Corporations Aversion To Mentoring is real, even to the point where some new hires do not have a chance of being adequately welcomed. The truth is that many human resource formalities are useless – or at least viewed as such – whether it is a startup with limited resources or a larger company that is deploying its resources elsewhere.
So, if you find yourself sliding through a new job without an acclimatization roadmap, there are ways to get started. It takes a little more entrepreneurship than you may be used to, but your efforts will be rewarded when you choose to take matters into your own hands.
The onboarding itself begins during the interview process
One of the luxuries of being in the same room (or sharing a computer screen) with your potential bosses is that Ability to ask the right questions. Even if you’re expecting a standard onboarding process, you can prepare for a potential absence by asking about your job and the company on a broader basis. Ask the interviewer who you will report to, which teams you can work with, and about the company’s long-term strategy and vision.
If you are not invited for an interview by one of your direct supervisors or if there are more experienced colleagues on the team who you have not yet met, send them an email to express your interest in the position and, if so feels right, choose their minds over what their team is doing.
How Glassdoor says so, “Such proactivity may seem unsettling, but it could set you apart as a a top candidate. In addition, you will be much better prepared when you land the position. ”
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Understand who is running your business
It is important to know who runs the company, where they come from and what they have done over the course of their career. Has the CEO or President of the company promised the moon in the past? Are they the type of business leaders who want to please shareholders at the expense of corporate culture? Do you clean your hands off one company after it goes public and then move on to the next company?
These are questions that you can likely find out by Googling the person in question or reading about previous companies they’ve run. The atmosphere in the workplace usually radiates downwards, so knowing who is in charge at the highest levels is important.
It’s also a good idea to understand your particular industry and the goals of the different companies in it. Startups, for example, often want to grow into a sustainable company before reaching the holy grail of going public. If you work in the publishing industry, especially for a legacy home, your main goal is likely to be to battle for the books with the greatest sales potential. These are only hypotheses, but your employer’s larger business interests will inevitably shape your work experience.
You always learn more than HR from honest colleagues
The word “networking” might make you moan, but if Human Resources doesn’t get you a feel for things, try speaking honestly with your co-workers to get a better understanding. As mentioned earlier, you can always talk to your coworkers about work-related matters, but you will likely find that many of your coworkers are open to talking about corporate morals, the headaches you may encounter, and other things a hiring manager may have normally not disclosed.
Of course, if you’re not happy to bark multiple trees in search of company information, go for the ones with high job satisfaction ratings on review sites like Glassdoor or on sites where you’ve heard positive things from trusted friends.
