door at the top or consistency? Many of these things can be gleaned through the internet but assessing company culture requires that you go beyond conventional research and actually talk to people.  

Here are a few things to consider when researching a company.  

1. Go beyond the marketing website; meet people who work there.  It’s one thing to read and watch marketing and financial information about a company and a whole different experience to engage with an existing employee.  To learn about what it’s like to work there you need to speak with someone other than the hiring manager.  Ideally you would also talk with someone who left the company as well.  Why did they leave?  What did they like/dislike about the firm? 
2. The consumer brand and the workplace are not necessarily aligned.  Don’t be fooled.  Some of the best consumer brands on the planet are not the best places to work.  Learn about who is behind the brand and how well the brand connects the employees with their customers.  Some of the most boring business brands are great places to work.  The pipeline company in Nebraska, Chesapeake Energy is one such example. They are rated #18 in the nation. 
3. Best Company to work for lists is a good starting point.  Each year Fortune does a run down on the best companies to work for in America.  This research process is completely governed by anonymous surveys of the employees of these companies.(not marketing guys like me).  My previous company, Hyperion, was on this list and it was truly an outstanding company to work for.  No amount of public relations or marketing strategy can do wonders than being on this list – especially for recruiting new employees.  I have worked with several of the companies on this list and they are amazing places.
   
4. Company leadership trumps company size.  The leadership of the company is far more important than how many employees they have.  Who are they? How did they get to their position?  How strong is their business ethics?  Do they give back to the community?  Answering these questions are far more critical than company size.

Have a great day!