I welcome your questions! Here’s one from RM via LinkedIn:

Question: When considering whether to join a company, how can I tell if they offer work-life supports and whether the culture really supports flexible working?

Answer: I suggest that you obtain plenty of perspectives from various angles: Ask them directly, get offsite, get onsite (via a tour their facility), and seek input from indirect/third party sources. Here are some specifics.

Asking Directly. When asking directly, I’d suggest asking both formal company representatives (like HR or the hiring work team leader) as well as other employees with whom you may come into contact. Listen for consistency in their answers – they will be coming from different perspectives which will be helpful to building your full understanding of the culture. Here are a few questions that you can ask directly:

• What are the specific policies and practices that support work-life in this organization (vacation, leaves, benefits, work-at-home, etc.)? When asking this questions, listen for which of these are formal policies and which of these are informal practices (the ‘way things get done around here’). This will give you a clue about what the company says about its policies in comparison to the informal culture that dictates the behaviors and choices people make day-to-day.
• What technologies are provided to employees (this includes hardware like laptops, tablets, or other personal devices as well as access to software that facilitates remote work such as Skype; it may also include permissions for social media such as Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn).
• What are your policies/practices for equipping a home office (this may be in terms of furniture, technology/equipment, office supplies, etc.)?
• What are the areas in which work team leaders have decision-making discretion on work-life practices and which are the areas that are dictated by corporate policies?
• To what extent do people work alternate hours or from alternate locations? Is this typically done more formally or informally?
• To what extent do people here take advantage of work-life support policies/practices? Can you give me some examples?

Get Offsite. If you can, get an opportunity to have a coffee or a drink or a dinner with a few people on the team that you’re potentially joining. Thinking here as hiring manager, I’ve always been shocked that the interviewing/hiring process works as often as it does, because when you think about it, we really have the chance to learn so little through the interviewing process. Even if it’s a robust process, we just can’t learn enough before we make a decision to ‘get married’ (hire someone/join a company). I’ve always found it helpful to get offsite. Have a coffee with the potential leader or team members, or have dinner with the hiring leader and a team member or two. In these situations, you can dig deeper, learn more about people in a more relaxed setting, and often get a more real sense of people’s perspectives on the company. There’s just something about being out of the office and breaking proverbial bread together that encourages people to let down their guards a bit, and is therefore a great opportunity to learn more about the job and the company.

Get Onsite – Tour the Facility. Ask to tour the facility and look for the extent to which there is a positive buzz in the environment. Are people talking to each other? Exchanging ideas? Moving around? Sitting quietly in work stations? To what extent is there access to daylight, views, or the outside? To what extent are there a variety of spaces to work – conference rooms, phone booths, coffee bars, informal areas to connect? Are there people in the building? If not, where are they? Working from home? In meetings? Someplace else? Most importantly: Do you personally feel comfortable in the environment? Can you imagine yourself there?

Indirect Sources. Also seek information from indirect or third party sources like Glassdoor or searches on the company, its CEO, or its officials. What they (the company or its representatives) are saying in social media will give you clues about the culture. You may also seek out former employees. Why did they leave? What was their experience of the company?

Bottom line, I suggest that you consider information from multiple sources and use both your head and your heart in the decision making. In the end, the best decisions will be cerebral and logical, but they will also include a gut check. Never underestimate the power of intuition and your own sense of whether a place is a ‘fit’ and whether you can imagine yourself there – being fulfilled by your work and your life.

Do you have a question about work-life and/or about Bringing Work to Life? If so, let me know by emailing me at tbrower108@gmail.com. Why? One of the foundations of Bringing Work to Life is abundance: the idea that it is possible to find fulfillment, have it all, and avoid the trade-offs between work and life. After all, work and life aren’t separate things to be placed in containers, but part of an integrated whole of a satisfying life. Another foundation of Bringing Work to Life is the idea of multiple right answers. As we’re all seeking ways to bring work to life – and bring life to work – we can learn from each other’s questions, perspectives, input, and answers!

 Tracy Brower is the author of Bring Work to Life by Bringing Life to Work: A Guide for Leaders and Organizations.