Negotiate salary (cont)
Your negotiation range should come from your midpoint to your dream salary. When you have your salary range, you can adjust your requirements appropriately. If the employer provides you with a range of $45k - $55k a year, for example, you can come back with: “I was thinking about $55k - $57k, which means we are in a similar range and my ideal salary is $57k. Is there flexibility at the top of your range?”
This is the appropriate time to gain the information needed. If you are lucky enough to have multiple offers, or other interviews scheduled, definitely let the employer know this as well.
If the offer is a specific dollar amount, mention your midpoint to maximum range. This enables you to negotiate down. You also should demonstrate your worth by saying something like, “Having compared my background with industry standards and knowing my work ethic, I feel my worth is in the range of $X to $Y. Don’t you agree?” If they agree but cannot pay within that range, ask what they have in mind with respect to responsibilities, or ask “Is that the best you can do?“
Some supervisors and employers are limited by budget constraints. There may not have enough money in the budget to meet your salary expectations. If this is so, ask yourself two questions:
- “Are the company culture, benefits, and co-workers worth more to me than my ideal salary?”
- “If I accept this lower salary, will I be able to pay my bills?” Be sure to consider your commute time and expenses, as well as clothes or equipment, and any expected work-related travel.
Even if the offer isn’t what you expected, you still have options. You can ask about a 60-, 90-, or 120-day performance review tying it to an increase in salary. If you don’t ask, the employer probably won’t offer.
Go to Part 5.
This post was reposted from http://finlit.biz/business/negotiating-your-job-agreement-part-4-2/, originally written on February 26th, 2013.
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