- Career Counsel
Negotiating Your Salary
by J. Murray Elwood
by J. Murray Elwood
On the top of the sheet was the heading "Employment Terms" and below was a list, as he described them, of his job "requirements." I read down the page and saw that he was seeking a salary of $125,000, equity participation, 31 days vacation a year, tuition reimbursement for graduate courses, a private parking space, and so on. I had read enough to know why he would be still looking for a job after his interview. He was innocent of even the elementals of salary negotiating. Negotiating a financial package is every job seeker's final hurdle. It is also their nightmare. The topic of one's own worth can make even the most secure person apprehensive. Further, many people are so happy at having received an offer that they fail to take advantage of their leverage at this critical time. The temptation is strong to settle salary questions as quickly as possible and be willing to accept an employer's first offer. However, this may not be the best way. Your negotiating strength is never greater than at the moment the firm invites you to join their team. This chapter will suggest several ways to prepare yourself for salary negotiations. 1. Avoid Premature Disclosures We have already seen that questions about salary requirements can surface early in a job search, particularly in newspaper advertisements or during phone screening interviews. In a perfect interviewing scenario, the question of salary requirements should occur only after the employer has made the decision to hire. However, today the salary question is often raised early in the hiring process. But just as you would never show your cards before sitting down to play poker, it doesn't make sense to commit yourself to a specific figure before you have a better understanding of the job requirements and the employer's expectations of his or her employees. What do you do?
Instead of underselling yourself or overestimating your worth, before you go into a job interview research levels of legal compensation in your area. You can, of course, obtain this information informally from your networking contacts and from friends at other firms. However, today more precise legal salary resources are available on several Internet salary calculators. 3. Consider All Pay Elements If the initial offer of the base salary seems low, do not decline the job in haste. Rather, take this as a clue to negotiate for other forms of remuneration. In some situations, it might make sense to trade a lower salary for a company car, more vacation time, flexible working hours, or child-care benefits. For example: Sara, a senior associate, leaves her well-paid position with a law firm to be director of a law school career planning office. Although her level of compensation at the law school is well below the compensation level of her firm, she accepts the offer of her new position partly for the tuition benefits that will greatly assist the education of her two teen-age daughters at the university.Weigh carefully the value of a medical, dental, and full optical benefits package. Sometimes, when bound by salary-scale restrictions, employers will have the flexibility to sweeten a seemingly lower offer with retirement, stock options, or profit-sharing plans. 4. Request Frequent Performance Reviews A position that pays a premium salary, but is reviewed only annually - if at all - may not be as good a deal as a law job starting with a lower salary, but where the associate's work is reviewed, say, two or three times in the first year. This offers the opportunity to negotiate salary increments based on performance. Terms some employers might accept. Say: I would be willing to accept your offer if my salary is reviewed in six months. 5. Place A Value On The Job Itself If the initial salary offer is low and you feel you have little "wiggle room," try to calculate the position's real value to you in terms of positioning, that is, in terms of improving your skills, broadening your work experience, building your resume, or providing access to a particular professional network. 6. Make Notes on Verbal Understandings In informal compensation and benefit discussions, particularly when the salary figure has been negotiated, well-meaning employers, anxious to conclude the hiring process, will sometimes "sweeten the pot." They will add elements to the total package in areas where they have a certain amount of flexibility. A new hire, for example, may be promised three weeks of vacation, rather than the firm "policy" of only two. Again, a lawyer who brings significant business portables to the firm, may be assured of the full-time assistance of a secretary or paralegal. Or a promise may be made of remuneration for continuing legal education. However later, when work piles up, or vacation time comes around, these pre-employment assurances may be forgotten. Not necessarily through malice, or duplicity, but through an oversight on the part of the head of the firm's hiring committee. Again, another employer, after salary negotiations and discussion, may call to say that you are hired and your starting salary is at certain amount, but the follow-up letter confirming your employment will quote a figure several thousand dollars less. These true-to-life examples, and other similar experiences, illustrate the necessity of not trusting memory alone and the need for making careful notes of any pre-employment verbal assurances. This does not mean a tight-lipped stenographic record of the conversation, but a casual noting of figures and promises at the time they are enunciated. This can be done very easily, in a self-deprecatory way by saying, "That's great! I'll probably forget to tell my wife the details when I get home, so I'd better write them down." Wait for all the terms to be stated, when an offer is made, and be sure to clarify any areas or arrangements on which you are not completely clear. Assumptions, especially when talking about working arrangements, can be dangerous. Most employers will follow up their verbal offer with a letter containing the salary and other employment agreements. If your informal understandings are not included in this letter, then refer to your notes. Write back your acceptance, including the terms as they were negotiated at your meeting and as you understand them. Your notes will make sure that no items are overlooked. 7. Always Request Time To Think Over An Offer When you receive an offer, just as when you are invited in for an interview, stall. Ask for time to consider the offer before accepting. Say that you want time to "crunch some numbers," or need time to "run it past my financial advisor." But no matter how hard you are pushed, especially over the phone, never accept when the position is first offered, and always play for time. You need the opportunity to reflect in the clear light of day and want to avoid making a serious employment decision impulsively. Business practice today seems to be to offer about a week to think over an offer, but you can stretch that for a couple of more days by asking for it in writing. Then decide whether you want to accept or make a reasonable counter-offer. 8. Make A Counteroffer Your approach to salary negotiations will usually reflect your personality and your communications style. For some people, everything is on the table, everything is negotiable. But others, believing that salaries are preset, hesitate to negotiate anything and accept an offer as soon as it is made. As general rule, it is safe to assume that the first salary figure quoted is probably the minimum. After all, with an eye to the bottom line, law firms want to control costs. So, when a managing partner quotes a figure, it is probably at the low end of the range and a place to begin negotiations. Therefore, after a salary figure is stated, the Legal Career Guru suggests a simple negotiating ploy that threads the way between asking for everything and asking for nothing. When you have the offer in hand and have waited a few days, call back and express your enthusiasm and appreciation for the offer with words that, at the same time, contain praise for the company, but are also a request for a higher figure, or some additional perk. Here is the simple formula: " I like X . . . I like Y . . . I like Z . . . However . . . " An example: Mr. Bramante, I deeply appreciate your offer . . . This is the kind of position I'm been seeking . . . I'm impressed with the quality of people at your firm, I like the idea of working with Mr. Angelo . . . and the benefits package is excellent . . . However . . . I was thinking that with my experience and the job profile a figure of $ ___ would more appropriate. Alternatively: However . . . the offer is lower than I anticipated. . . perhaps we should consider a one time signing bonus of $10,000. Most employers, except those who are hiring new law school graduates, expect a counteroffer. A salary offer is a window of opportunity. You have nothing to lose by asking, but your goal in negotiating is to reach a mutually acceptable agreement with a colleague, not to squeeze every possible dollar out of the firm. Remember, if you do not ask, you will not receive. |
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