What Questions Should New Coders Ask to Find the Right Employer Fit?

As a new coder, finding the right employer fit is crucial for a fulfilling and successful career. To ensure compatibility and alignment with your professional goals, it's important to ask targeted questions during the interview process.

Let's kick off the discussion by sharing the key questions new coders should ask to find the perfect match with potential employers. From company culture to growth opportunities, let's explore the critical factors that contribute to a successful coding journey.

TBH: these questions are applicable and beneficial at any stage of our careers!

Follow the CodeNewbie Org and #codenewbie for more discussions and online camaraderie!

CodeNewbie Follow

CodeNewbie is the most supportive community of programmers, especially targeted towards people learning to code. Part of the DEV Family.

Comments

[Jean-Michel 🕵🏻‍♂️ Fayard]

There are a few universal questions:

• Why did you choose to work here?
• How does your company make money?
• What would your main expectations be from me if we decide to work together?

After that, the best questions come from you and your experience.

• Start a document with the title "Top ten things that annoyed me most in my career so far"
• Write down those ten things
• Then turn those them into questions for the the people you meet.

Not yes/no questions, those are boring and limited, but open questions.

For example if at your previous job you were frustrated because you had no time for training and were supposed to do it in your week-end, you can ask something like:

What to do you do to help programmers grow in their craft?

[Jared Nielsen]

These are my go-to questions, with context:

• Is this role new to { COMPANY }?: If the role is new, that's a sign that the company is growing. If the role is a backfill, you can ask a follow-up question that will reveal why, such as...
• What does growth look like at { COMPANY }?: If the interviewer didn't already tell you why the role is a backfill, you hope the answer here is either that the individual was promoted or the individual transferred to a different department, both signs that the company invests in their people and there will be opportunities for you to do the same. If the individual left the company, you will want to ask yourself 'why'.
• How would you describe the team?: It's not a good sign if the interviewer only responds with generic statements (unless it's the recruiter). You want to hear specifics about how the team works together, which will let you know if you'll work well with them, too.
• What are the biggest challenges facing the team?: They're hiring because they need someone to solve a problem or problem(s). If it wasn't clear in the JD, this will help reveal it.
• What's the North Star for the team?: This will reveal the 'why' of the work. It's a strong indicator of ineffective leadership if the interviewer can't provide a satisfactory or immediate answer. If leadership can't communicate a compelling vision, that translates to stress for you.