TCW #051: A comprehensive "before you accept the job offer" checklist

Current job? Check. Personal goals? Check. Compensation? Check. Check. Check.

Hey, it’s 📣 Coach Erika! Welcome to a 🙏 paid subscriber edition🙏 of The Career Whispers. Each week, I tackle reader questions about tech careers: how to get one, how to navigate them, and how to grow and thrive in your role.

Because today’s post is aimed at helping you in your next job search, here’s a list of my top 5 job search-related posts:

1. TCW #001: The Minimum Viable Interview Prep part 1 of 4: Crafting a Strategic, Compelling Career Story 📚🎤

2. TCW #011: Debugging your resume 🔎 🐜

3. TCW #028: A guide to tech job searching in a soft talent market (2023-2024) 👩🏻‍💻👨🏾‍💻

4. TCW #033: How to spot green flags and red flags in job postings ❌ ✅

5. TCW #016: How to Throw Green Flags, not Red Flags (in Job Interviews)🚦

Subscribe to The Career Whispers to access these posts and every future post.

---

(setting the scene)

You’ve polished up your resume. You’ve learned how to tell a compelling career story, how to master behavioral questions, and how to prepare for interviews. You networked into several interviews and passed your recruiter screens with 100% green flags. You’ve been interviewing for a few weeks (or months), and it looks like an offer is coming down the chute from one of the companies you’re interested in.

You don’t want to burn any bridges when leaving your current role, and you want to set yourself up for success in this one (if you accept it).

This post is a comprehensive checklist of what to do for:

• your current role and employer [Current role]

• ensuring personal alignment [Personal fit]

• other in-flight interview processes [Other opportunities]

• the role on the table [Role offered]

This list will help you assess the offer and your options even if you don’t plan to accept it. It’s a checklist to check yourself whenever you have an offer in hand.

Let’s dive in 🤿

Pre-offer acceptance checklist

1. [Personal fit] Ask yourself: does this role further my career aspirations? Does it offer the growth and development opportunities you seek? Does it offer the kind of assignments that will inspire you to do your best work? If yes, great. If not, what’s your one strategic reason for taking the role?

2. [Personal fit] Assess work-life fit. Evaluate the work culture, typical working hours and time zones, office location / remote work options, and expected workload. Make sure it fits your idea of a healthy work-life balance. If not, ask yourself what you would need to make it work. Then, ask for it.

Example: I coached a client recently to ask (before accepting the offer) about moving office locations from the proposed location to one much closer to their home. This move would reduce their commute by >1.5 hours a day. The client was fearful that they were asking too much and that the offer would get pulled. The company quickly accepted the proposal (within 5 hours), and my client was stunned. If they had never asked, they would lose 1.5 hours a day to a long, exhausting commute. Ask for what you need.

3. [Current role] Know your notice period requirements. If you’re in the US, it’s a custom to provide a 2-week notice (though in most states, none is required). If you’re in other parts of the world, review your contract and understand your notice period requirements.

4. [Role offered] Clarify the job title and responsibilities. Ensure clarity on your title, role responsibilities, and expectations. Ask about opportunities for growth and development for this specific role (“What does the growth path look like?”). Are you satisfied with the job that’s being offered? It’s not ideal to take an offer if you’re more excited about the next role than the one offered. Be sure it’s enough of a stretch role, and avoid roles that will stretch you to a breaking point 😰

5. [Role offered] Know what you’re getting into—team and manager. Throughout your interviews, you should gather intel about the team and manager's reputation, leadership style, and cultural fit. If you haven’t already, ask to connect with the manager to learn more about their leadership style (some questions to ask). You should also ask to connect with potential team members for an informal chat over coffee.

6. [Role offered] Know what you’re getting into — company culture & values. (If you didn’t already do this before your interviews): Research the company's culture, values, and employee reviews on platforms like Glassdoor or Blind. Keep in mind: Blind tends to offer more extreme and pessimistic perspectives. It’s important to ask yourself if you’d be OK if the worst of what you read is the reality on the ground. If not, I highly suggest asking for follow-up conversations with your future manager and one-over manager to learn more about what’s working and what needs improvement for organizational health and culture.

7. [Role offered] Ask about compensation philosophy and the components of total compensation. Understanding how they think about compensation and knowing all the comp levers puts you in a more informed position to negotiate. While you’re there, ask them to share the compensation bands for the role (if it wasn’t shared before or wasn’t on the job description).

8. [Role offered] Get the brief on benefits. Ideally, the company will have a brochure or one-pager that you can review. Deep dive into health insurance (coverage and premiums, remember that both will affect your cash position), paid time off (PTO), parental leave, 401(k) match (and custodian management fees), HSA/FSA/DCFSA, life insurance, mega backdoor Roth eligibility, and other benefits. Evaluate their adequacy and alignment with your needs.

9. [Role offered] Double-click on the company financials. Analyze the company's financial health, growth trajectory, and potential for stability and future success.

• Early-stage startup: ask about profitability, money raised to date, and runway (in months)