September 25, 2024 • 34 mins
Unlock the secrets to making the right career move with our latest Money Matters episode! Dive into a wealth of knowledge as we chat with Yolanda Whitmore, VP of Human Resources at Neighbors, who brings decades of HR expertise to our discussion. Discover the top three factors to consider when evaluating job offers: aligning company values with your own, exploring benefits beyond just health and dental, and ensuring your new role supports a healthy work-life balance. This episode is packed with actionable insights for anyone navigating the job market.
Gain the tools you need to master salary negotiations and understand the full spectrum of benefits that come with job offers. Yolanda and I emphasize the importance of addressing salary expectations early in the interview process to save time and avoid misunderstandings. Learn about the substantial value of healthcare, vacation, and retirement plans, and how elements like bonuses, profit sharing, and equity become increasingly relevant as you commit to an organization. Whether you're eyeing a long-term career move or a temporary position, understanding these benefits can make a significant difference.
Equip yourself with the knowledge to evaluate multiple job offers effectively. Yolanda offers expert advice on negotiating salaries and benefits, identifying potential red flags, and asking the right questions during interviews. Understand the importance of cultural fit, company reputation, and growth opportunities when choosing between job offers. With practical tips from Yolanda, you'll be ready to make informed decisions about your professional future. Join us and take charge of your career path with confidence and clarity.
Have an idea for a show or a question for Kim? Send us a text message
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that focuses on how to use the money you have, make the money you need and save the money you want – brought to you by Neighbors Federal Credit Union.
The information, opinions, and recommendations presented in this Podcast are for general information only and any reliance on the information provided in this Podcast is done at your own risk. This Podcast should not be considered professional advice.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that
focuses on how to use the moneyyou have, make the money you
need and save the money you want.
Now here is your host, ms Kim.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Chapman, welcome to another edition of Money Matters
.
I'm your host, kim Chapman, andtoday I have a very special
topic that I've been dying todiscuss income versus benefits.
So if you're on a job hunt, ifyou're thinking about changing
jobs, maybe it's time for yournext salary review.
This is going to be an episodethat you really want to listen
(00:33):
to.
We're going to talk aboutwhat's better.
What do you consider more, yourincome or maybe the benefits?
So joining me today is our veryown VP of Human Resources at
Neighbors, ms Yolanda Whitmore.
Welcome, yolanda, thank you forhaving me.
Oh, yes, I've been dying to dothis, so I'm glad to have you on
the show.
So let's start the show offjust by giving a little
(00:55):
information about what does a VPof Human Resources actually do.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Actually, here at Neighbors, the Vice President of
Human Resources Overseas, theHuman Resources Department.
That does include payroll, aswell as benefits and
compensation, recruitment,everything that falls under the
HR umbrella.
I am over that.
I do have two senior HRgeneralists, one that
(01:21):
specializes in benefits andcompensation and the other one
in recruitment.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
All right, awesome and give us a little background
about how long have you beenhere at Neighbors.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Going on almost 18 years now in a VP position.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
A lot of seniority.
I think we started close to thesame time.
I just made my 18 years.
So today, of course, I pulledyou in because we want to talk
about income, we want to talkabout benefits, because it's
more than just you know, $50 anhour or $10 an hour.
If you look behind the scenes,I think there's a lot of other
information that someone lookingfor a job should consider.
(01:55):
So my first question is whatare the three top three factors
you recommend candidatesconsider when evaluating a job
offer?
Speaker 1 (02:06):
consider when evaluating a job offer.
When you evaluate a job offer,the first thing I tell anyone is
to research that organizationor company because you want to
make sure that it does alignwith your values.
People need to understand thatwhen you are looking for a new
position or a new job, thatyou're going to spend majority
of your time at that job, so youwant to make sure it's
(02:29):
something that does align withwhat you, your values, are.
Do the research See.
For instance, is their culturesomething that you are
comfortable with?
I'm just going to use us for anexample.
We are an organization that'svery big on volunteering.
I'm just going to use us for anexample.
We are an organization that'svery big on volunteering.
So therefore, if you're someonethat just really are not a fan
(02:53):
of volunteering, this will notbe the organization for you.
So I tell people you knowthat's one thing you definitely
want to look at.
Also, you want to look at thebenefits.
You want to see what type ofbenefits that organization is
offering, not just when you saybenefits of health, dental and
vision and supplementalcoverages.
You want to look as well at theoverall picture of the benefit,
(03:14):
if this is something thatactually can work for me overall
, as far as in retirement, am Iat an age now where I'm looking
for something that I'm going toretire from, or is this just a
starting point for me?
So benefits may not matter atthat point.
So, but that's an option thatyou want to look at as well as
(03:38):
work-life balance overall, isthis organization or company
that I'm looking for?
Is it going to work within mylife?
Is it something that is goingto have me able if I'm married,
I have children?
Is it something that's flexible, that's going to work with me
in my life?
If I'm a person that has a fouror five-year-old child, working
(03:59):
a 70-hour job may not work forme, or a job that's very
stressful or very demanding,this may not be the job for me
at this point in time in my life.
So I'd say those three thingsprobably you would want to look
at when you're actually lookingfor or actually accepting a job.
All right.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So, yolanda, you mentioned that a potential
candidate should do the researchabout the candidate, about the
job or the potential employer interms of benefits, but
sometimes all of thatinformation is not readily
available.
So when would you recommendthat person ask or inquire about
those specific benefits andsalary?
Should it be during theinterview?
(04:36):
Should they wait to see if theyeven get a job offer?
What is the appropriate time toask those additional questions,
for information that can't befound on the internet?
Good, question.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Good question.
First of all, let's go toyou're in the interview.
At that point you've appliedfor the position.
Usually positions, when they'reposted, they will have the
information of a salary or adesired salary, or they may ask
the question what your desiredsalary is.
So therefore, if thatinformation is provided, you can
(05:07):
always assume that I made it tothe next step because I'm in
the interview and they'recomfortable with my salary.
So, whatever I put as a desiredsalary Now I'll take this.
I explain this to my managers aswell.
You don't want to wasteanybody's time.
So therefore, if we post aposition or an organization
posts a position, say, thisposition is for $50,000, and
(05:29):
someone puts their desiredsalary $75,000, don't waste that
person's time because wealready know hey, what we're
putting down in that job postingis the salary that we're
willing to offer.
You know, in a salary you canalways negotiate.
But, however, the time that youask that question is in that
(05:51):
interview.
Do not wait.
If you sit down and theinterviewee does not bring up
I'm sorry, the interviewer doesnot bring up salary as the
interviewee bring it up to thatinterviewer, ask that person at
that time before you walk awayand say, hey, I put on a desired
salary of XYZ.
Are y'all still comfortable withthat salary that I requested?
(06:12):
They're going to say yes or no.
If it's no, it shouldn't be no,because you shouldn't be
sitting there if they didn't.
You know they did not, but ifyou did not put down a desired
salary at that time, ask thatquestion what is the salary for
this position?
And if they say, oh, it's$50,000, but you know that
you're looking to say I'mcomfortable with $60,000.
(06:34):
You let them know, right there,be honest and say, well, at my
previous position I was makingyou know $58,000.
Right now, I'm looking topossibly make $60,000.
Are y'all comfortable with thatsalary?
They can tell you, right thenand there, they may be, they may
not be, but at that point youknow, right then and there, if
that is something you want tomove forward with.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
And I think what would be the real question here
is, with the example that yougave the salary that they
offered is $50,000.
I'm asking for $75,000, andthen we sit at the table.
But what happens then when Iturn around and learn that maybe
there are an additional $25,000worth of benefits?
