When the economy is weak, many job candidates feel they have to accept what’s offered or risk losing the job. But asking for what you believe you deserve is the smarter strategy, according to CareerJournal.com (www.CareerJournal.com), The Wall Street Journal’s executive career site.
Whether the job market is good or bad, the process of negotiating a pay package remains the same, explains Tony Lee, editor in chief of CareerJournal.com. In fact, it’s even more important to make sure you’ll be compensated at the same rate as you would during more favorable economic times.
CareerJournal.com offers this advice to help you negotiate the best possible pay package in any economic climate when changing jobs, whether internally or with a new company:
1. Be prepared. The more information you have about your market value and the prospective employer, the greater your likelihood of success. Time spent learning how to negotiate and preparing for negotiations may be the best investment you’ll ever make.
2. Recognize that employment negotiations are different. When the negotiations are over, you’ll have to work with the person with whom you’re negotiating. Moreover, your future success may depend on that person. So, while you want to negotiate the best possible deal, you need to do so in a way that doesn’t damage your image.
3. Understand the dynamics of the particular negotiations. Sometimes you’ll have skills that are in great demand. And sometimes, you may be one of several qualified candidates the company would be happy to hire. Sizing up the situation and understanding the relative position of each party will help you determine when to press your advantage and when to back off.
4. Understand the role fairness plays in the process. The guiding principle for most employers when negotiating is fairness. Within the constraints of their budget and organizational structure, employers usually will agree to anything that’s fair and reasonable to hire someone they want.
5. Use uncertainty to your advantage. The more information you convey to a potential employer about your bottom line, the more likely it will limit what you get. By not disclosing your exact current compensation or what it would take to get you to leave your job, you’ll force a potential employer to make its best offer.
6. Be creative. Consider the value of the total package. Be willing to make tradeoffs to increase the total value of the deal. If you’re creative, you can package what you want in ways that will be acceptable to the company.
7. Focus on your goals, not on winning. Too often in negotiations, the act of winning becomes more important than achieving your goals. It’s important not to make your future boss feel as if he or she is lost in the negotiations.
8. Know when to quit bargaining. The one sure way to lose everything you’ve achieved is to be greedy. Being perceived as greedy or unreasonable may cause the deal to fall apart.
9. Never forget that employment is a continuing relationship. Job negotiations are the starting point for your career with a company. Get too little and you’re disadvantaged throughout your career there; push too hard and you can sour the relationship before it begins.
You can negotiate for a raise or a salary package, even in hard times, says Lee. Candidates have the power to negotiate the terms of a new job in both good times and bad.
CareerJournal.com offers a database of more than 100,000 executive, managerial and professional job openings paying $100,000 ; email agents that will alert you whenever new jobs are added that match your criteria; in-depth salary and hiring data by industry, function and location; active discussion boards; more than 2,500 articles on all aspects of job hunting and career management; 15 distinct columns from such career experts as Deb Koen, Jared Sandberg, Sue Shellenbarger, Peter Weddle and Carol Hymowitz, as well as new columns from Barbara Moses on the psychological issues of job hunting and Pepi Sappal, who covers trends in diversity hiring.
For more information on job hunting and managing your career, visit www.CareerJournal.com.
CareerJournal.com Offers Negotiating Tips for the New Year
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