I would ask for an annual report (preferably with a financial statement),
and how the organiztion is funded. You can find out some of this through
research, and you can couch it in terms of questions aboutmembership base or
member involvement, ...engaged members are a good thing.
I would also ask what responsibilities the position carried, what other
staff members you'd work with, and what a typical work day was like.
If the people you'll be working with most closely (on a daily basis) aren't
at the interview table, and you don't get to talk to them as part of the
interview process, that's something to note. You should meet your future
colleagues, not just your future supervisor (just as when/if you get
married or
enter a committed partnership, you check out the inlaws.)
If it is a new position, you might also want to ask if it is permanent and
how it is funded and for how long. Sometimes these things are not put in
advertisements, or job descriptions, or addressed by the employer.
Another question is to ask about the organization's mission, goals, and
vision, and what they'll be doing to implement these goals, and how you
might be a part of that process. (Ideally, you've doine some research and
can name at least one goal, but the vision is the interesting part of
long-range planning:
it can tell you what they think they want to become, which might show you
what they think they lack.)
What should the responses be? Depends on the place & position.
You should be able to get an annual report, and other promo material, easily
(try to get it beforehand).
They might not want to tell you their budget, but they should be able to
tell you if they do or don't have an endowment, a fabulous membership base,
are govt. funded, receive tax monies. This stuff is not always apparent, and
I suggest it because their financial stability is crucial to your continued
employment, and these are not pretty times.
As for how long you should stay in a position, my (personal) advice is to
balance your needs against those of your resume (they are not the same).
Your resume needs you to stay at least one year before you start looking
around, unless you have good reasons (you are moving; the job is not a good
fit and you have figured out that the one you're applying for is; the place
is closing). You need to stay as long as you are learning, but look around
for something new when you have hit the ceiling (or wall).
Off-topic, I have found that Joseph Campbell's "Hero With a Thousand Faces"
gets me through a lot of tricky work/life situations that sound something
like what your questions suggest to me.
Kirsten Hammerstrom
Curator, Rhode Island Historical Society
110 Benevolent Street
Providence RI 02908
(401) 331-8575 x126
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