PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKBy: Matt Morava Last Updated: June 13, 2014

INTENT

It’s graduation time and as a gift I thought I’d post on SlideShare my preemployment workbook that I created years ago for clients. It’s intended to be used during the interview process for a new position. Congratulations graduates and good luck in your new positions!

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOK

Goal -- The purpose of this document is to help you discover if your head, heart, gut, and root are in alignment in looking at this new opportunity. Specifically focused on areas of strengths, values, personality, and communication styles. !!Question One: What initially attracted you to this position? !!More specifically, What do you like about the organization? !!!! Positive attributes you’ve observed in your future supervisor? !!!! Positive attributes you’ve observed of your team and department? !!! And your role?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOK

Question Two: Based on what you know right now, list any concerns you have regarding the organization itself, your supervisor, your team, your role, and/or your ability to perform this position at the highest levels of performance:

The Organization --

Your Supervisor --

Your Team --

Your Role --

Your Ability To Perform at the Highest Levels --

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOK

Question Three: List your top Five Strengths (from StrengthFinders 2.0) and identify how you imagine they might be utilized in this new role:

Strength How Will It Be Utilized?

1

2

3

4

5

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOK

Question Four: What are the core values you’ll bring to this position and how well do they line up with the values of the organization? Provide examples

Your Value How you see the organization sharing this value?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOK

Question Five: How will this position increase your value in the job market? In other words, in 2-3 years time from now will you have advanced your skills, experience, knowledge, and professionalism in a tangible way that makes you more valuable in your chosen field?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKQuestion Six: Quick Checklist of the Essentials

Did you complete a due diligence on this organization -- Yes or No?

This includes research on the executive team, organizational history, and financials using sites like Google, Yahoo and Glassdoor.

Do you understand and share the mission and vision of this organization... Yes or No?

Have you interviewed past and present employees... Yes or No?

Have you met any of your potential peers... Yes or No?

Does the salary range meet your expectations... Yes or No?

Can you see yourself staying for 2-3 years... Yes or No?

Do you have multiple offers? Yes or No?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKQuestion Seven: What resources (time, financial, leadership support, materials) will you require to be successful in this position and do you have them?

Question Eight: List two or three directions your career might take after you’ve completed your time in this new position....

Question Nine: Do you have a best friend, or see a potential for a best friend, in the organization? It maybe too soon, but any potential candidates so far?

Question Ten: Is it clear to you how and when your performance will be measured and evaluated?

Question Eleven: What about this organization’s culture appeals to you? Do you share similar communication styles? Similar outlook on life? Similar pace?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKQuestion Twelve: Quick Review of Pfeffer’s Seven --

1. Is employment security offered? What’s the involuntary and voluntary turnover rates? Who was the last person to hold your position? Why did they leave? If new, why did they create it? 2. Is there selective hiring? Do you respect their hiring process so far? Do you get a sense of what they’re looking for? (Sloppy recruiting process can indicate a risk of failure in this position.) 3. How much hierarchy exists in the organization? Are there self-managed teams? 4. Competitive wages for the field and position? 5. What’s their training and development like? How much training and development is offered and of what kind? 6. Is there a reduction in status? Do you see any evidence of how senior leadership interacts with lower-level positions? Is there access to senior leadership? 7. Transparency. How much of the organization’s goals and strategies are shared with line-level employees? Is there an “open-book” policy when it comes to management? Do you know how much the CEO makes?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKQuestions to ask during the interview process… Company:

What's one thing that's key to this company's success that somebody from outside the company wouldn't know about?

What type of people are successful here? What type of people are not?

Team/Group/Role:

Describe the team/group structure and how this role fits within this organization.

How is information shared? How do I get access to the information I need to be successful in this job? Who/what are my dependencies? Are there any bottlenecks? What's the biggest change your group has gone through in the last year? Does your group feel like the tough times are over and things are getting better, or are things still pretty bleak? What's the plan to handle to either scenario?

What is the rhythm to the work around here? Is there a time of year that it's "all hands on deck" and we're pulling all-nighters, or is it pretty consistent throughout the year? How about during the week / month? Is it pretty evenly spread throughout the week / month, or are there crunch days?

What groups within the company will I need to work with for this position? What are your group's best and worst working relationships with other groups in the company?

What are the pain points you have to deal with day-to-day?

PREEMPLOYMENT WORKBOOKPosition:

What are the challenges/difficulties associated with this position?

Are these challenges technical, process-oriented or environment?

How have these challenges been addressed and resolved in the past? What are the long term expectations with this position?

What are the key accomplishments you'd like to see in this role over the next year?

If we are going to have a very successful year in 2015, what will that look like? What will we have done over the next 13 months to make it successful? How does this position help achieve those goals?

Management:

How would you describe your Leadership style?

What is the first assignment you intend to give me? Where does that assignment rank in the

department's priorities?

Speaking hypothetically, if we were working on a project together and had a disagreement how would you handle it?

What are the biggest problems facing this department in the next six months and one year?

How are performance reviews managed/organized?