Company lookup
Practical guides to install and use the app effectively.
Company Lookup — Employer Intelligence
Company Lookup provides pre-application intelligence on potential employers, helping you make informed decisions and tailor your applications effectively.
The Company Lookup Workflow
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ COMPANY LOOKUP WORKFLOW │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ TRIGGER │
│ ├── From Job Search: Click company name │
│ ├── From Draft: "Research Company" button │
│ └── From Menu: Tools → Company Lookup │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ DATA COLLECTION ENGINE │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ ├── Company Website Scraping │ │
│ │ ├── LinkedIn Company Page (if available) │ │
│ │ ├── Glassdoor Reviews (aggregate) │ │
│ │ ├── Crunchbase/AngelList (funding data) │ │
│ │ └── News/Social Mentions │ │
│ │ │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ ANALYSIS & PRESENTATION │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ ├── Company Overview Card │ │
│ │ ├── Key Metrics Dashboard │ │
│ │ ├── Red/Green Flags Summary │ │
│ │ └── Suggested Talking Points │ │
│ │ │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ OUTPUT → Tailored Draft Strategy │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Company Data Points
Basic Information
| Field | Source | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Company Name | Job posting / Website | Verification |
| Industry | LinkedIn / Website | Role alignment |
| Size | LinkedIn / Crunchbase | Culture fit assessment |
| Location | Website / Job posting | Commute/remote feasibility |
| Founded | Crunchbase / LinkedIn | Company maturity |
| Website | Direct | Deep research |
Advanced Intelligence
| Field | Source | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Funding Stage | Crunchbase / AngelList | Growth trajectory |
| Recent News | News APIs / Google | Current events, opportunities |
| Tech Stack | Job postings / StackShare | Skill alignment |
| Hiring Velocity | Job board frequency | Growth indicator |
| Glassdoor Rating | Glassdoor | Culture quality |
| Employee Count Trend | Growth/decline |
Evaluation Framework
The 5-Minute Company Scan
Before generating a draft, spend 5 minutes reviewing:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ COMPANY EVALUATION CHECKLIST │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ 1. MISSION & PRODUCT (1 min) │
│ □ Understand what they do │
│ □ Identify their core value proposition │
│ □ Note recent product launches or pivots │
│ │
│ 2. SIZE & STAGE (30 sec) │
│ □ Startup (< 50 employees) → High impact, risk │
│ □ Scale-up (50-500) → Growth opportunities │
│ □ Enterprise (> 500) → Stability, specialization │
│ │
│ 3. CULTURE SIGNALS (2 min) │
│ □ Glassdoor rating > 3.5? │
│ □ Recent layoffs or hiring freezes? │
│ □ Leadership stability │
│ □ Remote work policy │
│ │
│ 4. ROLE CONTEXT (1 min) │
│ □ Team size (from job description) │
│ □ Reporting structure (if mentioned) │
│ □ Growth path indicators │
│ □ Technology stack match │
│ │
│ 5. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE (30 sec) │
│ □ Main competitors │
│ □ Market position (leader/challenger) │
│ □ Industry trends affecting them │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Red Flags to Watch
| Red Flag | Why It Matters | Action |
|---|---|---|
| < 3.0 Glassdoor rating | Significant culture issues | Research further or avoid |
| Recent mass layoffs | Instability | Wait 3-6 months |
| Vague job description | Unclear expectations | Ask clarifying questions |
| High turnover in role | Management/scope issues | LinkedIn stalk previous holders |
| No online presence | Potential scam | Verify legitimacy |
| Unrealistic requirements | Poor hiring practices | Apply cautiously |
| Salaries not competitive | Budget constraints | Negotiate aggressively or pass |
Green Flags to Prioritize
| Green Flag | Why It Matters | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 4.0+ Glassdoor rating | Strong culture | High priority |
| Transparent leadership | Trust, stability | Mention in application |
| Clear growth path | Career development | Ask about progression |
| Recent funding/growth | Momentum | Reference in motivation |
| Diverse team photos | Inclusivity | Align values in application |
| Technical blog/posts | Engineering culture | Reference specific articles |
| Employee advocacy | Happy workforce | Connect with employees on LinkedIn |
Using Insights in Applications
Tailoring Your Draft
Generic Opening:
"I am writing to apply for the Software Engineer position..."
