Recognise These Red Flags During a Job Interview

The last thing you want is to accept a job offer that you will later regret. You have the right to decline the job offer if at any time during the interview process you come across a red flag. Recognising a red flag is symbolic of warning signs you must not avoid.

Before we dive into what these red flags are. Lets understand what is the right question that can open the floor for discussion which may or may not lead to such red flags.
The Most Important Question

It is necessary and logical to ask during an interview of why the position is currently open. There could be multiple reasons for this – expansion, another employee moving out for growth, disciplinary action leading to termination, etc. All of this will eventually lead you to an answer that is satisfactory to you. If not, you need to get to the bottom of it by asking the right questions and looking for red flags.

You know the right things to ask and say during the interview but what are the things that should activate your radar for something fishy? Let’s explore some of the red flags:

Incongruence Between Job Description

You would have applied for a job after reading about the role and the duties mentioned in the job description, but to your surprise you discover during the interview process, while speaking with the manager or recruiters that the said job description does not match with the duties and expectations they have of the candidates in this role.

There could also be a situation where the hiring manager would be asking you to be working in a role or department that is unrelated to the job title that you have applied for. They could be making promises that they would be changing your role after revieing your performance in three or six months.

In such situations there is a clear disconnect between the advertised job and the expectations of the hiring manager or employer. This would mean that you will be working without clear directions and job duties leaving you overburdened, directionless and in no time, burnout.

Asking For Money

No employer would ask you for money to interview you, if the employer does pose this request, it’s a red flag. You could be an intern and can be asked to work for experience which is a general acceptable practice. But if the company says they are taking a fee for the next round of interview. Or that they are taking a fee for training you and will prepare you for the corporate world. These are all scams, and you should not fall for such stories.

If the company says that it doesn’t have the funds and will pay you after a certain gap of time, or after reviewing your performance, it’s a major red flag. They are then basically asking you to work for free after which the pay is not guaranteed.

Startups And Scams

There are a lot of startups these days – Edtech, IT, fintech. While these are all upcoming fields that yield high salaries, beware of fraudsters who may promise you the moon and stars. Some things that you should check out before working with a startup:

Employers’ Details

There are a lot of startups. It is thus necessary to establish if the office is registered where it is. Does it have a proper website domain and mentions its proper offices and mailing address. If you can’t find the details online, it’s a matter to be looked at. You can physically visit the offices that the company mentions on the website to see if there are other employees working from the other mentioned premises. You should also see if there are any press releases you can track down on the internet.

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Asking Questions

It is in the nature of the interview that the hiring manager is supposed to ask you questions. If the employer doesn’t ask any questions and offers you a job, it’s a red flag. This would imply that they will give a job to anybody who just shows up.

A way to understand this is if the hiring manager is trying really hard to sell you on the role and keeps talking.

They barely know nothing about you or your experience and still offer you a job, this signifies major retention problems.

While looking at options to work, you need to keep an open mind and think through how you will be navigating through your career with this decision.

Similarly, if the employer dodges questions about itself and you don’t get definitive, satisfactory answers to your questions, it means that they are not ready to have the hard discussions and will let go of employees who will simply not fall in line and would rather shake the boat. See the body language of the interviewers when you ask questions about the growth and vision of the company. When questions about the future make them uncomfortable, use your judgement to decide whether you want to pursue such an opportunity.

An example of such an interaction could be:

Question: “So, what’s the vision of the company for the next five years?”

Answer: “Well, I am yet to find it, too. “

This is a red flag while sarcasm was used to simply get away with the question.

No Definite Job Description

Every time you have a round and meet a person in the organisation, a different version of what the job would entail pops up. If this is the case and you don’t receive a clear job description, note that they are relying on their intuition to see which candidate, combination of skills would be good for business. They are unclear themselves and lack a vision for the role which would signify you will end up confused, not knowing what to do let alone doing your job right. You will struggle to succeed at the role.

Absolutely No Questions

Again, a lot of judgement needs to be exercised to understand what the undertone of the questions is. If questions posed to you suggest discrimination against religion, gender, age; ask them a follow up question for clarification.

Your personal life, your lifestyle, should not be the deciding factors of whether you are fit for the role.

If they ask you questions like:

• Where’s your accent from?
• How many times do you pray in the day?
• Do you plan to have kids anytime soon?

If these questions make you uncomfortable, find ways to express your discomfort in answering a personal question.

For example, a way to answer questions on kids could be – I don’t understand how this affects my job. Nonetheless, I believe there are very successful working mothers in the business who manage their home, kids and work well. Should it feel right, it’s a decision my husband and I shall take eventually.

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How Do They Speak About Others?

It’s a good sign if employers are talking positively about the work environment in general. Listen closely how they speak about the senior management, their co-workers, the projects they have been working on. Bad mouthing other employees and struggling to find things current employees like about the job is a clear indicator of a bad working culture.

Some additional tips

Online Reviews

Only unhappy employees go to the lengths to write reviews on glassdoor and indeed, happy employees seldom do so. Yet, don’t believe everything you read on the internet but pick up the common themes of what employees are saying. Does the company have a habit of firing employees on a short notice? Is there a common complaint that salaries come late? Are they specifically expressing displeasure of working in a particular department, under a particular department head?

Feedback From Network

Find out people who have worked or are currently working with the company and find out about their experience. Reach out on LinkedIn and find out what the employees like about working for the company and what challenges they faced there.

You are looking for a match for yourself as much as they are looking for the role in you. After you have spoken to a couple of people in the organisation, you get a feel of whether you see yourself working with the team, these people, and the company. While looking at options to work, you need to keep an open mind and think through how you will be navigating through your career with this decision.

This will eventually help you to understand what you definitely are not looking for.

Most importantly, in the end, go with your gut to conclude if this role and company aligns with your professional goals.