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Career Resources
Articles As your own agent, you've done some salary research, and you know what you're worth. You know what combination of compensation elements will make a prospective position your dream job. Now you need to negotiate to get those compensation goals and nail down your dream deal. Your dream deal. What's in a dream deal? It's that combination of statistics and characteristics that, taken together, make up your dream job.
The company's dream deal Although the company may seem to be a lot bigger than you are, when you sit down to talk about salary, it's usually just one-on-one. And you're not the only one who wants to come away a winner - be assured that the company knows the elements of its own dream deal. It's likely to look something like this.
The reality deal In case you can't get your dream deal, you need a fallback position: your reality deal. This is the minimum you are willing to accept and still be part of the company. Be polite but firm about your requirements; remember that the company has a reality deal too. But the minute a company decides it wants you, your price goes up. They have a position to fill. And it's a seller's market. Be the dream candidate To the company, the dream candidate has many ideal qualities, including the ability to negotiate. If a salary negotiation is successful, both parties will be on the same side at the end. Your employer - or prospective employer - will want you to be a tough negotiator on its behalf, so it expects you to negotiate firmly for yourself. So prepare thoroughly. Walk into the negotiation like a winner. And understand the criteria that would make a dream outcome for both parties. If you can demonstrate in monetary terms how the extra qualities you bring to the table are worth more to the company, you are on the way to negotiating a win-win. No feelings Niceness doesn't help in a negotiation. Don't be mean, but keep a flat, unemotional tone during the talks, to avoid giving away critical information about your reaction to what is being said. This is what they mean when they say, "Never let them see you sweat." Entrepreneurs have been known to hold out for a little more from venture capitalists when their electricity was about to be turned off - a tactic that wouldn't work if the investors could actually tell that the lights were growing dim. Negotiate as if you have nothing to lose. No issues, no rush, no nothing It is relevant to you, but not to the company, that you have higher mortgage payments, more dependents, or just "deserve" more than other candidates. Give business reasons - and business reasons only - to back up your bid. Be prepared to walk away if you have to, and make sure that comes across. If you are pressured during a negotiation, either ignore it or directly question it. And remember that silence is powerful - to speak is to reveal information about your position. During parts of a negotiation, exchange of information is important to establishing the playing field. But sometimes it is to your advantage to reveal nothing. Say nothing when you get the offer you want. Say nothing when you don't like what you're hearing. Let the silence linger, and see what happens. The longer you hold out for what you want, the more you are likely to get.Strategic silence is a good way to force the other party's hand. But be careful: the person on the other side of the table may use strategic silence too. If that happens, stay cool, and shut up. No going first Wait until an offer is on the table before you start negotiating. Your price goes up when the prospective employer is sold on you. And never be the one to mention salary first.
If you work closely with a search firm, you may find it fruitful to discuss a salary range with the headhunter, who gets paid for successful placements. But it's better to get the recruiter to mention a figure first; you never know what they might be able to get for you.Here's how you can counter an attempt to get you to say a number first. Company: "What were you looking for in terms of salary?" You, version 1: "Something comparable to the market rate, given my skills andcapabilities." You, version 2: "Let me throw that back at you. What were you expecting to pay?" You, version 3: "Are you putting an offer on the table?" Company: "Well, we need to know your salary history so that we know whether we're in the right ballpark."You: "The more relevant figures for this job are the going rate in the industry for someone given the unique contribution I can make. I'll let you know whether your offer is in line with my expectations." Company, yet another attempt: "But I just need you to give me a starting point." You: Silence. Yes, please When you're ready to accept an offer, do so graciously. Since you won't accept something unacceptable, the offer you do take should make you happy. Then it's time to show it - and end the conversation. The negotiation is over. Nothing else you say will change the outcome, and you don't want to leave a different impression from the one you created during the negotiation. After all, the next time you speak to the person with whom you have been negotiating, he or she will be your coworker. At some point in the job application process, you might find yourself in a tight spot. What do you do when asked for a salary history? It's especially harrowing if you are hoping for a significant pay increase over your last job. You may be gunning for a job with greater responsibilities than in your last one, or making a transition to an industry that pays better than the one you're in now. Or you may even be willing to take a paycut if you believe you've truly found your dream job. Either way, revealing your salary history could compromise your position of advantage when it comes time to negotiate your pay. Besides, what you've earned in past positions is not the relevant measure of what you're worth in a new job. The relevant measure is the fair market value of the open position. Divulge your worth, not your past Think of divulging your salary history as akin to underbidding in a salary negotiation. Just as you wouldn't want to tell a prospective employer how much you want to make, you wouldn't want to undersell yourself if your salary history was not indicative of your worth. (This goes both ways, incidentally. You similarly wouldn't want to scare off a prospective employer if your previous income was significantly higher than what you suspect they'll offer you.) What is relevant here is finding an appropriate job against which to benchmark the open position. Find a market price for the job you're applying for, then determine how close to that median you think you should be paid given your experience and accomplishments. What you made yesterday doesn't matter - what your colleagues and peers are making today does. Once you've found what the job is worth to the market, save the information until the employer has made you an offer. You will have a good sense of what they will have to pay to meet the market, and you'll be on the firmest ground if you negotiate from that informed position. If the company tries to get you to say what you've been making at any time before making you an offer, use it as an opportunity to showcase your diplomatic skills. Then steer the conversation back to the value of the job to them. Companies may ask you to disclose your current salary at any time during the search process, especially at the following stages. In the ad for the job. Some advertisements for jobs stipulate that candidates must disclose a salary history, a current salary, or a salary expectation in order to be considered for the job. If you choose to apply anyway, stipulate in your cover letter that your salary expectation is the market value of the job. You may or may not get an interview this way, but you won't be forced to yield the negotiating position to the prospective employer. In a telephone screening interview. Before you set foot on company property, someone from the human resources office might screen you over the telephone and ask you to disclose your salary expectations or history. Companies do this to ensure that you are in the right range for them. But you can set them at ease without saying a number by saying, "I have researched the fair market value of this job and, at the appropriate time, provided that we agree on the appropriate benchmark, I think we could find common ground." During the interview. If the question hasn't come up before you get to your first in-person interview, that does not necessarily mean it won't be asked. Many times an employer - it could be a human resources representative or your potential future boss - will ask you about your salary history as part of the interview. You should feel comfortable handling it the same way as you would in the written or telephone versions. In some respects, it is easier to handle the question in person because you can read the interviewer's response to make sure your story is being properly interpreted. If the company pushes you harder for a more detailed response, try to come up with a few variations on the same answer. Tell the company, with all due respect, that you don't think your salary history should affect your prospective salary future at a different company - especially if it's in a different industry. You could try deflecting the question to focus on what the new job requires and why the old pay would not be a good match.Of course, this all means that you have to do some preliminary homework. Be sure to benchmark the position you're applying for by job content, as opposed to the job title.Once you've mastered the art of being your own agent, the rest will follow. Remember that the employer is the only one who benefits when you say a number first. And your salary history, simply put, is history. Useful Tests
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