GSLIS Continuing Education

Negotiating Salary and Benefits

When, What and How
 Job Offer Negotiation
When
• Never bring up salary or benefits on a first
interview.
• In fact, try not to be the first person to bring
up salary at all. Usually, the first person to
put a number on the table loses some
bargaining power, so if possible, wait for
the employer to present the salary range for
the position.
 Job Offer Negotiations
• If you are asked to state your salary range, you can
usually deflect the question by saying you are
“flexible” or “negotiable”
• You can also try turning the question around and
asking the employer what range they have in mind.
• Either way, express your enthusiasm for the job
and indicate that the experience is more important
than the salary.
 Job Offer Negotiations
• In some cases, you may be pressed to give a
number first.
• If you have tried saying you are flexible, and
still feel you have to offer a number, offer a
range, rather than a flat number.
• Keep in mind that once you offer a range,
you must be ready to accept an offer
anywhere in that range.
 Job Offer Negotiation
How: Evaluating the Offer
• Once the employer makes you an offer, you
must evaluate the entire package.
• First, be sure that you understand the entire
offer- the salary and the benefits.
• Ask for clarification if anything is unclear.
• Don’t accept an offer on the spot- it is
perfectly acceptable and advisable to ask for a
couple of days to think it over.
 Job Offer Negotiation
How: Evaluating the Offer
• Take some time to review the offer.
• Make sure you are considering the whole
package- not just the salary.
• Many people make the mistake of just looking at
the salary, and not considering the benefit
package- vacation/ time off, medical, dental, etc.
• Go over the benefits carefully and try to
determine what they are worth to you.
 What are the Benefits?
• Different employers will offer different benefit packages,
and these can vary quite widely. However, some
standard benefits might include:
– Medical and/or Dental Insurance- usually a percentage covered.
– Vacation time and sick time
– 401K Plans or Retirement/ Pension Plans
– Tuition Reimbursement
– Stock Options
– Life/ Disability Insurance
– Flex Time
 What are Benefits Worth?
• In order to evaluate the benefits, you have to
determine what they are worth to you.
• It can be easy to add a value to certain types of
benefits-i.e. tuition reimbursement may equal
thousands of dollars a year- but only if you use it.
• The value might be personal-ie if your spouse has
medical insurance, than the type or amount of
coverage offered by your employer may not matter
to you.
 What Are Benefits Worth?
• Review the benefits package and decide
which benefits you would use, and how
much they might be worth to you, either
monetarily, or on a personal level.
• Add this to the salary to get an idea of the
complete picture.
 Job Offer Negotiation
How: Evaluating the Offer
• Once you have looked at the whole offer, ask
yourself the following questions:
– How does the salary match the research you did and
your range?
– Will the salary meet your needs?
– Which benefits are offered? Do they match your
needs?
– Is this offer acceptable? If not, what would make it
acceptable to you?
 Job Offer Negotiation
How: Evaluating the Offer
• When evaluating, you may also want to consider
some points that are outside of the offer itself such
as:
– Commuting distance and options to job
– Culture/ atmosphere of the office
– Work Schedule
– Management style
• These may be as important to your overall job
satisfaction as the salary and benefits.
 Job Offer Negotiations
Before You Begin
• You have decided that you want to negotiate.
Before you begin:
– Know what you are worth- research salaries for your
position and level.
– There are many salary surveys that can give you an
indication of average salaries for different positions.
Check the class web site for links to these.
– Remember that most salary surveys give a national
average salary. These averages vary widely by
geographic region.
 Job Offer Negotiations
Before You Begin
• You can get information that is more geographically
specific from:
– Salaryexpert.com
– Relocation Salary Calculator- lets you compare salaries for
different cities and states
• http://www.homefair.com/homefair/cmr/salcalc.html
• Know what you need in order to meet your needs- rent,
food, etc. Create a budget to figure this out.
• Rather than a specific number- like $35,000- have a
$5- $7,000 range in mind.
 Job Offer Negotiations
How: The Offer
• Once you have done your research, you can begin
to negotiate.
– Before you even begin, thank them for the offer and
express your enthusiasm about the job and your interest
in the position.
– Indicate that you were “hoping” to make more, and offer
your range. Be prepared to accept the low end of your
range.
– If you have other offers for more money, it is okay to
say so, but never lie.
 Their Final Offer
• If the employer comes back with a new
offer that is within your requested range:
• Congratulations!!! You have successfully
negotiated your offer. Enjoy!
 Their Final Offer
• If they can’t meet your salary requirements:
• The ball is back in your court.
– Weigh- and if possible negotiate- benefits.
– Consider the amount of experience you’ll gain.
– Make a list of pro’s and con’s.
 Benefit Negotiations
• Most benefits are standard for all employees, but
some areas that may be negotiable include:
– job title
– start date
– review date- especially important if a performance
review can be tied to a salary increase
– amount of vacation
– flexible schedule- i.e. a compressed work week, or
non-standard hours.
 Summary
• It is always worth trying to negotiate salary.
• Once the negotiation is done, however, the
decision is up to you and must be based on
the entire package including:
– Salary
– Benefits
– Overall experience