Job Offers - The Basics
Job searching and interviewing is not fun, that’s a fact. The good news is, it gets easier once you get an offer, right?!
Not exactly.
Job offers can be overwhelming and complicated.
What does a job offer entail?
What is ‘normal’?
Where can I push back and negotiate?
These are just a few questions I get on a regular basis.
Good news, this will be the start of a series all about job offers.
The first step is understanding the components of a typical offer. When you think about an offer you should be thinking about the bigger picture beyond compensation. There are many additional factors that will impact your life along with your pocketbook in a job offer.
A few things to keep in mind:
Every company differs in what they offer. What is listed below is not a list of things that will be included in your offer, but what might be included in your offer. My goal is to give general advice that helps a broad audience. This list is also not exhaustive.
An offer is more than just the written offer and not everything listed below will be in the written offer letter. It is your job as a candidate to gather this information to help you make an informed decision.
Job Details - Information about the job itself
Job title
Start Date
Location
Employment policies and legalize
Compensation - Actual dollars in your pocket1
Base salary
Bonuses
Sign On
Equity
401k (if there is a match, without match this would probably move to perk)
Benefits - Non-wage compensation
Medical
Dental
Vision
Time off
Leave policies
Perks - Anything additional that companies use to entice and keep employees happy
Wellness stipends
Education stipends
Travel perks
Food provided
Home office setups
Employee stock purchase program
Life insurance
Pet insurance
Commuter stipends
Charitable matching
Employee housing
Relocation assistance
Intangibles - Things that could impact you personally/emotionally/mentally
Company culture
Work hours
Company diversity/team diversity
Work ownership (particularly in the open source world)
In the next post I’ll break down each section individually and explore details to help you understand expectations and points for pushback.
This is a complicated statement if your equity is in option form, but more on that in a future post