How to Screen a Startup Before You Apply for that Golden Position

Does that job ad seem too good to be true? Fielding offers from multiple companies? Use these questions to guide your decisions before you apply or say yes.

Should you apply for any startup job just for the experience, or should you take your time to research the perfect company?

When you’re dying to get out of the corporate world, almost any job ad in the startup realm will seem too good to pass up.

But you don’t want to find out after you leave a steady paycheck that you maybe should have done more research about what you were getting yourself into.

A lack of funding, leadership, culture, or vision can all be hard to spot if you don’t know the red flags to look for.

And since the hiring process at a startup is typically a lot quicker, you’ll want to do your due diligence before you send off any resumes or entertain offers from multiple companies.

So this checklist of questions can be used while you’re scoping out job ads to help you decide if you should spend time applying, and also be used to help you decide how you feel when you have the choice of offers.

Let’s start with what you can’t fake: passion.

Do You Believe in the Actual Product or Service?

Sure, it may sound cool, but…

Is it better than genius?

Does the product or service make you scratch your head and wonder why no one else thought of it first? Or does it already exist and this company simply improved the process or experience to make it extra?

You want a startup with a different, unique product or approach to a problem, but you also want to find one with high potential for growth.

So consider how well this model or concept is built in the present and where you see it evolving while you’ll be working there. Are you still excited?

Will there still be a need for this product or service in five years?

Will your position still be necessary? How do you anticipate it changing?

If you don’t see innovation, have a burning passion to bring this vision to the masses, or picture a future together, you’re not going to be passionate enough to weather the ups and downs of startup life.

Who are their competitors?

Every startup needs a noticeable competitive advantage.

So research their competitors and find out what gives them this leg up. Do they work faster, have better proprietary software, fills a void others don’t, etc.?

This matters because if a startup prizes their reputation for quick turnaround ahead of their competitors, for example, you’ll be expected to embody this selling point and may need to work double time.

What’s the traction like?

What are customers, fans, beta testers, detractors, etc. saying about this company online and in other niche-related communities?

Is traction strong considering how long the company has been around or does it lack the number of followers or customers the founders and CEO projected?

Companies with devoted customers or followers are doing something right whereas a startup that’s been around for three years and doesn’t even have a product for customers to test or buy is a definite warning sign.

Do You Have Confidence in the Founders and Leaders?

The ideal founders and heads of a startup have a history of solid leadership.

They most often come off successfully leading other companies to IPOs or acquisitions and want to do the same in a new realm.

But they can also be green to the whole startup world and super eager to prove their worth with little experience to back them up too.

So after you read the job description and an overview of the startup’s purpose, you’ll want to:

Creep the Founders.

Not in real life, don’t be that creepy.

You can now (professionally) stalk people on the internet.

Before you skip this section and think it’s weird, you have to understand startup culture starts at the top with the founders.

They’re the ones who set the tone for how everyone else thinks, treats each other, collaborates, and wins as a team.

So perform a quick search, check out a few LinkedIn pages, and see if your potential startup has leaders with a:

• Variety of experience in their industry. This may be years working for a startup, in the business world, or in tech. The more diversified the experience of the founders or leaders, and the more balanced their skill set, the more well-rounded the company may be.
• Connected, active network. Founders, advisors, and board members should all be linked to their schools, other corporations, former coworkers and employees, and top industry insiders.
• Dedication. Are the founders involved in 100% of the daily activities or is this just a side hustle while they work 9-to-5 jobs or near retirement?

Remember, what a founder values most is usually the quality they’re looking for in a new employee, so it pays to understand and learn as much about them before you send off your resume.

Is there room for professional development?

Many people think they’ll only work for a startup for a few years before they’re sipping margaritas on their private island paid for with equity.

The reality is employees use one startup success to get in the door at another one (and at a higher salary).

So it’s actually important for you to look for keywords in the company copy about providing employees with opportunities for growth, especially if you’re a new grad looking to gain valuable work experience.

With assigned mentors or founders who take an active role in supporting employees during collaborative work sessions, you’ll learn as much as you can in a very short amount of time.

How Do the Job Expectations and Benefits Compare?

You may be applying for jobs at multiple startups — and each of them will have different expectations for your work day results and benefits packages to lure you their way.

Answer these questions to compare all your options:

What’s expected of this position?

Working at a startup takes a very specific set of traits, including an ability to take on multiple roles and projects outside of your regular scope throughout the day.

Understanding the work culture at the startups you’re interested in may give you a better idea of what’s going to be expected of you as an employee.

Will you be on call 24/7? Are 12-hour days the norm? Do you have regular check-ins with project leaders?

If you can’t read between the lines of the job ad, check out what former and current employees have to say about working at each of these companies on sites like Glassdoor.

What are all the benefits?

You may be used to structured benefits in the corporate world, but that’s not always how things work in a startup.

Comparing benefits packages isn’t just about scoring the most vacation days; these benefits show which companies are far enough along to have thought about these perks for their employees.

So make a chart listing what you’re looking for and compare it with what each startup offers, including:

• Fair equity
• Retirement investment strategies
• Health insurance
• Gym membership
• Maternity/paternity leave
• Vacation days
• Meals or snacks
• Daycare

Having certain benefits can add to your compensation just as much as extra money in salary negotiations, and they’ll keep employees like you around longer too.

Your Startup Soulmate Is Out There

Now that you know more about what you’re getting yourself into with a startup job search, it’s time to start comparing positions and applying for the ones you mesh well with.

Don’t waste your time on other standard job boards.

Unicorn Hunt is Europe’s magical beast of a startup job board, with +10,000 unique users and hundreds of new positions posted each month.

Use these questions and you’ll not only learn more about every startup, but more about what you’re looking for in a job too.