Maybe I'm starting out withfive weeks vacation I know
that's kind of dreamland, butfive weeks vacation.
(07:15):
Maybe they pay for my healthcare, maybe they provide free
short-term and long-termdisability short-term and
long-term disability.
How would I you know if that'sthe case?
If it's $25,000 worth ofbenefits which I don't think is
far-fetched in a sense, becausesometimes I'll even look here at
neighbors my salary is X, y, z,but then I also have to
(07:37):
acknowledge that in benefits,this is what I'm also gaining.
How should, I guess, aparticular candidate evaluate
that situation?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Well, what I would suggest as well is, when you're
in that interview, ask thequestion about the benefits.
It also falls into thesituation of where you are in
life.
I know a lot of people,depending on where they are in
life, benefits may not matter,but then, on the other hand,
benefits may matter more thanwhat the salary is.
So when you're sitting down andin that interview, it's your
(08:08):
time as well to ask questions,to get to know more about that
organization.
So always ask about thebenefits as well if it's not
provided to you at that time.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
How should candidates evaluate long-term value of
benefits like bonuses, profitsharing and equity in terms of
the company?
How should we evaluate thosebenefits?
Speaker 1 (08:28):
Well, honestly this is my opinion when it comes to
bonuses as well as profitsharing as well, as you know,
receiving some type of shares ina company, I think that's not
something you may want toconsider in the beginning.
That's just me personally.
I think you don't see thebenefit of any of that until
(08:48):
you're within an organizationroughly about three to five
years.
That's when you want to startfocusing on that as far as, like
, hey, I can see the benefit ofthis of me.
You know, I decided that thisis my career, this is where I
want to grow, this is where Iwant to retire from.
At that point, that's when youcan start focusing on those
things.
As far as that, because a bonus,for instance, an organization
can probably offer bonuses andthen take that away.
(09:11):
That's not something guaranteedin a salary, as well as those
other caveats.
But one thing I would say andsuggest is that looking to see
what they do offer as far asretirement plans, such as a 401k
, things of that nature, so thatkind of actually sometimes
would sway you into saying, yes,this is an organization I am
looking for because I want tomake sure I have somewhere that
(09:33):
actually contributes towards aretirement as well.
They can offer a 401k, but arethey contributing to that 401k
and, if so, what percentage arethey contributing?
Speaker 2 (09:42):
So definitely 401k.
I think I mentioned vacation.
What are, I guess?
And from an HR perspective,what are some of those key
benefits that, if you arelooking to invest some time with
this particular organization,maybe even look to retire?
What are some of those benefitsthat you should really be
looking for?
And then would it be differentif I know this is just a
(10:03):
temporary holding spot.
This is just a job to feed thefamily for the time being Maybe.
I'm in school and I'm workingon getting a degree where I know
that this is not going to be mylast job.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Another good question , and I can give you several
different scenarios as far asbecause it depends on where you
are in life.
Again, when someone is sittingacross from you in an interview,
you honestly don't know wherethey are in life.
They may explain to you whattheir situation and
circumstances are.
On the other hand, they may not.
So, pertaining to what yourneeds are at that point in time
(10:39):
in life depends on, sometimes,the benefits I can give an
example of.
I'm a middle aged woman in mylate 30s.
I just got married.
I had a successful career.
Unfortunately, I was laid off.
My husband I'm a newlywed so myhusband he's been at his job
for over 10 years.
However, his job doesn't offerthe best of benefits.
(11:00):
He has a very good salary, butthe benefits are not that well.
So I know that I'm at the agewhere we're looking to start a
family, and start a familyquickly.
So therefore, I know that Ineed to look for an organization
or a company that possibly willassist me, that may offer
fertility benefits, will assistme, that may offer fertility
(11:23):
benefits.
That will probably be more of agame changer for me than a
salary would be.
If I'm someone that is actually21 and just graduated college.
Hey, I'm excited, I'm ready forsomebody to pay me for these
four years.
I just did so.
At that point I may not belooking for the benefit piece,
I'm looking for the salary pieceof it.
So who's going to pay me themost?
Because at this point in mymind, I'm not worried about
(11:43):
benefits because I'm only 21.
You know, my parents are notabout to retire.
For the next 10 to 12 years I'mgoing to be on their benefits
until I'm 26 years of age.
So therefore I'm not worriedabout the benefits or what
benefits this company isoffering in all honesty.
So that's more the mindset ofsome of the younger kids that
are actually coming out ofcollege that do have the benefit
to be on their parents'coverages.
Or then I can be someone thatis dealing with health issues or
(12:06):
a health situation where I'mconsidered morbidly obese and I
have tried everything and I keepgetting denied for any type of
surgeries or procedures.
In an organization that I wasworking for, they do not offer
anything as far as saying, hey,you know they have any type of
weight loss solutions oranything that will support that
as far as even with weight losssurgery.
(12:27):
So a benefit I see with thisorganization is that they do
show that they have where theyactually may cover 90 to 100% of
weight loss procedures.
So I may say, hey, this is moreof a benefit for me than what
the salary actually is.
So sometimes it depends whatthose benefits can be.
Even we can look outside ofthose things and say a benefit
(12:48):
can be as far as working fromhome, a flexible work schedule,
things like that, because youcan look at when you work
downtown even in here in BatonRouge I worked downtown years
ago.
One of the benefits was that Ihad covered parking.
And when I tell you that's alife changer when it's 100 and
some degree weather and you haveto understand as well, downtown
(13:08):
sometimes those people have topay for parking.
So having free parking is evenconsidered a benefit.
So you know you have to look atyour benefits and what you're
looking for in the moment.
That's what I say.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
So, talking about benefits and I know that you
mentioned earlier things likebonuses maybe that's a benefit
that maybe you shouldn'tnecessarily consider, because
bonus may come and bonuses maygo Are there any benefits
specifically that are lesslikely to change in terms of a
job, the ones that would kind ofbe key?
(13:42):
For example, I would imagine ifsomebody took a job because
their company matches 401kcontributions at 3% 4%, is that
something that's likely to goaway versus covered parking?
They may say, okay, you get ahundred dollar allowance for
covered parking and I canunderstand that being something
that go away.
But are there defined benefits,kind of a play on HR words that
(14:06):
they should look at that wouldhave long-term benefits versus
something that may be here todayor gone tomorrow?
Speaker 1 (14:12):
The only thing that you can possibly guarantee is
your health benefit, retirementplans.
They can always be frozendepending on what is going on
within that organization.
That is not a guarantee.
That is not something that isetched in stone to say, hey,
that is something that willalways be there for you.
So it's always good to do thattype of research when you can
(14:34):
find out or verify certainthings, when you can ask in an
interview Some people want toknow what is the financial
stability of an organization,and some ways to find that out
is to ask those questions.
As far as, hey, has there been alayoff within the past couple
of years?
If so, can you explain thereason why?
Have you seen an increase inyour organization as far as with
(14:57):
salaries and bonuses over thepast several years?
Have you given raises over thepast several years?
Things like that you can ask,so you can kind of know a little
bit about our organization'sfinancial stability.
But as far as to say, ifanything is etched in stone to
say, hey, this is something thatwill be guaranteed to stay, the
only thing would possibly be,of course, would be medical
(15:19):
because of the sizing of anorganization.
So if you're with a small oneit depends.
They can also have outsideresources for that.
But within a medical piece thatcan actually change as well,
where an organization at onepoint can cover 100% of an
employee's benefit packet andthen, depending on the price of
(15:41):
insurance, the premiums, you maysee at that point where your
organization says, hey, we'reonly covering 90 percent at this
time, or 80 percent, so thosethings can change.
