The Glass Door

Picture it. You’ve found the PERFECT position to apply for. You KNOW you’d be great at it. Maybe you’ve had a bad experience a previous employers and you want to know what a current or former employee has to say about the place. Here are pro’s and con’s about employee reviews.

We’ll start with the pro’s first. To be honest, people bring their perspectives to the positions they are currently in or were in and their mindsets can prepare you for the type of role you’re applying for. I’ve seen good one’s. People praising the people they work with, defining the benefits and pay as good or needing improvement but all in all, providing positive feedback to the employer. There are plenty of reviews like this and these come from generally happy employees or employees that at least know what they’ve gotten themselves into. They are aware of the occupational hazards and to them, its worth the risk. Some can also tell you the pace of the company and what the company is striving for. This provides good insight into your potential employer.

The cons are a different story. Employee reviews that paint the same company in a bad light. Bad management, bad benefits, bad pay. Some still work there and others do not. Keep in mind when reading these that when some of these folks started, the company may have been bad or in transition of cleaning up their act. It’s hard for some folks to get that bad impression out of their minds and they may still despise where they work even when things get much better. For other reviewers, consider that they were the problem and they weren’t working out. They may have brought toxic or bad habits with them from one employer to another instead of having enough sense to look at a new job as a new opportunity or adventure. No one likes being released from their jobs either from a firing or a layoff and that can make people very bitter towards their company. Consider as well that even if their experience was a good one, they may be trying to slander the company just to hinder them finding a new employee. A “buyer beware” if you will. If every review is bad, this could be a red flag but don’t take it to heart and let it dash your chance at being hired there. YOU could be what they are looking for in being an infectious catalyst for change.

In reality, you have to make up your own mind. This being said, a second option is not to read the company reviews at all. To a point, your job is what you make of it. If things are really bad, you’ll know it right away. But if everything is fine, you’re probably going to be just fine yourself. If you’re a positive and upbeat person and everyone else at your company is sad and gloomy, be the one beacon of light in that darkness. There is someone there that has been waiting for someone like you to come along. It could even be a higher up. The most important thing to remember is what that unemployment line looks like. In a hard position, power through and update that resume. A new offer is your exit if you’re in a bad spot where you work.