If you’ve received a job offer for an executive role, congratulations! How will you approach the decision of whether or not to take the position?

Some candidates I speak with haven’t considered an approach before they receive an offer, but it’s important to know what to evaluate before making this life-changing decision. 

The following will give you a structured set of considerations to help guide your decision-making process and rationale, especially for senior-level roles.

If you’re a candidate who’s working with an executive search firm, always speak to your recruiter and go through all the considerations for any role you’re offered.

Got an executive job offer? Here’s what to consider

1. It’s not just about the salary

Clearly, salary is an important consideration in accepting any new executive role – but it shouldn’t be the only consideration, and depending on your situation and perspective, it may be way down on the list of importance.

When you think about salary, don’t look at it alone but in the context of the benefits, you may be eligible to receive and any other perks the company offers.

This could be things like whether you’ll get shares/equity in the company, bonuses, holiday allowance, paid parental leave, and health and wellness benefits.

2. What’s the company culture like?

Company culture plays a huge role in job satisfaction. Make sure you find out what type of culture the company you may be going into has. Does the CEO or senior leadership team you’ll be working with promote a creative, innovative or market-driven culture? Is it a collaborative environment? Is it a culture that would suit you?

Or alternatively, is it the type of company and environment that welcomes people who ask questions and challenge the status quo in order to do things differently and improve? Will you feel comfortable going into an executive role and making your voice heard and creating positive change?

You may want to meet with senior colleagues before you accept the role to see if you can judge how you’ll work together.

3. Flexibility and work/life balance

Flexibility in terms of hybrid working is an increasingly integral part of typically office-based work. What is the company’s policy on flexible working? Does the role offer you the flexibility you need? What are the expectations? Are you happy to work in or manage a team of people who are remote or hybrid working?

4. Your career goals, ambitions and the growth potential 

As an executive, you’ve undoubtedly already given a lot of consideration to your career goals and where you want to be in two, five or 10 years. Does the role you’ve been offered match your goals? Will it continue you down the career path you’ve chosen?

Not only that, but do you believe you’ll derive job satisfaction from this role? Look at where you want to be in the future and ask yourself whether this role will help you get there, in terms of how much challenge it offers, the responsibilities you’ll have and whether you think any targets you’ll be set are achievable.

You need an in-depth understanding of what the role offers before you can match it to your personal goals and decide whether it’s right for you.

Do you believe you’ll thrive in the new role? That your senior colleagues will support and challenge you to grow?

5. Are there long-term incentives for senior executives?

In some situations, for example, if you’re going into a startup at a senior level, there may be some other incentives to consider. For example, startups may offer long-term incentives such as equity or stocks in the company. Do you believe in them enough to accept this as a true benefit and a potential future windfall? Obviously, there’s a risk in joining a startup, and you’ll need to decide whether the benefits may outweigh that risk in the long run.

A final thought

Finally, it’s also important to keep in mind the reasons you were open to considering a new role to begin with.

Also, what will you do if you turn the role down? If you’re currently in a position, this may not be as much of a concern, but if you aren’t working you may want to think about how much starting the job search process again outweighs taking this role.

Are you an executive leader seeking career advice or do you want to talk through how I could represent you to companies in your industry? Contact me directly and let’s set up a call.