The right way to evaluate a Job Offer: Chief product officer (CPO)

After months of patience, hard-work, preparation, and persistence, you’ve been offered the “Chief product officer” position. Congratulations! In today’s economic climate, it can be tempting to accept the offer, but should you take it?

So how do you decide?

1. Are you passionate about the product – To be a successful Chief product officer, you must have a passion for company’s product or service. Without passion it will be difficult to inspire the rest of the team.

2. Is it a newly created role?

3. Evaluate your potential CEO closely – How does s/he treat you during the interview? How does s/he treat other employees?  Watch how other employees react to your prospective boss as well. Do employees get positive and developmental critiques? If so, how often?

4. Beware the company that tries to rush the interview process –  If you feel uneasy about the job or the people you’d be working with, don’t ignore it. Listen to your instincts!

5. Your career path – Getting this job is important, but it’s also vital to think about what it will do for you five to 10 years down the road.

6. Your ability to get the job done – There are 3 question to ponder:

• Do you have the skills to meet and exceed expectations?
• Will you be given the resources to do the job? You need to be clear on your duties so that you know what is expected of you, which can help minimize surprises after you start working.
• Are those expectations reasonable? If not, you’re setting yourself up for a fall.

Good luck!

What is Chief product officer (CPO)?

Chief product officer (CPO), sometimes also known as “chief production officer,” is a high-level corporate officer responsible for all product-related matters.

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling but in rising every time we fall.” – Nelson Mandela

Here’s a list of few Chief product officers (CPOs) on Twitter:

Joe Gebbia, Chief Product Officer a at Airbnb. He leads the product team in creating meaningful experiences through intuitive design, and oversees Airbnb’s brand and product development. You can follow David on Twitter @jgebbia.

David Cancel, Chief Product Officer at Hubspot, the world’s leading inbound marketing and sales platform. You can follow David on Twitter @dcancel.

Marc Whitten, Chief Product Officer at Sonos, Inc. venture capital backed electronic products and components manufacturing company. You can follow Marc on Twitter @notwen.

Trei Brundrett, Chief Product Officer at Vox Media. You can follow Trei on Twitter @clockwerks.

Anand Chandrasekaran, Chief Product Officer at Bharti Airtel, you can follow Anand on Twitter @anandc.

Marcel LeBrun, Chief Product Officer Salesforce Radian6, you can follow Marcel on Twitter @lebrun.

I look forward to your comments and suggestions.

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