Its not all about Salary...

Things to Consider When Offered a Job

Congratulations! You were successful in your interview(s) and you have been offered the job. In todays candidate short market we are seeing candidates be offered multiple roles, leading to candidates having to make the decision about what the best option for them might be. 

There are lots of things to consider when offered a new role and some of them might not be something you have previously considered. It is worth bearing in mind that this is somewhere you be will be spending a lot of your time so being confident you are making the best decision you can is really important. 

The below list are things we think every candidate should consider when offered a new role.

Salary

Salary is probably the first question that comes to mind when considering a job change and is often the determining factor when taking on a new role. Salary is always going to be an important factor when looking at a new role and it is something to think about carefully. 
You should always see if you are being offered a fair wage, you can look up average salaries for most roles online, this is a good way of knowing if you are being paid appropriate wage for the role you are taking on. 
It’s also always worth finding out what your take home pay will be after things like tax, national insurance, student loan repayments etc. There are many online calculators that are a quick and easy way of seeing how much money you will actually be paid each month.

Although salary is important when considered a new job it certainly isn’t the only thing you should take into consideration.

Location

Where you will be working is an important thing to consider, this is somewhere you will be commuting to five days a week so do your research. Look into how long it will take you to get there, especially if you will travelling at peak times when the roads are busiest. Make sure you are comfortable with whatever the commute is and that it fits in with your day to day life. 

If you are relocating for a role then location is an even bigger aspect to consider. Research the area you will be moving to, what are the living costs associated, is there another reason for moving to that area such as having friends or family nearby. We often speak to candidates who have relocated for a job move when they don’t have a personal connection to the area and it generally doesn’t end well. 
That isn’t to say you shouldn’t relocate purely for a job move but do make sure you do proper research into the area and make sure it is somewhere you can see yourself living comfortably. 

Career Progression

Does the role offer the potential for progression? Most people are looking for a job that can offer them some form of progression so when considering a job move its important not only to look at what your immediate role will be but also what this job could offer you in the future. 

Whether this is a particular goal you have in mind or if you are still deciding where you want your career to go it’s important to ask about the progression opportunities available. It’s important to consider if these opportunities will align with where you see your career going in the future. 

The Package you are being offered

The means looking beyond salary and seeing what else is being offered. Take into consideration things like how much annual leave you get, do they offer flexible working hours or health insurance, what is the company pension scheme like.  Some larger companies also offer things like the opportunity to buy company shares which can be a great way of topping up your savings further down the line. 

It’s also always worth asking about when your salary would be reviewed, most companies do salary reviews annually but might consider doing one after six months and this can sometimes be put into peoples employment contracts.

Annual Bonus

Do they have an annual bonus scheme, if so what is it dependent on? Some companies offer a flat payment, others may be a percentage of your wage or could be dependent on your personal performance as well as the overall performance of the company. It’s worth having a rough idea of what you can expect in terms of a bonus as it can make a difference to your annual salary. 

Company Culture/Company Reputation

Something that is often overlooked by candidates is how important company culture is when considering taking on a new role. This is somewhere you will be spending a lot of time so its important to know that you’ll be happy and well looking after by your new employee. 
If your interview process allows you to, it’s worth having a chat with the people you will be working with and finding out what type of place it is to work on a day by day basis. 

You should also try and see what previous employees have said about the company as well, websites such as Glassdoor can often give you a good insight into a companies reputation.