Research-Informed Opening:
"I've been following [Company]'s journey since your Series B announcement, particularly your shift toward AI-powered analytics. The Software Engineer role feels like the perfect intersection of my backend expertise and your mission to democratize data insights..."
Subject Line Optimization
| Company Type | Generic Subject | Tailored Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Startup | "Application for Software Engineer" | "Backend Engineer + your recent Kubernetes migration" |
| Enterprise | "Software Engineer Application" | "15 years backend experience + SaaS scaling" |
| Mission-driven | "Software Engineer Role" | "Python expertise for climate tech mission" |
Talking Points by Company Stage
Startup (< 50 employees):
- Emphasize versatility and impact
- Reference specific product features
- Show entrepreneurial mindset
- "I thrive in early-stage environments where I can wear multiple hats..."
Scale-up (50-500):
- Balance between stability and growth
- Reference scaling challenges
- Show process improvement experience
- "Having scaled systems at [Previous], I understand the challenges of hypergrowth..."
Enterprise (> 500):
- Emphasize specialization and depth
- Reference enterprise-scale experience
- Show cross-functional collaboration
- "My experience with enterprise compliance and cross-team collaboration..."
Deep Research Techniques
LinkedIn Investigation
-
Company Page Analysis:
- Employee count trend (growing?)
- Recent hires in your target department
- Employee tenure (high turnover warning)
-
Team Composition:
- Search "Company Name + Engineering"
- Check team size vs company size
- Identify potential hiring manager
-
Content Strategy:
- What do they post about?
- Engagement levels (active community?)
- Recent achievements or announcements
Technical Stack Discovery
Sources:
- Job descriptions (required skills)
- StackShare.io company profiles
- Engineering blogs
- GitHub open source presence
- Conference talks by employees
Usage in Applications:
"I noticed you're migrating from monolith to microservices.
My experience with similar migrations at [Previous] could help
accelerate your transition..."
Funding & Financial Health
Crunchbase / AngelList Data Points:
- Last funding round (date, amount, stage)
- Investor quality (top-tier VCs?)
- Runway estimate (cash ÷ burn rate)
- Revenue trajectory (if public)
Application Angle:
- Early stage: "Excited to join at this pivotal growth phase..."
- Late stage: "Impressed by your path to profitability..."
- Public: "Admire your consistent quarterly growth..."
Company Lookup Integration
With Smart Draft
Company data auto-populates:
- Company context in prompt engineering
- Tone suggestion based on company stage
- Personalization hooks from recent news
- Tech stack alignment from job requirements
With Job Search
- Company name badges in results
- Quick lookup button on each job card
- Company rating overlay (if available)
- Saved company tracking across searches
With Analytics
- Track response rates by company type
- Identify best-performing company stages
- Optimize targeting by industry
- Compare salary offers by company size
Practical Workflows
Target Company Workflow
1. Identify 10-15 dream companies
2. Create dedicated "Dream-Companies" profile
3. Set up job alerts for each company
4. Deep research on each (Company Lookup)
5. Create tailored templates per company type
6. Apply within 24 hours of new posting
7. Track responses in Analytics
Batch Research Workflow
1. Run broad job search (50+ results)
2. Star promising roles
3. Weekend: Batch company research
4. Prioritize by:
- Company quality (4.0+ rating)
- Role fit (80%+ match)
- Application freshness (< 3 days)
5. Generate drafts for top 5
6. Queue for Monday morning send
Data Sources & Limitations
Available Data Sources
| Source | Data Type | Coverage | Reliability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Size, industry, employees | High | High | |
| Glassdoor | Ratings, reviews, salaries | Medium | Medium |
| Crunchbase | Funding, investors, founding | Medium | High |
| Company Website | Mission, products, team | High | High |
| News APIs | Recent events | Variable | Medium |
| Job Boards | Hiring velocity | High | High |
Known Limitations
- Small companies: Limited data availability
- Stealth mode: No public information
- International: Varying data coverage by region
- Real-time: Some data delayed by 24-48 hours
Privacy & Ethics
- Only uses publicly available data
- Respects robots.txt and rate limits
- No employee personal information
- Aggregated data only for ratings
Company Lookup works best when combined with Smart Draft for personalized applications and Profile Management for organized job searches.