There's not anything that wecan truly guarantee in benefits.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Ideally, it makes sense that a salary during an
interview might be negotiable interms of OK, you know, let's
meet in the middle.
What about benefits?
If you're offering me threeweeks, or if you're offering to
pay 3% toward 401k?
Are benefits typicallysomething that's negotiable in
an interview?
Speaker 1 (16:14):
As far as like health , dental and vision, that's not
negotiable as far as I can, youknow, because that's something
that you know.
Hey, I got to go out and be itfor that every year, so, no,
that's not negotiable.
But as far as like, hey, youknow, I was actually looking for
this salary.
However, I see y'all offer oneweek of vacation.
(16:36):
What is it if I can say, hey,can I get two weeks of vacation
or whatever?
Those are things that you canpossibly negotiate.
I don't see.
I tell people in all honesty,you can actually ask for
everything under the sun youwant.
You know all you can get is ayes or a no.
But you know, be reasonable incertain things, you know.
So you can always say I seethat.
(16:58):
Y'all state that you know inthe first.
I'm just going to give anexample Within the first six
months, y'all offer 40 hours ofvacation.
Is it possible?
I can get that 40 hours ofvacation up front versus getting
them at six months.
That's a negotiation and that'ssomething that some
organizations are willing towork with.
However, they say you know, areyou?
(17:18):
You're like, hey, I have avacation that's coming up, you
know, within the before Ireceive vacation time.
Is it possible that I can getthat time to use for this
vacation?
Those are some type, somenegotiation tools that you can
have.
Or even in the aspect of hours,if a company or organization
has flexible hours or what haveyou and say our organization has
(17:44):
flexible hours, or what haveyou and say, ok, we're open from
6 am to 6 pm, you know, and youcan ask the question.
They say, ok, this, this job,is from nine to five.
And you can say, well, hey, isit possible that I can work from
seven to three?
You know, because I have topick my child up.
Is that still something that ispossible for this position?
That's negotiating.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
And I won't harp on this particular question too
long, but I do want you to givea little feedback in terms of
what should a candidate considerif they have the option between
hourly or salary?
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Honestly, that's not an option usually given.
A reason being is because underFLSA guidelines, a job is based
on the duties.
That makes it an hourly orsalary position, not a title.
So that's not something that aperson can come in and say hey,
I want this position to behourly versus salary or vice
(18:33):
versa.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
Do you see any benefits one over the other?
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Honestly, no, no, I really don't.
I know some people feel morevalue in saying, oh well, I'm an
example of a position or whathave you, or oh, I'm in a salary
position that makes me more ofa professional.
That's not always the case.
Some people prefer to be earlybecause that gives them a
benefit of actually receivingovertime.
You know, it depends on whatthat job is.
(19:03):
In all honesty, and I alwaysgive the example of I can, I can
label a name, I can give atitle to anything.
(19:26):
In all honesty, I it's calledthe CEO of OOO or what have you.
But if my duties are toactually file papers, to answer
the phones, you know when thedoorbell rings, go, greet the go
, greet the members or customers, that's not a salary position.
That is actually based in underFLSA guidelines as an hourly
(19:47):
position.
So that's why I always informpeople don't get hooked up on
titles all the time.
It's actually the duties thatare listed underneath that job
title in that job description.
What base is it on if it's anhourly or salary position?
Speaker 2 (20:03):
All right.
Are there any particularquestions, like the top two or
three questions that, regardlessof what position you're
applying for, that everycandidate should make sure they
walk out of an interview havingthis particular information.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Number one is what's the salary?
You want to know what thesalary is for that position, and
the reason why is because ifit's not what you're looking for
, don't waste that employer'stime or your time on that.
But honestly, you should knowthat information prior to the
interview.
But if you have not, make sureyou know the salary as well as
(20:39):
the benefits, you want to knowabout the benefits, what type of
benefit offers?
If they don't have thatinformation, ask who can you
reach out to within theorganization to go over benefits
, because keep in mind thatsalary at that point that, like
you said, when it combines withthe benefits, may be more of a
salary that you're looking forthan what you thought.
(20:59):
So I always say always look atboth of them together.
So you always want to knowabout the salaries and the
benefits of that organization.
And also, what a lot of peopledon't ask and I ask and this is
going to be more than three I'mgoing to say, because this is
part of benefits is ask when thebenefits start, because one of
the things is, some people needto know how soon those benefits
(21:20):
will begin.
And I'm just going to plug thisfor us, because one of the
pluses for us is our benefitsfor full-time employees begin on
day one, and that's rare for alot of organizations and
companies.
So that's always a sellingpoint for us.
Our benefits do begin on dayone, whereas a lot of companies
would be 60, 45, 90 days.
It just depends.
So, therefore, that's why Ialways say know the benefits.
(21:42):
Therefore, that's why I alwayssay know the benefits, but know
when those benefits would beginfor you with that company.
Also, you want to know as wellas when will you know a response
of a positive or negative inthis interview?
Will you move to the next phase?
Or you know, hey, when we findout if this position is filled.
You need to know that becauseyou don't want to be waiting on
pins and needles.
And they, you know a month.
(22:03):
They say, oh well, we'll knowin three, you'll know in three
weeks.
We're still interviewing blah,blah, blah.
Or, hey, I know, we'll know bythe end of this week.
So you know by Friday if it'sMonday, and by the end of the
week is Friday.
If you haven't heard from themby Friday, reach back out on
(22:26):
Monday or what have you.
And one thing I always say aswell if you forget to ask any
questions, or any of those topthree questions that I just
stated, or a question that comesto mind, reach out to them
during that time frame.
Do not wait until someone makesan offer to start asking 15
million questions to them atthat point, especially when they
stated to you on Monday hey,we'll have a decision by Friday.
If you thought about thosequestions, reach out, call, send
(22:47):
an email and say, hey, this issomething I forgot to ask you.
Can you please provide me withthat information?
So that's why I always tellpeople don't be afraid to have a
communication with that person.
That can be your potential hire.
And also one thing I wanna sayas well is I'm a big person on
people's time.
Don't of wasting of time.
Let me put it like that.
When I know some people alwaysare they hear this about Google
(23:12):
or on social media like, oh youknow, if somebody makes you an
offer, don't, don't just say yes, just just wait, just just wait
, hold out a couple of days.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
You know desperate.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Yes, yes, yes, don't seem desperate.
Just hold out a couple of days,because you know they may offer
you more money, especially ifthey need you, you know whatever
, don't waste your time anddon't take chances like that.
And the reason why I say thatis because you may not have been
the only candidate that personinterviewed and you may have
been the number one choice, butyou don't know how close the
number two choice was to you.
(23:41):
And I'm just going to give anexample as far as, like,
somebody calls to make you anoffer on that Friday and they
spoke to you that Monday, bythat time you should have known
if you were willing to acceptthat, if you were going to
accept that job offer or not.
Now understand, if you had aninterview that Friday morning
and they call you three hourslater and make you the offer,
(24:01):
you haven't had a time to reviewanything at that point.
So I understand when you wouldsay okay, can you give me until
Monday to actually let you knowwhat I decide, because at that
point you're just getting thebenefit packet that you possibly
asked for.
So you had a chance to reviewall of that information.
But if you had several days,you should know by that point if
you're going to say yes or noon that Friday.
(24:23):
So if you're going to say, ohwell, give me about 72 hours,
can you give me another week, orwhatever, I'm just going to be
honest.
Me personally, I'm going to goto the number two candidate,
because the number two candidateprobably only had a smidgen of
something probably differentthat made you the number one
candidate.
