Part and parcel of looking for a new job is dealing with this tough question: “What are your salary expectations?”
You can expect it early in your discussions with any potential employer, most likely during a screening interview before you ever have a chance to speak with the actual hiring authority. Experienced negotiators know that whoever tosses out the first number loses in these kinds of discussions! You will likely either ask for so much that you put yourself out of contention or so little that you leave money in the employers’ pocket instead of yours.
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Know when not to negotiate.
Understand when to negotiate and when not to. You are always in the best possible position when you have alternatives and your negotiating partner doesn’t. That is why employers almost invariably try to pin down your demands early in the process, when they view you as one of many candidates who might fit their needs and can “shop” for the least expensive among the acceptable candidates.
You can’t always get away without giving a number, but your first parry should be something like: “Well, this is just a preliminary discussion to see If we are a good fit for each other. If not, the matter is altogether irrelevant. So, let’s just agree that if and when we get to the point that it makes sense to talk numbers, we’ll both make every effort to be fair to each other.”
If pressed further, you might offer that you are currently making X, but remind the interviewer to recognize that this is only to give a sense of where you are and is not a representation of the value you would bring to the new role.
Know your fair value.
You and the employer can come up with arbitrary numbers to throw back and forth at each other, but in the end, that isn’t a very satisfying way to go about things. One side or the other will wind up feeling taken advantage of, and even if you agree on a figure, you are likely to start a working relationship on the wrong footing.
It is important to have a solid understanding of what a fair compensation level is for the nature and complexity of the work that you provide to an employer. After all, it is hard for either you or an employer to argue against fairness when you are accepting a new job, right?
There are several sites you can check to get a sense of the range that other people are earning for similar roles in your general locale, including Glassdoor, LinkedIn, Career Contessa, Salary.com, PayScale and Indeed. Don’t be content with data from any one source. Instead, obtain as much information as you can so that you aren’t surprised by anything that your employer may throw at you.
Additionally, professional organizations often conduct in-depth salary surveys, and you should check to see if such a survey exists for people in your professional group.
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Remember that it isn’t all about salary.
People often are fixated on a salary number because that is the key component of their budgets. But you should think about your total compensation package.
Total compensation packages include:
— employer contribution to health insurance.
— life and disability insurance.
— stock options.
— deferred compensation.
— travel allowance.
— parking (especially if you work in a city with expensive parking lots!).
— paid vacation.
— personal days.
— maternity/paternity leave.
— education support.
— training opportunities.
It may be that you hit a wall and can’t capture as high a salary number as you want, but you can then shift the conversation to the benefits side of the equation to boost your overall compensation that way. Given tax considerations, it may be to your benefit to take a smaller salary if you can receive non-taxable benefits that are less expensive for your employer to purchase.
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Win the endgame.
If you haven’t already hit a salary limit, when the employer is finally convinced that you are the candidate of choice, try saying something like this: “I’m so glad you think that I’m a stronger candidate and can add more value to your company than my competition. Can you please explain why your offer is at the bottom or middle of the overall salary scale as noted by X? I’d like to believe that you think that I’m well above average in the value I provide and hope that your compensation offer reflects that.”
Full stop. Let the employer ponder that and see what comes back. Perhaps there are legitimate reasons why the offer can’t be higher right now, but then you can come back and negotiate for raises to bring you up to the standards you desire over time.
Happy hunting!
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3 Keys to Negotiating for a Compensation Package originally appeared on usnews.com
