Salary Negotiation???

[ice-queen]

I post occasionally, but am mostly a lurky-lurk....I am looking for some advice and would appreciate any input!

I am in the process of interviewing for a new job, and am anticipating an offer in the next day or two. I have never negotiated a salary before. In my previous positions, I always accepted the initial offer (and have later regretted it). I am aware that women are far less likely to negotiate salary than men which, among other things, adds to the discrepancy in pay between the sexes. So, I am ready to put on my big girl pants and get what I deserve!

If you have successfully negotiated a higher salary, how did you go about it? Generally, how much more is reasonable to ask? Have you found there is always room for negotiation or have you ever been flat-out turned down?

Have you been able to negotiate for more vacation time? I have been poking around some of the older salary negotiation threads and have found that this is more common that I thought. In all of my previous positions, vacation time was standard company wide and was the same for everyone (2 weeks in the first year, etc). I am curious as to which types of positions/industries people have been able to negotiate vacation time?

Frankly, I find the whole process intimidating...I don''t want to turn them off or look foolish for asking too much, but I certainly don''t want to leave any money on the table!

Thank You!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Good for you for taking the initiative!

I haven''t really had opportunity to negotiate for salary, but I have negotiated for vacation days. I am planning a wedding, and I''ve been pretty pro-active in asking for deals and discounts and working things out to fit into budget. The situations are very different, but it''s good practice for learning to ask for what you want, hehe.

I''m assuming the new salary is higher than your old one? I think it''s perfectly fair to be honest, and say you were really looking for an extra #k in order to change jobs. It''s good to do research and see what other people who fill your position are paid, it will give you a good idea of how much to ask for.

It''s really hard to try to give input without knowing how big the company is, what the position is, how interested they are in hiring you specifically, and what your other job options are.

In any case, I don''t think it hurts to ask! If they say no to the salary, I''d try to negotiate for vacation days/perks (or vice versa, depending on what is priority for you). Best of luck!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I think negotiating salary is difficult in any situation and especially in today''s economy and job market. I think you have a much better chance of coming out on top of a vacation day negotiation.

 

[D&T]

I've been successful at two different jobs, pre-this economy partly because I had three offers and was confident in my abilities so I had nothing to lose, but the one I wanted the most, I negotiated for quite the salary bump and benefit but it was also tricky with companies merging and me looking outside of the states. But, if I got a good job offer in this economy i might not be so quick to negotiate, unless you have other offers, as there are plenty of people with quite the resume and companies now have quite the pickins, so I'd just be careful and think about it... Some places - corporate companies only can go so much with pay grade and scale and are limited to negotiation such as standard vaca time and PTO, but privately the two that I was successful have some room.

ETA: when you said that the whole process feels intimidating... I won't act on the negotiation, however the two times I was successful, I was fully confident that there was room to negotiate... it was just a feeling that I knew I had certain skill set that not many people had for the certain position if that makes sense.

 

[purrfectpear]

I''ve always negotiated salary and typically find that an additional 10% is within almost any range.

That said, if it''s a major corporation, benefits are usually NOT negotiable. They have certain policies and that''s that unless you are dealing with executive level recruitment. Money is far more flexible.

 

[ice-queen]

MakingTheGrade: Thanks for posting! I agree that any experience negotiating (like in wedding planning) will lend itself quite well into other areas. I think once I get through this first negotiation, I will feel more confident about it the next time around. The job is somewhat unusual, has slightly unusual hours, and doesn''t really fit into any of the typical ''salary website'' categories, which makes it difficult. Can you explain how much more vacation you were able to negotiate for? Is this a small, med, or large company?

Hudson_Hawk: Thanks for your input! Negotiating vacation/benefits is such a new idea for me. Luckily, the company I''m dealing with is smaller, so they may not have steadfast company-wide policies...but I just find it so odd that one person could have 2 weeks vacations, and the new guy at the next desk could have 3 weeks. I think that would piss me off more than finding out they received a higher salary, lol!

D&T: Thanks for sharing! I agree that negotiating can be risky in a poor economy with lots of job applicants, but I have a feeling that they really want me for this job (however, it is a smaller company, and the issue is they may not have the resources to go much beyond their initial offer). The way I am trying to see it is that if they can''t meet my salary request, they will say so, but they will (almost certainly) not immediately rescind the initial offer. So, I will still have the opportunity to accept the initial offer (if I choose) before they move on to another candidate.

purfectpear: Thanks fo your post! It makes me sick to think about all of the money I have missed out on by not negotiating! Another 10% or so adds up over the years! Any tips on the actual negotiation process?

 

[scarleta]

Ice queen: you said
"anticipating an offer in the next day or two."