For instance, if, oh, numberone was just as great as well as
number two candidate, was justas great as well as number two
(24:45):
candidate, the only differencewas is that number one possibly
had three months more ofmanagement experience, for
instance, but this person wasjust as good, and that's the
only thing that deciphered themwas we can say they had more
management experience.
But at that point I'm like Ican't wait, because at this
point I'm trying to fill thisposition and if I wait another
week that's putting me back, youknow.
So therefore, I could say,right, then you know, no problem
(25:07):
, I'll rescind my offer and I'mgoing to call candidate number
two.
So that's why I say sometimesyou don't want to play those
games.
Speaker 2 (25:12):
Okay.
Are there questions that acandidate shouldn't ask about
salary?
I have a 19 and 24 year old andof course you know they're at
that age where they change jobslike they change underwear, and
they'll come home and I'll havea hundred questions, I you know.
When do you start?
How often do you get paid?
When do you get paid?
And I get blank stares asthough you like they were afraid
(25:35):
to ask those questions.
So are there questions that mayseem inappropriate, or maybe it
seems like your only focus isthe money and at 19 and 24, that
is their only focus.
But yet they come home withoutthis information and they're
just going to wait to see whenthe direct deposit hits their
account and say, mama, I gotpaid today.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
No, in all honesty, keep in mind, it's just not the
young kids we honestly know,especially during new hire
orientation, when we actually gothrough the process of
explaining to them hey, when isyour, when your first deposit is
going to hit, when we fill outthis information during benefits
orientation, all of thosethings.
So we notice a lot of peopledon't ask that question.
(26:15):
So they just know hey, this ismy salary.
They don't know if they'regoing to be biweekly, annually,
once a month, twice a month,first 15.
They really don't know.
Is it a question that a lot ofpeople miss?
Yes, it is so is it a question?
that you want to ask.
You definitely want to, becauseyou want to know hey, when am I
going to get my first paycheck,or how often does this happen,
you know?
Is this once a month?
Because at that point I need toknow.
(26:35):
If I worked at a previous joband I was used to getting paid
every other week and now I'monly getting paid once a month,
I'm going to have to learn howto rebudget.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Absolutely, and that's my favorite word right
there Budget, budget, budget,budget.
And that's why it just kind offloors me that you see
candidates that will have a joband they come back with little
information and it's almost likethey're afraid to ask questions
.
That's why I was curious, youknow, what are those questions
that they shouldn't ask?
Is there any?
Speaker 1 (27:02):
There's not a such thing to me as don't ask,
especially in an interview.
That's your opportunity to askthose questions.
And, to be honest, from mepersonally sitting in interviews
, I'm intrigued more so by thepeople that do ask questions.
To ask, you know, because Ifeel honestly they're more.
(27:23):
They're more serious about ajob and a career because they've
done the research.
They're asking the questions Tome.
They're more serious about thissearch.
They want to know any andeverything as much as possible.
And they're genuine questionsbecause you know you can always
get those same run of the listquestions that they tell you on
(27:44):
Google.
Make sure you ask thesequestions from somebody
listening to a TikTok video.
You know, anytime you're goingto interview and it's funny
because you can see thosequestions asked but you can tell
they're not genuine.
You can barely like they'reasking the questions but they're
not even listening to youranswer per se.
You know they can say, oh okay,so what benefits do you offer?
And you know we give them theinformation and they're like, oh
OK, but you didn't see themwrite down anything.
(28:06):
And then it's like, oh well,you know they'll ask the next
question, but you know they'vegotten the information because
that's what they said these arethe questions that you need to
ask in an interview, but ifyou're not genuinely asking
those questions, it's notquestions that you really don't
want the answer to don't askthem.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
I guess, before we wrap it up, any final tips again
for any of those listeners outthere.
They're out there in a job hunt.
Maybe they have a job andthey're just looking for
something different.
And they're looking at, youknow, I've got this position
being offered to me, thisposition being offered to me.
You know, the salaries may bethe same, maybe the benefits are
different.
Any last tips, last pieces ofadvice for them to consider.
Speaker 1 (28:46):
Well, number one, it's a blessing to have two
offers on the table right now,so good for you.
But one thing I would you know.
A good takeaway would be lookat everything, the overall
pictures, like you said.
If they're apples to apples,there's something that's going
to make a difference, whether itbe what works with your life.
(29:06):
Is this an organization that'sbeen around for a long period of
time?
Is this organizationalreputable?
Is this organization showinggrowth within a company?
Are they actually growing or isthis company?
Have they had layoffs in thepast year or two, or is this
company had any layoffs?
Does it show when you lookonline on social media that the
(29:31):
company is engaged or theiremployees are engaged?
Are their employees postingpositive information about them,
or is this company not?
Doesn't have any type offootprint in social media?
Does this organization actuallygive to the community?
If that's something you value,it's a lot of different things
that would actually weigh outone versus the other, but it
(29:54):
depends on what you're lookingfor at that moment in time and
sometimes I tell people as wellis that does it fit your culture
?
Does their culture fit yourlifestyle?
And I say, for instance, thatyou may have an organization
that is like you said, apples toapples.
But then when it comes to, oh,I'm more of a casual person, but
this company is, they're okaywith casual.
(30:16):
They wear khakis, they wearpolo fit shirts, you know, we're
fine with it.
But this company, yep, whereasyou have this company right here
that only like you can onlywear suit and tights and as well
as you have to wear pantyhose,ladies, you know okay.
Or this company only wants hair, you know, a natural hair color
, that's all you can wear,whereas I'm more of a company.
(30:38):
You know, I'm more of a free,flowing person where I, you know
, I like to express myself andhow I express myself is with
hair color, and they're okaywith it.
So at that point, those thingssometimes will decide what would
be the best fit for me.
When you have two organizationsthat are actually apples to
apples, that would then breakdown what is different is what
works best for you and what fitsmore with you and your
(30:59):
lifestyle.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
That makes me think of another question Is it
appropriate during an interviewto ask for a company handbook
before making a decision?
Speaker 1 (31:08):
Why would it be?
A lot of people have theircompany handbooks posted on
their internet.
Some companies do and where youcan ask for that, it should not
be a problem at all, becauseyou want to review what their
policies are up front.
You can actually know abouttheir attendance policies, their
occurrences, things like that.
If they do offer those, do theyoffer performance reviews?
(31:31):
Do they actually have annualraises?
Or how do they look at theirvacation time, their holidays?
All of those things would beposted in their handbooks.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
And I know the focus of this has been more of what
the interviewee should orshouldn't ask.
Are there red flags if I'm theperson being interviewed?
Are there red flags, forexample, if I'm singing an
interview and I ask you for thehandbook and you were a little
hesitant about providing thatinformation?
Are there red flags that Ishould be looking for, that
maybe this is not the companyfor me because they're not
(32:03):
willing to answer certainquestions.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
I won't honestly say that, because sometimes the
person that may be interviewingyou may not be an HR person, it
may be a manager that actuallymay not know the answer at that
point in time.
They may have to speak tosomeone else to give you that
information.
So sometimes a person may aninterviewee, may ask an
(32:26):
interviewer a question that maytake them off guard and they may
not know the answer to it youknow at that point in time.
So I won't say just don'tautomatically assume.
Oh well, you know something maybe shady about that.
It may just be the fact thatthat person may not know that
information up front, you know.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
so I'll put you on the spot.
Has there ever been a questionthat has kind of thrown you off,
you know, because you justdidn't expect that question.
It was very unusual, somethingno one's ever asked before, that
you either couldn't answer orjust weren't prepared, just
didn't expect it.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
I'm not to think on that one.
I really don't know and, to behonest, the reason why is
because I haven't interviewed ina while, so so I can.
