By Jeff J. St Louis
Questions To Ask When Starting A New Job [On Your First Day At Work]
Your first day at work may have an impact on the rest of the days you are going to spend working for the company. For this reason, you can’t afford to take your first at work lightly. There are a few things to consider before and during your first day at work to know what questions to ask when starting a new job. These questions can either tell that you are NOT as smart as others thought you were or you’re truly smart and professional.
Ask Questions Regarding The Tools You Will Need To Do Your Job
It is the company’s responsibility to provide you with the tools you need to do your job. If they did not tell you everything you should know about the tools and resources they will provide you with during work orientation, ask questions to have a better understanding of those resources. Never guess or assume that you can use this or that just because it is in the office.
Moreover, some of the tools you will be using to do your job require a password or keys. For example, some companies will let you use their vehicle. Before you use it, make sure you ask specific questions about the use of the vehicle. You also want to know what time the vehicle should be available for other employees to use, and how early you can start using it.
13 Samples Of Questions To Ask When Starting A New Job
Here are some examples of questions to ask when starting a new job:
1. How Can I Share My Ideas With The Rest Of The Team?
A question like this shows your motivation to contribute to the team’s and the company’s growth. It can also prove that you are a team player, which may send a very positive signal to your manager because most companies are looking for people with soft skills. So, to successfully establish that authority, you need to listen carefully and learn about the story of the company—what worked and what didn’t and why. Also, you should read and learn facts about the competitors: their strengths and weaknesses so you can support your thoughts with facts.
2. What Are You Expecting From Me As The New [IT Director]?
You will perform better if you know what exactly your boss is looking for. So, ask your manager about their expectations related to your role or job. Moreover, this question can tell your manager that you are a result-oriented worker and that you want to do your job the way they want you to do it.
3. Whom Should I Report To?
You need to understand the hierarchical structure used at the company from the very beginning so you know whom to report to and who should report to you. Asking about whom you should report to on your first day at work may help you know whom to ask about the format in which they want you to prepare your reports.
4. How Often Should I Submit A Report About My Work?
Knowing when and how often you will be reporting to your superior is important because it may help you to be more motivated, and productive, and it can influence your time management skills positively. So, you need to pose this question if they have not made the answer clear to you during work orientation.
5. How Often Will You Evaluate My Performance?
This question may be new to some managers, especially if they have never thought of evaluating new employees’ performance before. Since you can’t tell which company or manager evaluates their employees’ performance regularly, it would not hurt anything if you asked when they will evaluate your effort.
6. What Metrics Do You Utilize To Measure Success?
Depending on the industry you are in and depending on your boss’s definition of success, they may use different metrics to measure success. For example, the number of Instagram followers may be a good metric to use for an influencer to help determine how successful their effort has been. But a food truck owner may not be interested in the number of followers, but instead in the number of people who showed up and bought their food.
7. What Should Be My Daily Priorities?
The department you are in or the company as a whole may be working on a common goal. There is one way to know, it’s to ask. Asking about your priorities can help you make better use of your time and energy, become more productive, and see results quicker. In other words, you will avoid being all over the place when you know your priorities.
8. What Are The Company’s Primary Goals For The Next 90 Days?
This question may be a call to action for your boss or the company if they never communicated their primary short-term goals with their employees. Such a question can give your manager things to reflect upon if they have never been asked to share the company’s goals with employees before. But if this is something the company you will be working for has done before, the simple act of asking may set you apart from most employees. Do you know why? Because by asking such a question, you communicate your desire to contribute to the success and growth of the company instead of just making some money and leaving the company the way you found it.
9. What Would You Like Me To Achieve By The End Of The Week?
A question like this one communicates to your boss that you are a DOER and that you are willing to do what they want you to do. It’s the same as saying, “Your servant is ready to execute your orders.” Consequently, you and your boss may have a great professional relationship. That does not mean you should accept doing literally EVERYTHING your boss wants you to do. If it is something dirty, politely say to your boss that you can’t do it and then stand your ground. Your dignity and integrity are worth more. In short, you need to know which direction your manager wants to go in. Therefore, you will ask the above question.
10. What Programs Or Tools Should I Use To Do My Job?
Depending on your role in the company, they may provide you with tools like software or other physical tools to do your job. With that said, if they did not mention any tools to you during work orientation, make sure you ASK about it. Do NOT guess! After they have told you, ask any other questions you may have about a particular tool or program they have mentioned to you.
11. What Is The Company’s Preferred Channel For Communications?
This is one of the most important questions to ask when starting a new job. You want to know the answer to this question as soon as possible because you will receive a lot of communications from your boss and other employees almost regularly (depending on your job), and you will need to communicate with your colleagues about work quite often.
12. What Is The Dress Code For Our Virtual Meetings?
If you are going to work from home, this question should be one of the first to ask. But if your work is on-site, virtual meetings may not be an option. Again, it depends on the situation because some businesses use hybrid work locations—A few days on-site and a few days online. Your circumstance will tell you whether you should ask this question.
13. Who Should I Reach Out To If I Need Anything Or Have Any Complaints?
This question is as important as the other twelve. It is always good to know whom to talk to if you need something to do your job, if something has broken, or if one of your colleagues is harassing you. Nobody wants to bark at the wrong tree. Do you?
Avoid These Things When Starting A New Job
- Be overly nice or too friendly
- Be a know-it-all
- Try to get your boss’s attention
2 Things You Should Do Before Your First Day At Work Or During The Job Interview
- Pay attention to the way employees are dressed when you go to the interview so you know what to wear on your first day at work.
- Practice how you are going to introduce yourself to the other employees or people you will be working with.
4 Things You Should Do When Starting A New Job
- Be there about fifteen minutes early.
- Bring your notebook and pen to write things you want to remember because you are going to be asking a lot of questions.
- Take some snacks with you and a water bottle.
- Ask how you can help the rest of the department you are working in.
Good Questions To Ask When Starting A New Job [Remember This]
- Ask questions about work performance evaluation.
- Pose questions about whom to reach out to for specific needs.
- Ask questions that show your willingness to contribute to the growth of the company.
- Questions About Your Daily Responsibilities.
- Ask your manager or co-workers how you’re doing.
- Always listen carefully to the answer after asking a question.
- Restate the answer to the person who answered your question to make sure you understood.
- Take notes after asking a question so you don’t ask them again.
- Check your notes and consult any employee guidebook before asking your colleague any questions.
- Make strategic connections as soon as you can.
- Be patient with yourself and don’t be stressed if you are not [yet] as comfortable at the job as you thought you would be.
In Conclusion
The questions to ask when starting a new job should showcase your work ethic, your professionalism, as well as your desire to contribute to the growth of the company. Moreover, the questions must help you better understand the culture of the company and everything else that can help you do a great job.
