7 tips for Winning at Salary Negotiations: It really Doesn’t Need to be an Intimidating Process  

As a higher education professional working in a university career center, I encounter any number of students, alumni, colleagues, and friends seeking various professional and career advice, including salary negotiation. Most recently, I presented to a graduate level class on this topic. My intent with any topic is to make it scalable and user friendly. Salary negotiation can be an intimidating process for many of us, but it doesn’t have to be. Like most anything in life, the more prepared we are, the better we perform and the better the outcomes. With that in mind, here are seven tips for winning at salary negotiation.

Know your stuff
Research the company and the industry to ensure you have an accurate and current understanding of trends, salaries, and the future (of the company and of the industry).

• Know your value/worth. The better you understand the company, the more easily you’ll determine your value to the company. This, in turn, will allow you to best articulate what you bring to the table and support your salary request.
• Have a firm grasp of the average salary/salary range for position and industry so that you are on target during salary discussions.
• Determine your bottom acceptable salary and benefits. What are you willing to settle on to accept the position?
• Know what benefits are offered in addition to salary and negotiate these as you deem necessary and appropriate. Benefits can be as important as salary, so they should be carefully considered.

The person stating a dollar figure first loses leverage
More often than not, the person stating a dollar figure first loses leverage and likely leaves money on the table. This table money can total $600,000 or more over the span of one’s career. Consider these statistics:

• 46% of men negotiate salary and benefits as compared to 34% of women
• 39% of people attempted to negotiate salary with their last job offer
• 74% of employers have room to increase their initial offer by 5-10%
• 49% of job candidates never negotiate an employment offer

Wait for the offer

• Don’t bring up salary in the first or second interviews—or really any interview, if you can avoid it. If you feel you want to mention salary because you don’t want to waste time interviewing for a position that won’t meet your salary needs, then refer to your research about industry norms relative to salary. If you want to know for certain what the company or organization is thinking in terms of salary range, then you can ask, but understand that, depending on when you ask, you could be losing some leverage and even the job in doing so. In some cases, you may simply sell yourself short.
• Wait for the employer/hiring manager to raise the topic of salary and benefits.
• Make them state a dollar figure first. Do what you can to avoid stating a number or a range before the employer does.
• If you must state a figure….

Always indicate you’re negotiable, at least initially

• Mention that based on your research, a reasonable salary for a person in this position in this area of the country with your experience, credentials, and skills would be (name a range).
• Go with your personal top of the range as the bottom of the range you present to the employer.
• Remember, it’s smart and reasonable to negotiate more than just salary.

Negotiate more than salary
Think about all company perks and benefits when you’re negotiating – medical/health benefits; paid time off; retirement benefits; stock options; flexible schedule/flex time; remote work; mobile phone coverage; relocation/moving costs:

• Be confident, polite, fair, kind, and keep emotions and personal needs out of the negotiation.
• Remember that the employer wants to hire you and wants to be fair to you, while still getting you at the best possible price.
• Request time to consider the offer, and if you’ve negotiated and the employer meets your demands, you need to be prepared to accept the offer. Otherwise, you will have potentially earned yourself a negative reputation, and word can travel in this regard.

Make sure you’re interviewing at multiple places, don’t stop
If you’re considering offers from more than one employer at a time:

• Be strategic to increase your salary and benefits potential, especially if you know one or more employers really want to hire you.
• Use multiple offers as leverage, but remain professional, humble, and polite.
• Demonstrate that you’re sincerely interested in a given position and that you’re simply letting the employer know, as a courtesy, that you have other offers on the table. If you’re not sincerely interested in a position, it’s important to not lead the employer to believe it is high on your list—in other words, avoid negotiating with an employer you’re not truly considering.

Practice
Practice your salary negotiation. Write it down. Review it. Read it aloud. Practice it in front of a mirror. Have the conversation with a friend, a trusted professional in your field, a mentor. The more you rehearse it, the more comfortable and prepared you will be during the actual salary negotiation. While you’re at it, avoid certain phrases and words, such as “want,” “currently,” or “desired.”

Ultimately, the person who does the research, states a number last, remains confident (yet humble), demonstrates value, negotiates wisely, and is prepared, kind, and respectful will stand to gain the most, not only in terms of salary and benefits, but also professional relationships and success.