Honestly, I may not have ananswer for that one right now.
Speaker 2 (33:14):
Well, there's that stump, question then.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Yeah, it's honestly a stump question.
You know, honestly, I justhaven't had opportunity to
interview in a while.
So I do listen to them but Ijust me personally to interview.
I haven't had, you know, Ihaven't had a chance to so.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
Okay, well, on that note, I think we will wrap it up
.
Yolanda, Thank you so much forjoining me.
Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
This was fun To talk about this subject.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
I'm sure it is helpful to a lot of individuals
out there on a hunt trying tofigure out what's the best offer
.
Hopefully they are gettingmultiple offers it is not just
that one offer out there buthopefully this will help them
decipher what's going to be thebest course for them.
So thank you for joining us.
Speaker 1 (33:51):
Thank you so much for having me.
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that
focuses on how to use the moneyyou have, make the money you
need and save the money you want.
Now here is your host, ms Kim.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Chapman, welcome to another edition of Money Matters
.
I'm your host, kim Chapman, andtoday I have a very special
topic that I've been dying todiscuss income versus benefits.
So if you're on a job hunt, ifyou're thinking about changing
jobs, maybe it's time for yournext salary review.
This is going to be an episodethat you really want to listen
(00:33):
to.
We're going to talk aboutwhat's better.
What do you consider more, yourincome or maybe the benefits?
So joining me today is our veryown VP of Human Resources at
Neighbors, ms Yolanda Whitmore.
Welcome, yolanda, thank you forhaving me.
Oh, yes, I've been dying to dothis, so I'm glad to have you on
the show.
So let's start the show offjust by giving a little
(00:55):
information about what does a VPof Human Resources actually do.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Actually, here at Neighbors, the Vice President of
Human Resources Overseas, theHuman Resources Department.
That does include payroll, aswell as benefits and
compensation, recruitment,everything that falls under the
HR umbrella.
I am over that.
I do have two senior HRgeneralists, one that
(01:21):
specializes in benefits andcompensation and the other one
in recruitment.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
All right, awesome and give us a little background
about how long have you beenhere at Neighbors.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Going on almost 18 years now in a VP position.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
A lot of seniority.
I think we started close to thesame time.
I just made my 18 years.
So today, of course, I pulledyou in because we want to talk
about income, we want to talkabout benefits, because it's
more than just you know, $50 anhour or $10 an hour.
If you look behind the scenes,I think there's a lot of other
information that someone lookingfor a job should consider.
(01:55):
So my first question is whatare the three top three factors
you recommend candidatesconsider when evaluating a job
offer?
Speaker 1 (02:06):
consider when evaluating a job offer.
When you evaluate a job offer,the first thing I tell anyone is
to research that organizationor company because you want to
make sure that it does alignwith your values.
People need to understand thatwhen you are looking for a new
position or a new job, thatyou're going to spend majority
of your time at that job, so youwant to make sure it's
(02:29):
something that does align withwhat you, your values, are.
Do the research See.
For instance, is their culturesomething that you are
comfortable with?
I'm just going to use us for anexample.
We are an organization that'svery big on volunteering.
I'm just going to use us for anexample.
We are an organization that'svery big on volunteering.
So therefore, if you're someonethat just really are not a fan
(02:53):
of volunteering, this will notbe the organization for you.
So I tell people you knowthat's one thing you definitely
want to look at.
Also, you want to look at thebenefits.
You want to see what type ofbenefits that organization is
offering, not just when you saybenefits of health, dental and
vision and supplementalcoverages.
You want to look as well at theoverall picture of the benefit,
(03:14):
if this is something thatactually can work for me overall
, as far as in retirement, am Iat an age now where I'm looking
for something that I'm going toretire from, or is this just a
starting point for me?
So benefits may not matter atthat point.
So, but that's an option thatyou want to look at as well as
(03:38):
work-life balance overall, isthis organization or company
that I'm looking for?
Is it going to work within mylife?
Is it something that is goingto have me able if I'm married,
I have children?
Is it something that's flexible, that's going to work with me
in my life?
If I'm a person that has a fouror five-year-old child, working
(03:59):
a 70-hour job may not work forme, or a job that's very
stressful or very demanding,this may not be the job for me
at this point in time in my life.
So I'd say those three thingsprobably you would want to look
at when you're actually lookingfor or actually accepting a job.
All right.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So, yolanda, you mentioned that a potential
candidate should do the researchabout the candidate, about the
job or the potential employer interms of benefits, but
sometimes all of thatinformation is not readily
available.
So when would you recommendthat person ask or inquire about
those specific benefits andsalary?
Should it be during theinterview?
(04:36):
Should they wait to see if theyeven get a job offer?
What is the appropriate time toask those additional questions,
for information that can't befound on the internet?
Good, question.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Good question.
First of all, let's go toyou're in the interview.
At that point you've appliedfor the position.
Usually positions, when they'reposted, they will have the
information of a salary or adesired salary, or they may ask
the question what your desiredsalary is.
So therefore, if thatinformation is provided, you can
(05:07):
always assume that I made it tothe next step because I'm in
the interview and they'recomfortable with my salary.
So, whatever I put as a desiredsalary Now I'll take this.
I explain this to my managers aswell.
You don't want to wasteanybody's time.
So therefore, if we post aposition or an organization
posts a position, say, thisposition is for $50,000, and
(05:29):
someone puts their desiredsalary $75,000, don't waste that
person's time because wealready know hey, what we're
putting down in that job postingis the salary that we're
willing to offer.
You know, in a salary you canalways negotiate.
But, however, the time that youask that question is in that
(05:51):
interview.
Do not wait.
If you sit down and theinterviewee does not bring up
I'm sorry, the interviewer doesnot bring up salary as the
interviewee bring it up to thatinterviewer, ask that person at
that time before you walk awayand say, hey, I put on a desired
salary of XYZ.
Are y'all still comfortable withthat salary that I requested?
(06:12):
They're going to say yes or no.
If it's no, it shouldn't be no,because you shouldn't be
sitting there if they didn't.
You know they did not, but ifyou did not put down a desired
salary at that time, ask thatquestion what is the salary for
this position?
And if they say, oh, it's$50,000, but you know that
you're looking to say I'mcomfortable with $60,000.
(06:34):
You let them know, right there,be honest and say, well, at my
previous position I was makingyou know $58,000.
Right now, I'm looking topossibly make $60,000.
Are y'all comfortable with thatsalary?
They can tell you, right thenand there, they may be, they may
not be, but at that point youknow, right then and there, if
that is something you want tomove forward with.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
And I think what would be the real question here
is, with the example that yougave the salary that they
offered is $50,000.
I'm asking for $75,000, andthen we sit at the table.
But what happens then when Iturn around and learn that maybe
there are an additional $25,000worth of benefits?
Maybe I'm starting out withfive weeks vacation I know
that's kind of dreamland, butfive weeks vacation.
(07:15):
Maybe they pay for my healthcare, maybe they provide free
short-term and long-termdisability short-term and
long-term disability.
How would I you know if that'sthe case?
If it's $25,000 worth ofbenefits which I don't think is
far-fetched in a sense, becausesometimes I'll even look here at
neighbors my salary is X, y, z,but then I also have to
(07:37):
acknowledge that in benefits,this is what I'm also gaining.
How should, I guess, aparticular candidate evaluate
that situation?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Well, what I would suggest as well is, when you're
in that interview, ask thequestion about the benefits.
It also falls into thesituation of where you are in
life.
I know a lot of people,depending on where they are in
life, benefits may not matter,but then, on the other hand,
benefits may matter more thanwhat the salary is.
