Definitive Job Hunt - Part 5

Rowan Manahan, from Fortify Your Oasis, has tapped me to be part of his online collaboration: “The Definitive Guide to Clearing Job Hunt Hurdles”.

After a brief reprieve from my rants, I’m back with -

Step 5: Getting the offer you can’t (or at least won’t) refuse

Talking about salary obviously ignites some debate in the blogosphere (as evidenced by this post from the Evil HR Lady), but here’s my take on the “offer stage”.

There is a story that goes something like this:

Reaching the end of a job interview, the human resources person asked a young applicant fresh out of business school, "And what starting salary are you looking for?"

The applicant said, "In the neighborhood of $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."

The interviewer said, "Well, what would you say to a package of five weeks' vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50 percent of your salary, and a company car leased every two years, say, a red Corvette?"

The applicant sat up straight and said, "Wow! Are you kidding?"

The interviewer replied, "Yeah, but you started it."

This moral of this story – know what you are worth & be realistic. If you’re expecting a salary that’s ridiculously far out of the range – you’ll certainly be disappointed in any offer that comes your way.

As with all parts of the job hunt, going into salary negotiations armed with information is the key.

First, evaluate what you are making now and understand the monetary value of your full compensation package. (For example, base salary, bonuses, what are you paying for benefits, what is the value of the benefits, do you have a car allowance, how much did your employer contribute to your 401k last year?) This is why we ask potential candidates, “What is your base salary?” and “What did your w-2 show?”

Second, research the “going rate” for someone in your field. (I like salary.com for this part.)

Now, don’t expect too much – you’re extremely likely to get a bump in salary when you change jobs, but it’s unlikely that you’ll double your salary overnight.

What you will most likely see is a significant but reasonable raise – depending on your industry, career, experience, and how close to that “going rate” your current salary is.

Finally, establish your “yes” and “no” points. To do this, we will ask a candidate “So if the offer comes in at $XX, with relocation and a car allowance, can I accept on your behalf? In short, know your bottom line.

The reality is, this is kind of a difficult topic for me. Since as recruiters we usually know what the company is prepared to offer and what the candidate is prepared to take; a level of knowledge makes all of this much easier! (One reason it's good to work with a recruiter!)