Offer/Negotiation

Salary Negotiation

Do I tell them how much I want to make? How do I figure that out? Is this offer good? As I weigh all the pros and cons of this offer, is this really the job for me?

You'll want to start figuring this out BEFORE you get a job offer. 

Learning what you're worth and developing a few key negotiation skills can help maximize your perceived value to an employer to build a better compensation and benefits package.

Maximize the hard work you have put into your career and job search by negotiating a great offer!

 

Before You Negotiate Salary

Reflect

Understand your value before you start to look for a new job.

Employers invest in their “human resources” and the valuable work you do is a return on that investment. You need to be able to understand AND ARTICULATE how you provide value.

The value you represent could be quite different from your current salary:

  • You may have been hired at a lower salary than you are worth
  • Your job could have changed over time so that you now have many more responsibilities
  • You may be interviewing for a job that is a step up from where you currently are

Take the time to think about all you have accomplished.

  • What have you achieved in the past few years that you would talk about in an interview?
  • What projects are you most proud of?
  • Where have you exceeded expectations?
  • How have you made an impact on your organization?

Review or create your list of your accomplishments (SOAR stories).

Also, start a journal/file to track your future accomplishments. Also start saving those emails you get telling you what a great job you’ve done!  

Research

Do your salary research to develop a reasonable range. Be sure to account for these factors as they all affect your salary:

  • Job Title - Job titles are not standardized, so you’ll need to explore a few. Here is a great article about how to research different job titles.
  • Job Location - Jobs in areas with a lower cost of living may pay less. Many sites allow you to adjust for this.
  • Industry - If you are in a social impact area such as nonprofit or education, they may pay less (although nonprofits are trying to rectify this).
  • Experience - Jobs will list the required experience. If you have additional experience and/or experience in the same industry, that adds value.
  • Education - You may have invested in education and be paying off student loans, but additional education does not always translate to additional value.
  • Skills - Skills beyond what is required for the job, especially in-demand skills, make you a more valuable candidate.

Benchmark your desired salary using a range of sources. 

  • See list of sources below in the Tools section.
  • Use a few of them to develop a robust range.
  • Also search Google: filetype:pdf "salary guide" AND [your role]
  • Do NOT use AI tools to get salary estimates unless they cite sources you can verify (Perplexity.ai works well). 

Understand ALL the components of compensation. While salary is the main thing you can negotiate, your compensation package may contain other negotiable items such as comp time, signing bonus, timing of your first performance review, and more. 

Reach Out

Validate your range by asking people you know:

Here’s the salary range I came up with for the instructional designer job I’m applying to. Does it sound reasonable to you?

 

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During Your Salary Negotiation

Once you know the range you are targeting, you are better prepared for questions.

Make it a conversation

Salary negotiation is not a battle, and you aren’t asking them for a favor. It is an expected part of the hiring process and you are doing what is expected. By the time you get to the part, they REALLY want you, so you are negotiating from a position of strength!

Here are some questions you may be asked:

  • What is your current salary?
    This is an illegal question in many states, but you may still be asked. A polite response is: “My current employer would rather keep that confidential.”
     
  • What salary are you looking for?
    Many career coaches tell you to try to avoid answering this question too early, and you can try to deflect by saying something like “salary is not my primary deciding factor,” but there are risks in this approach. You may spend weeks interviewing for a job that will never fit your compensation needs.

    To avoid this, use your knowledge to provide a range based on all your research:
    “My understanding is that a typical salary range for this role is X to Y. Based on my background and what I can bring to [organization] I’d expect to be on the higher end of the range.”

    If they immediately push back and tell you the budgeted range is much lower, you may politely bow out—or keep interviewing. If you are still interested, then you can tell them that compensation is not your only motivation and keep the conversation going.

    “I understand that there are budgeting issues, and I’m sure we can find common ground. Perhaps we think about this some more and talk again tomorrow.” 
     
  • "We'd like to offer you xxxx"
    When the employer makes their first offer, be enthusiastic about the opportunity before you counter:
    "I’m excited about this opportunity! Based on my experience and skills, I believe that something in the X to Y range is a more appropriate target." 

    Then, silence. This is very powerful. Silence makes people uncomfortable, but don’t let them off the hook. 

    They will usually say something like “I don’t know if it’s possible, we’ll have to get back to you.” 

    Respond with enthusiasm: “I really appreciate the consideration and I’m excited to hear back from you soon.”

Go beyond salary

While salary is the most important component of your total compensation, it is by far the only thing on the table.

If the employer states that they can’t do any better on salary, consider other things you can negotiate. Some things like remote work or more flexible hours are easier to negotiate with smaller organizations that don’t have set-in-stone policies, so use your judgment.

Get it in writing

A verbal negotiation will get you to a general agreement, but you need to get it in writing. Make sure that everything you discussed is specified and as you verbally agreed. Then, and only then, you may sign and return your offer.

 

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Do This After You Get an Offer 

Here are important steps to take after you get an offer (from Kate Dixon, a salary negotiation expert):

1. Express delight:

  • The recruiter is anxious to seal the deal. Relieve their anxiety by making it crystal clear how excited you are at the prospect of taking the job. 

2. Get the offer in writing:

  • Review it carefully.
  • Calculate the value of benefits. Health insurance premiums can vary dramatically. 

3. Ask clarifying questions:

  • For example, what is the typical timing of annual reviews? It could be 12 months post-hire, or they may complete them all in December. Plus, this is an easy question for a recruiter to answer, which builds rapport.  

3. Make your request:

  • "Based on my research (or 'As we previously discussed'), I am targeting [range]."
  • "Due to my [unique value: experience/expertise/certifications/etc.] I am targeting the higher end of the range."
  • "How close can we get?"

4. Be quiet! 

  • This is VERY HARD. But the typical response is "I'll need to discuss with [hiring manager]."

5. End on an upbeat note:

  • Offer an enthusiastic goodbye. ”I appreciate you advocating for me.” Recruiters don’t get enough appreciation. 

6. Schedule a time to chat again: 

  • Don't wait for busy recruiters to get back to you. They may be working on 10 open positions at any given time.
  • Make it easier for them by scheduling a quick phone call: "Can we schedule a quick call to finalize this early next week?"

 

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Tools and Resources to Help You

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