So when you're sitting down andin that interview, it's your
(08:08):
time as well to ask questions,to get to know more about that
organization.
So always ask about thebenefits as well if it's not
provided to you at that time.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
How should candidates evaluate long-term value of
benefits like bonuses, profitsharing and equity in terms of
the company?
How should we evaluate thosebenefits?
Speaker 1 (08:28):
Well, honestly this is my opinion when it comes to
bonuses as well as profitsharing as well, as you know,
receiving some type of shares ina company, I think that's not
something you may want toconsider in the beginning.
That's just me personally.
I think you don't see thebenefit of any of that until
(08:48):
you're within an organizationroughly about three to five
years.
That's when you want to startfocusing on that as far as, like
, hey, I can see the benefit ofthis of me.
You know, I decided that thisis my career, this is where I
want to grow, this is where Iwant to retire from.
At that point, that's when youcan start focusing on those
things.
As far as that, because a bonus,for instance, an organization
can probably offer bonuses andthen take that away.
(09:11):
That's not something guaranteedin a salary, as well as those
other caveats.
But one thing I would say andsuggest is that looking to see
what they do offer as far asretirement plans, such as a 401k
, things of that nature, so thatkind of actually sometimes
would sway you into saying, yes,this is an organization I am
looking for because I want tomake sure I have somewhere that
(09:33):
actually contributes towards aretirement as well.
They can offer a 401k, but arethey contributing to that 401k
and, if so, what percentage arethey contributing?
Speaker 2 (09:42):
So definitely 401k.
I think I mentioned vacation.
What are, I guess?
And from an HR perspective,what are some of those key
benefits that, if you arelooking to invest some time with
this particular organization,maybe even look to retire?
What are some of those benefitsthat you should really be
looking for?
And then would it be differentif I know this is just a
(10:03):
temporary holding spot.
This is just a job to feed thefamily for the time being Maybe.
I'm in school and I'm workingon getting a degree where I know
that this is not going to be mylast job.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Another good question , and I can give you several
different scenarios as far asbecause it depends on where you
are in life.
Again, when someone is sittingacross from you in an interview,
you honestly don't know wherethey are in life.
They may explain to you whattheir situation and
circumstances are.
On the other hand, they may not.
So, pertaining to what yourneeds are at that point in time
(10:39):
in life depends on, sometimes,the benefits I can give an
example of.
I'm a middle aged woman in mylate 30s.
I just got married.
I had a successful career.
Unfortunately, I was laid off.
My husband I'm a newlywed so myhusband he's been at his job
for over 10 years.
However, his job doesn't offerthe best of benefits.
(11:00):
He has a very good salary, butthe benefits are not that well.
So I know that I'm at the agewhere we're looking to start a
family, and start a familyquickly.
So therefore, I know that Ineed to look for an organization
or a company that possibly willassist me, that may offer
fertility benefits, will assistme, that may offer fertility
(11:23):
benefits.
That will probably be more of agame changer for me than a
salary would be.
If I'm someone that is actually21 and just graduated college.
Hey, I'm excited, I'm ready forsomebody to pay me for these
four years.
I just did so.
At that point I may not belooking for the benefit piece,
I'm looking for the salary pieceof it.
So who's going to pay me themost?
Because at this point in mymind, I'm not worried about
(11:43):
benefits because I'm only 21.
You know, my parents are notabout to retire.
For the next 10 to 12 years I'mgoing to be on their benefits
until I'm 26 years of age.
So therefore I'm not worriedabout the benefits or what
benefits this company isoffering in all honesty.
So that's more the mindset ofsome of the younger kids that
are actually coming out ofcollege that do have the benefit
to be on their parents'coverages.
Or then I can be someone thatis dealing with health issues or
(12:06):
a health situation where I'mconsidered morbidly obese and I
have tried everything and I keepgetting denied for any type of
surgeries or procedures.
In an organization that I wasworking for, they do not offer
anything as far as saying, hey,you know they have any type of
weight loss solutions oranything that will support that
as far as even with weight losssurgery.
(12:27):
So a benefit I see with thisorganization is that they do
show that they have where theyactually may cover 90 to 100% of
weight loss procedures.
So I may say, hey, this is moreof a benefit for me than what
the salary actually is.
So sometimes it depends whatthose benefits can be.
Even we can look outside ofthose things and say a benefit
(12:48):
can be as far as working fromhome, a flexible work schedule,
things like that, because youcan look at when you work
downtown even in here in BatonRouge I worked downtown years
ago.
One of the benefits was that Ihad covered parking.
And when I tell you that's alife changer when it's 100 and
some degree weather and you haveto understand as well, downtown
(13:08):
sometimes those people have topay for parking.
So having free parking is evenconsidered a benefit.
So you know you have to look atyour benefits and what you're
looking for in the moment.
That's what I say.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
So, talking about benefits and I know that you
mentioned earlier things likebonuses maybe that's a benefit
that maybe you shouldn'tnecessarily consider, because
bonus may come and bonuses maygo Are there any benefits
specifically that are lesslikely to change in terms of a
job, the ones that would kind ofbe key?
(13:42):
For example, I would imagine ifsomebody took a job because
their company matches 401kcontributions at 3% 4%, is that
something that's likely to goaway versus covered parking?
They may say, okay, you get ahundred dollar allowance for
covered parking and I canunderstand that being something
that go away.
But are there defined benefits,kind of a play on HR words that
(14:06):
they should look at that wouldhave long-term benefits versus
something that may be here todayor gone tomorrow?
Speaker 1 (14:12):
The only thing that you can possibly guarantee is
your health benefit, retirementplans.
They can always be frozendepending on what is going on
within that organization.
That is not a guarantee.
That is not something that isetched in stone to say, hey,
that is something that willalways be there for you.
So it's always good to do thattype of research when you can
(14:34):
find out or verify certainthings, when you can ask in an
interview Some people want toknow what is the financial
stability of an organization,and some ways to find that out
is to ask those questions.
As far as, hey, has there been alayoff within the past couple
of years?
If so, can you explain thereason why?
Have you seen an increase inyour organization as far as with
(14:57):
salaries and bonuses over thepast several years?
Have you given raises over thepast several years?
Things like that you can ask,so you can kind of know a little
bit about our organization'sfinancial stability.
But as far as to say, ifanything is etched in stone to
say, hey, this is something thatwill be guaranteed to stay, the
only thing would possibly be,of course, would be medical
(15:19):
because of the sizing of anorganization.
So if you're with a small oneit depends.
They can also have outsideresources for that.
But within a medical piece thatcan actually change as well,
where an organization at onepoint can cover 100% of an
employee's benefit packet andthen, depending on the price of
(15:41):
insurance, the premiums, you maysee at that point where your
organization says, hey, we'reonly covering 90 percent at this
time, or 80 percent, so thosethings can change.
There's not anything that wecan truly guarantee in benefits.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Ideally, it makes sense that a salary during an
interview might be negotiable interms of OK, you know, let's
meet in the middle.
What about benefits?
If you're offering me threeweeks, or if you're offering to
pay 3% toward 401k?
Are benefits typicallysomething that's negotiable in
an interview?
Speaker 1 (16:14):
As far as like health , dental and vision, that's not
negotiable as far as I can, youknow, because that's something
that you know.
Hey, I got to go out and be itfor that every year, so, no,
that's not negotiable.
But as far as like, hey, youknow, I was actually looking for
this salary.
However, I see y'all offer oneweek of vacation.
(16:36):
What is it if I can say, hey,can I get two weeks of vacation
or whatever?
Those are things that you canpossibly negotiate.
I don't see.
I tell people in all honesty,you can actually ask for
everything under the sun youwant.
