| Getting Paid Properly for the New Job You
Accept
Congratulations You did it! You have just been chosen from all others
by a great company to join their team! You have been offered a career
opportunity and they want you onboard within 30 days. The salary offer,
sign-on bonus, benefits package and vacation time are perfect. How did you
ever do it?
- You refused to divulge your financials in advance of a personal
appearance. Under no circumstances should you put your salary
requirements in your resume or cover letter. According to Jack Chapman
in Negotiating Your Salary, How to Make $1000 a Minute, even an ad that
reads...
"Salary history required. Resumes without salary histories will be
shredded into oblivion and the applicant excommunicated, held up to
public scorn, fined, imprisoned, and in various sundry ways
maltreated" ...should end "and hired if we believe you can help
us out of our mess."
As a former executive recruiter I immediately knew the
employment-savvy from the employment-ignorant by how loosely income
information was delivered. I also knew that if I was convinced that a
candidate really had the secrets to solving company problems and
generating profits I’d better at least arrange a visit...salary or no
salary information. An alternative plan, if you must say something, is
to include a statement in your cover letter explaining that you are
currently being compensated based on your qualifications and
achievements, and you would be more than happy to discuss it in an
interview.
- You did your homework on both the company and what the job pays
before the interview. It is literally impossible to dazzle a company
regarding what you can do for them unless you know what they do! The
fact that you need a job means nothing to a company unless they see
value in having you there every day. And that means demonstrating return
on their investment. So it’s your job to do your homework so that you
give them a reason to choose you! You knew enough about what a company
needed to be able to project yourself into helping them meet those
needs. And you visited some web sites to learn what different positions
pay. Web sites such as http://www.salary.com/, http://www.wageweb.com/, http://www.careerjournal.com/salaries
will not only assisted you with variables due to geographical costs of
living but also informed you regarding what others who do your job are
paid. This gave you great leverage when the topic came up during the
interview.
- You knew not to bring up compensation, ever! You did your homework
and learned that there are three facets to a job offer, the position,
the starting date and compensation. So you knew that eventually pay had
to come to the surface. You also knew that the longer you waited, the
more opportunity you would have to show-off your wares and potentially
increase your perceived value. When they tried to get a figure out of
you, you indicated that you would prefer to be compensated based on the
going rate for your accomplishments. When they repeatedly tried to "pin
you down," based on the knowledge you had of what similar professionals
make, you offered the "decade response," such as the high $50’s.
- You didn’t immediately accept the offer but asked for 24 hours to
discuss the proposition with your significant anybody! This gave you the
opportunity to determine a negotiation strategy. Then you went back in
and based on your past performance requested a 90 day review should you
equal or surpass it. Or maybe you negotiated a slight sign-on bonus
since you had just received a raise from your current employer.
As Joe Hodowanes with K-Force advises, "Always keep in mind that
your bargaining position is much stronger before you accept the
position, while the employer is trying to entice you to come on board.
While being recruited, you are treated as an individual case. However,
once you accept an offer, all future raises are likely to be in line
with broad corporate guidelines, and you are no longer unique."
- You chose to win the war not the battle. Let’s not forget that every
offer need not be negotiated. Some companies offer a fair package
up-front and many wise clients are more than willing to accept the
reasonable offer without playing the negotiating game. If you are taking
the right job, the very experience gained by spending time with a
company can catapult your value far more than that extra $1000 you
worked so hard to secure.
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