In this economy one must take into consideration what is the company that is about to hire you cash flow.
Also consider how many applicants they are considering.
If you are the only one and their cash flow is great negotiating can take place.
If they have more applicants who are equally qualified and willing to take what they are offering you may loose the possibility of even getting a job.
Not sure how much you want this job, but assuming you do then it may be better to ask them for salary review after your probation period ,so you give them a hint that you are expecting increase after they get a chance to see how terrific employee you are.
You may have better chance then to get more than you would probably get before they get to see how talented you really are.
Best of luck to you.

 

[D&T]

Date: 6/4/2009 11:42:32 AM
Author: ice-queen
MakingTheGrade: Thanks for posting! I agree that any experience negotiating (like in wedding planning) will lend itself quite well into other areas. I think once I get through this first negotiation, I will feel more confident about it the next time around. The job is somewhat unusual, has slightly unusual hours, and doesn''t really fit into any of the typical ''salary website'' categories, which makes it difficult. Can you explain how much more vacation you were able to negotiate for? Is this a small, med, or large company?

Hudson_Hawk: Thanks for your input! Negotiating vacation/benefits is such a new idea for me. Luckily, the company I''m dealing with is smaller, so they may not have steadfast company-wide policies...but I just find it so odd that one person could have 2 weeks vacations, and the new guy at the next desk could have 3 weeks. I think that would piss me off more than finding out they received a higher salary, lol!

D&T: Thanks for sharing! I agree that negotiating can be risky in a poor economy with lots of job applicants, but I have a feeling that they really want me for this job (however, it is a smaller company, and the issue is they may not have the resources to go much beyond their initial offer). The way I am trying to see it is that if they can''t meet my salary request, they will say so, but they will (almost certainly) not immediately rescind the initial offer. So, I will still have the opportunity to accept the initial offer (if I choose) before they move on to another candidate.

purfectpear: Thanks fo your post! It makes me sick to think about all of the money I have missed out on by not negotiating! Another 10% or so adds up over the years! Any tips on the actual negotiation process?

well that sounds like a win win situation... a 10% bump sounds like a good request... good luck!

 

[musey]

Hey ice queen! Good timing, I have a thread going currently that''s on almost the same topic: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/how-much-of-a-pay-bump-makes-switching-jobs-worth-it.116878/

I''ll be watching the responses here as well, since they''re directly correlative to my husband''s situation

 

[ice-queen]

Thanks for your advice scarleta, I will keep that in mind!

Thanks D&T!

Musey, Thanks for the tip, I''ll check out your thread as well!

 

[purrfectpear]

Negotiation #1, never make the first offer of money.

No matter how many times they ask "what did you have in mind" or "what did you make last", deflect the question and don''t give a $$$ figure. Just say something like "I''m sure once we agree that I''m the candidate you''ve selected for the job we can reach a mutually agreeable figure" or "let''s table that until we''re sure that we are a perfect fit"

Get THEM to make the first offer. Then you just go back and forth until you''re both OK.

 

[D&T]

Date: 6/4/2009 2:08:23 PM
Author: purrfectpear
Negotiation #1, never make the first offer of money.

No matter how many times they ask ''what did you have in mind'' or ''what did you make last'', deflect the question and don''t give a $$$ figure. Just say something like ''I''m sure once we agree that I''m the candidate you''ve selected for the job we can reach a mutually agreeable figure'' or ''let''s table that until we''re sure that we are a perfect fit''

Get THEM to make the first offer. Then you just go back and forth until you''re both OK.

absolutely 100% agreed! i hate it when employers ask that question, and I ask that question myself when hiring...

 

[ice-queen]

Date: 6/4/2009 2:21:05 PM
Author: D&T

Date: 6/4/2009 2:08:23 PM
Author: purrfectpear
Negotiation #1, never make the first offer of money.

No matter how many times they ask ''what did you have in mind'' or ''what did you make last'', deflect the question and don''t give a $$$ figure. Just say something like ''I''m sure once we agree that I''m the candidate you''ve selected for the job we can reach a mutually agreeable figure'' or ''let''s table that until we''re sure that we are a perfect fit''

Get THEM to make the first offer. Then you just go back and forth until you''re both OK.

absolutely 100% agreed! i hate it when employers ask that question, and I ask that question myself when hiring...

ugh. I HATE this question too. Unfortunately, I already blew it with this interview process b/c I gave a number range. But I will DEFINITELY remember this in the future. I''ve tried, but have never been able to come up with a good way to deflect the question, and I really like you''re suggestion.

I really regret giving them a salary range, especially because at the time, I wasn''t aware that I would be required to come in for a few hours on frequent Saturdays or that there are evening events that I would need to attend several times a month (in the 1st interview, he only mentioned Mon-Fri 9-6). I don''t mind doing these things, but it would have played into my salary requirements. I think I will say just that when I counter their (hopefully) impending offer!