Negotiating during Job Search

Rule # 1 – Never start the salary and benefits negotiation until you have a written job offer

Rule # 2 – Be prepared, because it’s a negotiation at all times.

Rule # 3 – Never forget rule # 1

Sounds confusing, but does not have to be.

You should never bring up salary or benefits until you are offered a job. However, be prepared because the recruiters and hiring managers will.

They want to disqualify you any way they can and often recruiters and hiring managers think salary is the easiest way to disqualify candidates.

You have to be ready to address the pre-negotiation questions like, “What are your salary needs?” or “What was your last salary?”, etc.

Tips

1. Plan by knowing what your absolute needs are. This is your needs, not your wants.
2. Know what your insurance needs are and if your spouse provides the insurance for the company, just know this for when the conversation comes up
3. Research – Know what the glassdoor.com or survey.com salary ranges are for the specific job, in the town and related industry.
4. Be honest and fair with yourself. If your needs and their budget do not align, never accept a lowball offer. Repeat be honest & Fair to yourself.
5. If asked what you want to get paid use an answer along these lines, “I know the salary range for this position, in this town and industry is within $x – $y. I need to learn some more about the business, the position requirements and expectations. As long as we are talking about a position in this pay range, we need to keep discussing the position and how I can benefit the company.” Use your words, not mine.
6. Never use the words, “need”, “want”, “deserve.” Use words that convey value, benefit, fair compensation for the value you bring the company, etc. Negotiating, even pre-negotiations are not about your wants, but about determining if your value fits their needs.
7. Remember rule # 1 – Never negotiate until you have an offer, preferably a written offer.
8. When you do get into negotiations, consider all the different compensation factors, many are not directly related to money
   1. Salary
   2. Insurance Benefits
   3. Job Flexibility
   4. Commute time
   5. Working environment
   6. The people
   7. The job challenges
   8. The future opportunities
   9. Professional development opportunities
   10. etc

Negotiating during Job Search

Yes, the recruiters and hiring managers will want to push you to do pre-negotiating and you will need to answer their questions honestly. Be honest and fair to yourself, while being prepared with good research and questions.

Negotiating during Job Search – It’s a tedious task – be ready to do it.

Negotiating during Job Search

Think thru it before you sit down with the recruiters.