imagesYesterday I set out four questions you need to get answered in an interview to tell if you’re going to be working for a good boss. In case you’ve forgotten or too lazy to check, the four questions are:

  • How will I know exactly what is expected of me?
  • How will I know how I’m doing?
  • How will I know how to get better?
  • How will I know how I’ve done?

Today we’ll look at the first one. You probably got a job description from the company before you applied. That must have gotten you so excited by requirements like: “Must have good knowledge of Excel” and others like “Responsible for inter-departmental process facilitation.”

Whatever. It’s a job and you need one but will you be working for an idiot? Does the job description tell you what you need to know? How will you know what’s expected of you?

Most job descriptions only talk about the process and not the results that are expected. What should be key for you is figuring out what results they want. This might not be in a job description but it should exist somewhere.

Wherever it exists, does it tell you what results are expected? And exactly, with measurements like; “Responsible for 13% net profit on sales to new markets?”

Does it tell you what your limits of authority are like “Must get all sales above $100,000 approved by manager in advance.”

This will tell you something about how good your new boss is at delegating. If she has thought through metrics it will mean that you’re responsible for results and have the authority to do the job. Otherwise, micromanagement here we come.