You know all you can get is ayes or a no.
But you know, be reasonable incertain things, you know.
So you can always say I seethat.
(16:58):
Y'all state that you know inthe first.
I'm just going to give anexample Within the first six
months, y'all offer 40 hours ofvacation.
Is it possible?
I can get that 40 hours ofvacation up front versus getting
them at six months.
That's a negotiation and that'ssomething that some
organizations are willing towork with.
However, they say you know, areyou?
(17:18):
You're like, hey, I have avacation that's coming up, you
know, within the before Ireceive vacation time.
Is it possible that I can getthat time to use for this
vacation?
Those are some type, somenegotiation tools that you can
have.
Or even in the aspect of hours,if a company or organization
has flexible hours or what haveyou and say our organization has
(17:44):
flexible hours, or what haveyou and say, ok, we're open from
6 am to 6 pm, you know, and youcan ask the question.
They say, ok, this, this job,is from nine to five.
And you can say, well, hey, isit possible that I can work from
seven to three?
You know, because I have topick my child up.
Is that still something that ispossible for this position?
That's negotiating.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
And I won't harp on this particular question too
long, but I do want you to givea little feedback in terms of
what should a candidate considerif they have the option between
hourly or salary?
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Honestly, that's not an option usually given.
A reason being is because underFLSA guidelines, a job is based
on the duties.
That makes it an hourly orsalary position, not a title.
So that's not something that aperson can come in and say hey,
I want this position to behourly versus salary or vice
(18:33):
versa.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
Do you see any benefits one over the other?
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Honestly, no, no, I really don't.
I know some people feel morevalue in saying, oh well, I'm an
example of a position or whathave you, or oh, I'm in a salary
position that makes me more ofa professional.
That's not always the case.
Some people prefer to be earlybecause that gives them a
benefit of actually receivingovertime.
You know, it depends on whatthat job is.
(19:03):
In all honesty, and I alwaysgive the example of I can, I can
label a name, I can give atitle to anything.
(19:26):
In all honesty, I it's calledthe CEO of OOO or what have you.
But if my duties are toactually file papers, to answer
the phones, you know when thedoorbell rings, go, greet the go
, greet the members or customers, that's not a salary position.
That is actually based in underFLSA guidelines as an hourly
(19:47):
position.
So that's why I always informpeople don't get hooked up on
titles all the time.
It's actually the duties thatare listed underneath that job
title in that job description.
What base is it on if it's anhourly or salary position?
Speaker 2 (20:03):
All right.
Are there any particularquestions, like the top two or
three questions that, regardlessof what position you're
applying for, that everycandidate should make sure they
walk out of an interview havingthis particular information.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Number one is what's the salary?
You want to know what thesalary is for that position, and
the reason why is because ifit's not what you're looking for
, don't waste that employer'stime or your time on that.
But honestly, you should knowthat information prior to the
interview.
But if you have not, make sureyou know the salary as well as
(20:39):
the benefits, you want to knowabout the benefits, what type of
benefit offers?
If they don't have thatinformation, ask who can you
reach out to within theorganization to go over benefits
, because keep in mind thatsalary at that point that, like
you said, when it combines withthe benefits, may be more of a
salary that you're looking forthan what you thought.
(20:59):
So I always say always look atboth of them together.
So you always want to knowabout the salaries and the
benefits of that organization.
And also, what a lot of peopledon't ask and I ask and this is
going to be more than three I'mgoing to say, because this is
part of benefits is ask when thebenefits start, because one of
the things is, some people needto know how soon those benefits
(21:20):
will begin.
And I'm just going to plug thisfor us, because one of the
pluses for us is our benefitsfor full-time employees begin on
day one, and that's rare for alot of organizations and
companies.
So that's always a sellingpoint for us.
Our benefits do begin on dayone, whereas a lot of companies
would be 60, 45, 90 days.
It just depends.
So, therefore, that's why Ialways say know the benefits.
(21:42):
Therefore, that's why I alwayssay know the benefits, but know
when those benefits would beginfor you with that company.
Also, you want to know as wellas when will you know a response
of a positive or negative inthis interview?
Will you move to the next phase?
Or you know, hey, when we findout if this position is filled.
You need to know that becauseyou don't want to be waiting on
pins and needles.
And they, you know a month.
(22:03):
They say, oh well, we'll knowin three, you'll know in three
weeks.
We're still interviewing blah,blah, blah.
Or, hey, I know, we'll know bythe end of this week.
So you know by Friday if it'sMonday, and by the end of the
week is Friday.
If you haven't heard from themby Friday, reach back out on
(22:26):
Monday or what have you.
And one thing I always say aswell if you forget to ask any
questions, or any of those topthree questions that I just
stated, or a question that comesto mind, reach out to them
during that time frame.
Do not wait until someone makesan offer to start asking 15
million questions to them atthat point, especially when they
stated to you on Monday hey,we'll have a decision by Friday.
If you thought about thosequestions, reach out, call, send
(22:47):
an email and say, hey, this issomething I forgot to ask you.
Can you please provide me withthat information?
So that's why I always tellpeople don't be afraid to have a
communication with that person.
That can be your potential hire.
And also one thing I wanna sayas well is I'm a big person on
people's time.
Don't of wasting of time.
Let me put it like that.
When I know some people alwaysare they hear this about Google
(23:12):
or on social media like, oh youknow, if somebody makes you an
offer, don't, don't just say yes, just just wait, just just wait
, hold out a couple of days.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
You know desperate.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Yes, yes, yes, don't seem desperate.
Just hold out a couple of days,because you know they may offer
you more money, especially ifthey need you, you know whatever
, don't waste your time anddon't take chances like that.
And the reason why I say thatis because you may not have been
the only candidate that personinterviewed and you may have
been the number one choice, butyou don't know how close the
number two choice was to you.
(23:41):
And I'm just going to give anexample as far as, like,
somebody calls to make you anoffer on that Friday and they
spoke to you that Monday, bythat time you should have known
if you were willing to acceptthat, if you were going to
accept that job offer or not.
Now understand, if you had aninterview that Friday morning
and they call you three hourslater and make you the offer,
(24:01):
you haven't had a time to reviewanything at that point.
So I understand when you wouldsay okay, can you give me until
Monday to actually let you knowwhat I decide, because at that
point you're just getting thebenefit packet that you possibly
asked for.
So you had a chance to reviewall of that information.
But if you had several days,you should know by that point if
you're going to say yes or noon that Friday.
(24:23):
So if you're going to say, ohwell, give me about 72 hours,
can you give me another week, orwhatever, I'm just going to be
honest.
Me personally, I'm going to goto the number two candidate,
because the number two candidateprobably only had a smidgen of
something probably differentthat made you the number one
candidate.
For instance, if, oh, numberone was just as great as well as
number two candidate, was justas great as well as number two
(24:45):
candidate, the only differencewas is that number one possibly
had three months more ofmanagement experience, for
instance, but this person wasjust as good, and that's the
only thing that deciphered themwas we can say they had more
management experience.
But at that point I'm like Ican't wait, because at this
point I'm trying to fill thisposition and if I wait another
week that's putting me back, youknow.
So therefore, I could say,right, then you know, no problem
(25:07):
, I'll rescind my offer and I'mgoing to call candidate number
two.
So that's why I say sometimesyou don't want to play those
games.
Speaker 2 (25:12):
Okay.
Are there questions that acandidate shouldn't ask about
salary?
I have a 19 and 24 year old andof course you know they're at
that age where they change jobslike they change underwear, and
they'll come home and I'll havea hundred questions, I you know.
When do you start?
How often do you get paid?
When do you get paid?
