5 ways to spot a healthy workplace culture before you land the job

Most people have a checklist when deciding whether to apply for a job. The most common factors to include on that checklist are salary and benefits, working hours and patterns, and whether you have the correct skills and experience to work in that job. Increasingly, people are also interested in the reputation of the employer and whether the place or department they’ll work in has a healthy culture.

While company culture encompasses the overall values, beliefs, and behaviours of an entire business, workplace culture narrows that concept down to the practices and atmosphere that exist within a particular work site or department of a business. A healthy workplace culture is more likely to embrace the opinion and contribution of all members of staff and ensure employee well-being.

Spotting a healthy workplace culture is relatively easy if you work there but how can you identify whether a worksite or department has a positive culture before you land the job? Here are five ways to solve that conundrum.

Start with the company culture

The definition of company culture is the shared values, characteristics, and expectations of a business. Company culture is created at the top of the organisation and filtered down through leadership and procedures. While the way this culture is interpreted in different departments or worksites within that organisation may vary, company culture is a good place to start when trying to identify workplace culture.

How do you identify the company’s culture? Start with the employer’s website. The about page is an obvious place to visit but don’t forget the blog or news pages, missions and values, and team pages. Try to build an overall feel for the way the business expresses itself and how it wants to be seen.

You can find more ways to research company culture in 5 ways to research an employer before your interview.

Job advert and description

Identifying workplace culture from a job advert and description is possible but tricky because these documents are more likely to reflect overall company culture, both are generally designed to give the best possible impression of the company and the role, and they may be written with mainly the role in mind and not how that job fits within the organisation as a whole.

When looking for workplace culture clues in a job advert and/or description, pay attention to the language used just as much as to the responsibilities and requirements that are listed. To identify a healthy workplace culture, look out for:

• phrases and language that emphasise collaboration and teamwork
• clear expectations and responsibilities
• growth opportunities for learning and career development
• work-life balance and employee well-being
• language that is inclusive and promotes diversity

It may be difficult to separate elements of company culture from workplace culture, but all of the above factors are signs of a positive work environment.

Social media presence

Having a presence on social media platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook is an increasingly important way for companies to not only reach a wider audience, but to also express their mission and values. While the face that the company presents on social media is designed to give the best impression possible, presenting mainly achievements and highlights, much can be deciphered from the type of information included and the tone of voice used by the company.

To discover the culture in a particular worksite or department, concentrate on finding social media posts that are specific to those locations or functions. Look for:

• social media posts that feature employees, their achievements, and their contributions to the company
• posts about work-life balance and well-being, for instance, flexible working opportunities or mental health support
• the promotion of diversity and inclusion through events or initiatives
• team building activities and events
• learning and development workshops or resources that are available to employees

What are employees past and present saying about the workplace?

A company’s website, their job adverts and descriptions, and their social media presence are all designed to promote a particular face to the world. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t an authentic or even transparent demonstration of the company, its culture, and its missions and values. However, it’s unlikely to include the negative aspects of working for that business.

Past and current employee feedback can provide a better understanding of what it is like to work for a specific company or a department or worksite within that company. These may be current or past employees.

There are three main sources for this type of feedback:

• people you know who work for the company
• job sites that provide employee reviews such as Indeed
• content on the company’s website or social media posts that include feedback or quotes from current employees

One thing to bear in mind is that employee feedback may be biased. For instance, a current employee may exaggerate the positive experience of their day to day job because they know their manager will read it or past employees may leave overly negative feedback on a job site because they’ve moved on or bear a grudge against their ex employer. On the other hand, the employee feedback may be completely true.

To overcome this potential bias, look out for common themes that appear in feedback. Several employees might mention the openness of a manager to flexible working, for instance, or moan about a lack of appreciation from management towards their staff.

Questions to ask at your job interview

The final method of identifying a healthy workplace culture during the recruitment process is to ask the right kind of questions at your interview. Besides the standard jobseeker questions you might ask during your interview, you could also ask:

• How would you describe the team dynamics and collaboration?
• Can you tell me about any employee development programmes or initiatives that support professional growth and learning opportunities?
• What steps does the company take to ensure employee well-being? How does that translate to this department or worksite?
• How does the company foster diversity and inclusion in the workplace? How is that promoted in this department or worksite?
• What kind of communication channels and processes are in place to ensure transparent and open communication?
• Can you tell me about the leadership style within the organisation and department/worksite? How do managers support and empower their teams?
• Can you share any examples of how the company promotes a positive and supportive work environment?
• Can you tell me about any employee engagement initiatives or activities that are organised within the company?

If the interviewer answers the questions in a way that refers to the company as a whole, don’t be afraid to ask them to clarify with reference to the specific department or worksite.

Wrapping it up

Trying to identify whether your dream job is accompanied by a healthy workplace culture takes time and effort but there are plenty of strategies to use. The overall company culture is a great place to start, followed by examining the job advert and description for clues specific to workplace culture. Assessing the company’s social media presence can offer further insights and feedback from current and past employees provides an additional perspective. Finally, asking targeted questions during your interview can help you to drill down into the specifics of team dynamics, employee development, well-being support, and more.

By combining the findings from these five sources of information, it should be possible to build a picture of whether the workplace culture is healthy and the right fit for your work preferences.