“When exploring, read the warning signs: figuratively and literally.”

Mitta Xinidlu, Writer, Lawyer, Researcher

INTRODUCTION

Job searching can be a difficult process especially when you are beginning your career.  When job offers start coming, it is natural to be optimistic about them all. However, some places are great to work and others aren’t. No one wants to be miserable in a job, but is there a way to spot the signs of a bad workplace before you even get the job? The writing is always on the wall if you know how to look for it. 

This article will go over 5 red flags to look out for in a job and tips to navigate them: 

1. Lack of clear organizational goals and unclear job expectations 
2. Organizational resistance to evidence based practices and lack of continuous improvement 
3. Limited Professional Development Opportunities 
4. Insufficient Resources 
5. Lack of Collaboration

Lack of clear organizational goals and unclear job expectations.

Achieving success will be impossible without clear organizational goals as both the organization and the job will be subjected to changing expectations. “Scope creep” describes a situation where new expectations are added to the original work objective that are beyond  the original intended goal.  When this happens in a job setting, employees can quickly become overwhelmed and struggle to meet the constantly changing expectations.”  This can often set employees up for failure since the goal post keeps changing, and is something to avoid. 

Tips: 

• Look for clearly defined roles and expectations in the job description (green flag). 
• Look for a vague job description where the duties don’t appear to be strategic; this can be a sign that more work will be piled on .
• Write your questions down before your job interview so you don’t forget anything.
• Workshop with someone beforehand to get practice with interviews.
• Make sure to ask questions regarding expectations during the job interview.
• If you think of questions after you start the job, you can always ask about job timeline, stakeholders, and expectations during your one on one meetings with your boss. 
• Ask about what factors determine whether a project changes course. 

Organizational Resistance to Evidence-Based Practices and the Lack of Commitment to Continuous Improvement

A red flag to look out for is when an organization does things a certain way because they’ve always done it that way. Organizations that structure their practices based on evidence based practices based on best available evidence are what you should look for (Lhachimi et al., 2016). 

Tips:

• Talk to people in the organization, arrange coffee chats, ect. before you take the job. Ask these types of questions:
  • What kinds of projects do you work on?
    • How are the projects created? 
    • What does the planning stage look like? 
    • Who’s involved in the planning stage? 
• Look at the outcomes of projects; they  should be available on the organization’s website, google, etc. Reference these outcomes in your interviews to demonstrate your proactivity and interest in the organization.
  • Ask yourself: why do they keep doing things the same way when there’s a better way?

Limited Professional Development Opportunities

You want to continue growing in your career, so limited professional development opportunities are something to look out for.  

Tips:

• Look at company profiles to see when people had job title changes and how long it took, especially if you’re looking to move into leadership.  This will give you a sense of how willing the company is  to promote from within. 
• Don’t ask if there are opportunities for management jobs – this can imply you’re not interested in the position you’ve applied to and are just waiting to move up. Don’t put a red flag on yourself!
  • You can ask:
    • How long have you been working at the company? They’ll usually tell you about their career growth.  
    • What do you enjoy most about your current position? They may respond about professional development opportunities and you’ve gotten your answer right there. 
•  Ask if there are opportunities for professional development. If funding is limited, ask your supervisor if you can set aside an hour or two each week to engage in professional development activities, such as following a free tutorial. This is a great sign to your future employer because it shows you’re eager and keen. In fact, they may even make an opportunity for you. 

Insufficient resources 

Lack of sufficient resources can mean the organization isn’t able to properly invest in its goals… or in your career. 

Tips:

• Look to see if the organization is making staff reductions.
• No permanent staff is a bad sign and means employees don’t see a future at the organization. 
• Lots of turnover – this often goes hand in hand with no permanent staff.
  • Some industries are more stable such as the government sector.  Non-profit organizations and industry jobs tend to have more movement, so you’ll have to look at how the company or organization compares to others in the same sector. 

Lack of collaboration with partner organizations or colleagues 

Partnerships are essential to truly making a difference in the  community.  Many people are passionate about public health because they want to improve health outcomes for the greater good.  This is one of the things that makes a career fulfilling and makes one feel like they are part of something greater than themselves. 

Tips:

• When researching organizations, look to see if people and teams work in silos or if there is  a lot of collaboration between teams.
• Are teams and projects driven by one person, or do they utilize cross-functional teams that can tap into many different areas of expertise and experiences? 

Wrapping it all up

When beginning your career, making the next step, or embarking on a career change, looking for a new job can be both an exciting and scary process. Remember: job interviews are a two way process. You’re interviewing them as much as they’re interviewing you.  Noticing the red flags in this article before or during an interview can help you avoid a negative work environment. Furthermore, knowing what the red flags are can point you in the direction of green flags too! 

Articles for Further Reading:

• 10 Red Flags to Look out for in a Job Interview 

• 5 Red Flags to Spot Before Taking the Job 

• Red Flags to Look out for in Job Postings

Written by: Joya Banerjee, MPH, BSN, BA, RN