The most important questions to ask before accepting your next tech role

Disclaimer: The contents of this blog are not a commitment of Bumble’s employment conditions.

Getting the answers you want to hear from a prospective employer has a big impact on whether or not you’ll choose to work there. We’re talking about going beyond the obvious: “what’s the salary”, and finding out vital information that could save you from a role that isn’t the best fit for you.

Of course, most companies won’t provide everything on your wish list, but this should help you understand what’s most important for you.

Ethics and principles

When considering a new tech role, it’s really important to find out whether the heart of the company aligns with your ethics and principles.

• How do you offset your environmental impact? With climate change becoming more and more of an urgent concern, what steps are they taking to reduce their carbon footprint? A large company with a comprehensive sustainability initiative, or small company making small efforts like reusable cups and minimal air conditioning could be a good indicator.
• What’s your data protection policy? Would you entrust your own data to this company? If not, this could be a red flag.
• How much parental leave do you provide? If you’re thinking of having a baby (or already in the process: congratulations!), it will be really important for you in the short term. It’s also a good indicator of their approach to gender equity in tech.
• What’s your overall approach to diversity, equality, inclusion, and belonging? Equity for all is beneficial for everyone, not just underrepresented communities, although support for those groups should always be a priority in an ethical organization.
• What do you do with old devices? Some companies will simply store them until they rot. This is e-waste. If they’re still usable, some companies sell them at a discount or give them away to people who need them.
• How does the company protect my health? This goes beyond physical health coverage, to mental health support. It might also include HR policies that protect you against any employee behavior that is not desirable!

Perks and freedom

Of course, a competitive salary is important, but if the difference between different tech roles isn’t too significant, dive deeper.

• What’s your pension offering? The flexibility of this could be as important as the contributions when thinking about your future.
• What are your offices like? With workforces becoming more and more distributed, it’s worth asking this if office life is important to your happiness and productivity.
• What’s your approach to flexible/remote working? If your personal circumstances mean that flexible and/or remote working is best for you, understand their policy and how it plays out day-to-day.
• Do you allow working from other countries? Many companies now offer the option of spending some time working abroad, which could be beneficial for you if you’re from overseas or have family you’d like to visit.
• Which well-being perks do you offer? It’s now more and more common for companies to support the costs of exercising and well-being in general.
• Do you organise team-building activities? Find out what they are!

Continuity and growth

Just like a broadband provider, an employer might bamboozle you with offers at the beginning, but make sure they’re going to be able to help you stay motivated in the long run.

• What will my first month look like? Understand your onboarding process, and whether that will suit your learning.
• How do you encourage writing articles and speaking at conferences? Companies that embrace this kind of mentality might be more open and transparent generally, and means that they want to engage in your community. They may even compensate you.
• What are my possible career paths? You may like your position today, but at some point, you may ask yourself if this is the end of the road, or how you can climb the ladder. Coaching others, leading a team, being the expert in a specific topic, or deciding the future of a product are important aspects of understanding where your path is heading.
• Do you offer paid courses? Will the company support you financially as you wish to grow your knowledge? And is there a minimum term you need to meet to be eligible?
• How do you do performance reviews? Find out how you’ll realistically achieve your career plan. You may only be eligible for promotions or salary increases at certain times. You might also want to find out whether 360 reviews are in place, where you’re also able to give feedback to your peers and managers.

Ways of working

Knowing the basics of what you will end up doing is pretty important, but you’d be surprised how many times we skip the most important questions.

• What’s your release policy? Whether you’ll be doing this yourself or not, knowing the release policy (For example, They never release on Friday, everything’s automatic by default, or nothing untested goes to the next release) can give you peace of mind.
• What is your policy on open (or closed) source projects? Many times, personal growth also means that you want to expand your knowledge and abilities outside of company time. It’s important to find out whether you’ll be able to use company time and resources on open source projects, and understand their open source policy.
• What happens when a bug is detected? If a spotless product is priority number one, workloads could change frequently as bugs need to be fixed, which can make for a bit of a hectic culture. That might be right for you, but it’s good to know in advance.
• How do you determine when a task is done? If the terms ‘Definition of Done’, ‘Test Coverage’ or ‘Peer Review’ bring a smile to your face, make sure you find out which of these are part of your potential employer’s process.

To wrap up

I hope these questions serve as a good start for you to think about what’s important to you when choosing your next employer. And naturally, you’ll probably want to add some that are more specific to your circumstances. We can also hope that it’ll give tech companies an idea of what’s important to attracting awesome talent like you!

Have questions or feedback? Let me know in the comments or reach out to me on LinkedIn.