And I get blank stares asthough you like they were afraid
(25:35):
to ask those questions.
So are there questions that mayseem inappropriate, or maybe it
seems like your only focus isthe money and at 19 and 24, that
is their only focus.
But yet they come home withoutthis information and they're
just going to wait to see whenthe direct deposit hits their
account and say, mama, I gotpaid today.
Speaker 1 (25:53):
No, in all honesty, keep in mind, it's just not the
young kids we honestly know,especially during new hire
orientation, when we actually gothrough the process of
explaining to them hey, when isyour, when your first deposit is
going to hit, when we fill outthis information during benefits
orientation, all of thosethings.
So we notice a lot of peopledon't ask that question.
(26:15):
So they just know hey, this ismy salary.
They don't know if they'regoing to be biweekly, annually,
once a month, twice a month,first 15.
They really don't know.
Is it a question that a lot ofpeople miss?
Yes, it is so is it a question?
that you want to ask.
You definitely want to, becauseyou want to know hey, when am I
going to get my first paycheck,or how often does this happen,
you know?
Is this once a month?
Because at that point I need toknow.
(26:35):
If I worked at a previous joband I was used to getting paid
every other week and now I'monly getting paid once a month,
I'm going to have to learn howto rebudget.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Absolutely, and that's my favorite word right
there Budget, budget, budget,budget.
And that's why it just kind offloors me that you see
candidates that will have a joband they come back with little
information and it's almost likethey're afraid to ask questions
.
That's why I was curious, youknow, what are those questions
that they shouldn't ask?
Is there any?
Speaker 1 (27:02):
There's not a such thing to me as don't ask,
especially in an interview.
That's your opportunity to askthose questions.
And, to be honest, from mepersonally sitting in interviews
, I'm intrigued more so by thepeople that do ask questions.
To ask, you know, because Ifeel honestly they're more.
(27:23):
They're more serious about ajob and a career because they've
done the research.
They're asking the questions Tome.
They're more serious about thissearch.
They want to know any andeverything as much as possible.
And they're genuine questionsbecause you know you can always
get those same run of the listquestions that they tell you on
(27:44):
Google.
Make sure you ask thesequestions from somebody
listening to a TikTok video.
You know, anytime you're goingto interview and it's funny
because you can see thosequestions asked but you can tell
they're not genuine.
You can barely like they'reasking the questions but they're
not even listening to youranswer per se.
You know they can say, oh okay,so what benefits do you offer?
And you know we give them theinformation and they're like, oh
OK, but you didn't see themwrite down anything.
(28:06):
And then it's like, oh well,you know they'll ask the next
question, but you know they'vegotten the information because
that's what they said these arethe questions that you need to
ask in an interview, but ifyou're not genuinely asking
those questions, it's notquestions that you really don't
want the answer to don't askthem.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
I guess, before we wrap it up, any final tips again
for any of those listeners outthere.
They're out there in a job hunt.
Maybe they have a job andthey're just looking for
something different.
And they're looking at, youknow, I've got this position
being offered to me, thisposition being offered to me.
You know, the salaries may bethe same, maybe the benefits are
different.
Any last tips, last pieces ofadvice for them to consider.
Speaker 1 (28:46):
Well, number one, it's a blessing to have two
offers on the table right now,so good for you.
But one thing I would you know.
A good takeaway would be lookat everything, the overall
pictures, like you said.
If they're apples to apples,there's something that's going
to make a difference, whether itbe what works with your life.
(29:06):
Is this an organization that'sbeen around for a long period of
time?
Is this organizationalreputable?
Is this organization showinggrowth within a company?
Are they actually growing or isthis company?
Have they had layoffs in thepast year or two, or is this
company had any layoffs?
Does it show when you lookonline on social media that the
(29:31):
company is engaged or theiremployees are engaged?
Are their employees postingpositive information about them,
or is this company not?
Doesn't have any type offootprint in social media?
Does this organization actuallygive to the community?
If that's something you value,it's a lot of different things
that would actually weigh outone versus the other, but it
(29:54):
depends on what you're lookingfor at that moment in time and
sometimes I tell people as wellis that does it fit your culture
?
Does their culture fit yourlifestyle?
And I say, for instance, thatyou may have an organization
that is like you said, apples toapples.
But then when it comes to, oh,I'm more of a casual person, but
this company is, they're okaywith casual.
(30:16):
They wear khakis, they wearpolo fit shirts, you know, we're
fine with it.
But this company, yep, whereasyou have this company right here
that only like you can onlywear suit and tights and as well
as you have to wear pantyhose,ladies, you know okay.
Or this company only wants hair, you know, a natural hair color
, that's all you can wear,whereas I'm more of a company.
(30:38):
You know, I'm more of a free,flowing person where I, you know
, I like to express myself andhow I express myself is with
hair color, and they're okaywith it.
So at that point, those thingssometimes will decide what would
be the best fit for me.
When you have two organizationsthat are actually apples to
apples, that would then breakdown what is different is what
works best for you and what fitsmore with you and your
(30:59):
lifestyle.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
That makes me think of another question Is it
appropriate during an interviewto ask for a company handbook
before making a decision?
Speaker 1 (31:08):
Why would it be?
A lot of people have theircompany handbooks posted on
their internet.
Some companies do and where youcan ask for that, it should not
be a problem at all, becauseyou want to review what their
policies are up front.
You can actually know abouttheir attendance policies, their
occurrences, things like that.
If they do offer those, do theyoffer performance reviews?
(31:31):
Do they actually have annualraises?
Or how do they look at theirvacation time, their holidays?
All of those things would beposted in their handbooks.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
And I know the focus of this has been more of what
the interviewee should orshouldn't ask.
Are there red flags if I'm theperson being interviewed?
Are there red flags, forexample, if I'm singing an
interview and I ask you for thehandbook and you were a little
hesitant about providing thatinformation?
Are there red flags that Ishould be looking for, that
maybe this is not the companyfor me because they're not
(32:03):
willing to answer certainquestions.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
I won't honestly say that, because sometimes the
person that may be interviewingyou may not be an HR person, it
may be a manager that actuallymay not know the answer at that
point in time.
They may have to speak tosomeone else to give you that
information.
So sometimes a person may aninterviewee, may ask an
(32:26):
interviewer a question that maytake them off guard and they may
not know the answer to it youknow at that point in time.
So I won't say just don'tautomatically assume.
Oh well, you know something maybe shady about that.
It may just be the fact thatthat person may not know that
information up front, you know.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
so I'll put you on the spot.
Has there ever been a questionthat has kind of thrown you off,
you know, because you justdidn't expect that question.
It was very unusual, somethingno one's ever asked before, that
you either couldn't answer orjust weren't prepared, just
didn't expect it.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
I'm not to think on that one.
I really don't know and, to behonest, the reason why is
because I haven't interviewed ina while, so so I can.
Honestly, I may not have ananswer for that one right now.
Speaker 2 (33:14):
Well, there's that stump, question then.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Yeah, it's honestly a stump question.
You know, honestly, I justhaven't had opportunity to
interview in a while.
So I do listen to them but Ijust me personally to interview.
I haven't had, you know, Ihaven't had a chance to so.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
Okay, well, on that note, I think we will wrap it up
.
Yolanda, Thank you so much forjoining me.
Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (33:33):
This was fun To talk about this subject.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
I'm sure it is helpful to a lot of individuals
out there on a hunt trying tofigure out what's the best offer
.
Hopefully they are gettingmultiple offers it is not just
that one offer out there buthopefully this will help them
decipher what's going to be thebest course for them.
So thank you for joining us.
Speaker 1 (33:51):
Thank you so much for having me.
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