Thursday, December 25, 1997

If you want a higher salary, you'll need to negotiate

By AMY LINDGREN / Knight-Ridder Newspapers

If someone took a poll of job-seekers' least favorite tasks (and someone probably has), negotiating a salary would be somewhere near the top of the list.

In several public addresses, I've asked the participants to raise their hands if they negotiated their current salary. The response varies, from nearly everyone raising hands (software engineers) to nearly no one (secretaries). Oddly enough, groups of career counselors generally fall in the did-not-negotiate category.

Why such a reluctance to deal for dollars? Some of my clients tell me they feel uncomfortable nickel-and-diming their bosses. Other job-seekers believe employers are making the best offer they can the first time out. Still others fear they will lose the offer if they begin bickering.

None of these assumptions is true. Research and anecdotes both reveal what most of us suspect: The employer is not proposing the highest wage possible at the beginning of the offer. But more money will not come out of the corporate wallet unless the job-seeker asks for it. No request, no raise.

To explain the issue from the employers' perspective, employment counselors Louis Huether and Warren Webb recently led a discussion for other employment counselors on the fundamentals of salary negotiations. Both Webb and Huether work with Employment Action Center in St. Louis Park, Minn., where they counsel dislocated workers and others seeking employment, and lead negotiation workshops for job-seekers.

The first thing you have to know, Huether explained, is that the employer is working from a company-determined range for each position. The salary range is divided into three roughly equal segments. The lowest third of the range is reserved for inexperienced workers who show potential; the middle third of the range is for competent workers; and the highest third is for people who bring something extra to the job.

Another range, called the hiring range, starts near the middle of the salary range and extends below the bottom figure. Hence, a job with a salary range of $32,000 to $40,000 may have a hiring range that starts at $28,000. In other words, an inexperienced candidate may be offered $28,000, while a competent applicant might be offered $32,000. In both cases, more money is available, but only if the candidate knows to ask for it.

Although not every company has such clearly defined ranges, all hiring managers have ballpark figures to work with. And they very seldom make their best offer first. This is true even of jobs in the public sector and some union positions, despite the assumption that such salaries are locked in.

To cover the bases, just assume every offer you receive will be negotiable. If it's not, you'll soon find out (and you're not likely to lose the offer by politely asking for more money). If it is negotiable, you will increase your pay by hundreds or even thousands of dollars. That's not bad for a few minutes' work.

To prepare for a productive negotiation, you must know your own needs, and you must know something about the worth of the position. For the latter, try looking up salary surveys for the industry (the Internet is a good source of salary information). If that fails, consider calling the company and simply asking: "I'm interviewing for the software position on Wednesday, and I'd like to get some information in advance. Can you tell me the salary range for this job?" Ask the personnel director or the hiring manager, and you have a pretty good chance of getting the information you want.

Knowing your own needs can be a little more difficult. To help you sort out your thoughts, Webb recommends what he calls a "Johari" window of salary needs. Draw a box and then draw a crossed line inside the box so you have four equal squares. Over the top left square, write "High value, important." Over the top right square, write "Low value, unimportant." Now to the left of the top left square write "High urgency, must have." And to the left of the bottom, left square write "Low urgency, maybe."

You should now have a grid containing four squares with labels across the top and down the left side of the grid. The next step is to fill in the squares. What is absolutely essential to you in your next job? A flexible schedule? At least $25,000 salary? Write these things in the top left box. Work your way through all four boxes, and you'll have a graphic illustration of the things you must have and the things you don't care so much about.

Of course, all this preparation is beside the point if you don't actually do the negotiations. Next time you're offered a salary, a raise, a promotion or even a new project, test the boundaries by asking for an increase over what's being offered. And don't forget about all the extras, such as tuition reimbursement and vacation days. By looking at the total package, you may find even more room for bargaining.

Webb and Huether offer these tips to help you prepare for your next salary negotiation:

n Remember that negotiation is a skill, and is proactive. You must start the ball rolling.

n Although negotiation is adversarial by its nature, it can still produce a win-win solution.

n Negotiation works best when there's mutual trust between both parties.

n Negotiation requires good timing; wait until a job has been offered before you begin.

For further reading: check out "Negotiating Your Salary: How to Make $1,000 a Minute," by Jack Chapman (Ten Speed Press). An excellent step-by-step guide that includes strategies and case studies.