Two Deals? One Choice. How to Negotiate So You Make the Right Decision
When it comes to salary, know your worth: Wait to discuss salary after you’ve been made an offer. At that point, don’t walk into the situation thinking you should accept the base rate or what the company is offering you. You’ve done your research and know your skill set, so now you can gauge what’s appropriate for you in comparison to your industry. Present a salary range to your employer. They may decline your rebuttal, but chances are they will try to reach a middle ground with you.
You’ve just received the call. After chaining yourself to the computer, typing cover letter after cover letter and tweaking resume after resume, you hear back from one of the companies you applied to and they want you. Congratulations! Whether it’s your top choice or bottom-of-the-barrel pick, you’re excited but want to hold out for a bit just in case you get another job offer. Regardless of whether you having choice A and B on the table or not, you always want to have a plan ready in the event you find yourself in that fortunate predicament. BlackEnterprise.com spoke with Karen Nethersole, Esq., founder and CEO of Full Circle NY, about ways to prep for the BIG negotiation, techniques that will buy you more time and avoiding the risk of over negotiating. So here are 8 negotiating tips to know, before saying yay or nay. —Janel Martinezmore
Ask and you shall receive…more time: No matter what the economic or employment climate, do not feel pressured to make an immediate decision. It’s only with time you can make a well-informed choice. "Bottom line is if they want you and they’ve made that offer they should be willing, and they often are willing, to give you a few more days to think about it.â€more
Come with questions and lots of them: This simple technique will benefit you in several ways. Not only will you get all your questions answered, which will ultimately affect your acceptance or rejection of an offer, but you will gain more time. The time it’ll take the interviewer or human resources representative to get your questions answered, the more time you’ll have to make the final decision.more
When it comes to salary, know your worth: Wait to discuss salary after you’ve been made an offer. At that point, don’t walk into the situation thinking you should accept the base rate or what the company is offering you. You’ve done your research and know your skill set, so now you can gauge what’s appropriate for you in comparison to your industry. Present a salary range to your employer. They may decline your rebuttal, but chances are they will try to reach a middle ground with you.more
Evaluate what's important to you: “If you have a goal in mind and a solid career plan, then you know which job you should take,†says Nethersole. “Each and every job should be a solid advancement towards your ultimate goal and you have to keep in mind where you see yourself in five, ten years and which job puts you closer to that goal is the one that you need to take.â€more
Do you fully understand the job at hand?: If this is where you plan on spending any amount of your time, you will need to know what’s required of you. Is weekend travel a requirement? What’s the path for promotion within the company? These sorts of questions should all be answered before you leave to make your decision.more
Investigate the entire package: Most jobs will offer you health insurance, vacation time, sick leave and other benefits, but take a closer look at each employment package presented to you. "I guarantee, factoring in what’s important to you, one package will reign supreme," says Nethersole.more
Turn your go-getter attitude on: If there’s something you would like to see different, whether it be salary or more vacation time, ask for it. Why not? “When you have the security and freedom of multiple job offers available you may feel braver about negotiating something better,†says Nethersole.more
Don’t negotiate yourself out of a position: Of course, you need to communicate to your potential employer why it would be to their advantage to have you on-board, but don’t get ahead of yourself. If you’re offered a rate, it’s okay to approach the employer about an increase, but be sure it’s a reasonable one. Refer to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), professional/industry publications, and other resources for salary assistance.more
You’ve just received the call. After chaining yourself to the computer, typing cover letter after cover letter and tweaking resume after resume, you hear back from one of the companies you applied to and they want you. Congratulations! Whether it’s your top choice or bottom-of-the-barrel pick, you’re excited but want to hold out for a bit just in case you get another job offer. Regardless of whether you having choice A and B on the table or not, you always want to have a plan ready in the event you find yourself in that fortunate predicament. BlackEnterprise.com spoke with Karen Nethersole, Esq., founder and CEO of Full Circle NY, about ways to prep for the BIG negotiation, techniques that will buy you more time and avoiding the risk of over negotiating. So here are 8 negotiating tips to know, before saying yay or nay. —Janel Martinezmore
Ask and you shall receive…more time: No matter what the economic or employment climate, do not feel pressured to make an immediate decision. It’s only with time you can make a well-informed choice. "Bottom line is if they want you and they’ve made that offer they should be willing, and they often are willing, to give you a few more days to think about it.â€more
Come with questions and lots of them: This simple technique will benefit you in several ways. Not only will you get all your questions answered, which will ultimately affect your acceptance or rejection of an offer, but you will gain more time. The time it’ll take the interviewer or human resources representative to get your questions answered, the more time you’ll have to make the final decision.more
When it comes to salary, know your worth: Wait to discuss salary after you’ve been made an offer. At that point, don’t walk into the situation thinking you should accept the base rate or what the company is offering you. You’ve done your research and know your skill set, so now you can gauge what’s appropriate for you in comparison to your industry. Present a salary range to your employer. They may decline your rebuttal, but chances are they will try to reach a middle ground with you.more
Evaluate what's important to you: “If you have a goal in mind and a solid career plan, then you know which job you should take,†says Nethersole. “Each and every job should be a solid advancement towards your ultimate goal and you have to keep in mind where you see yourself in five, ten years and which job puts you closer to that goal is the one that you need to take.â€more
Do you fully understand the job at hand?: If this is where you plan on spending any amount of your time, you will need to know what’s required of you. Is weekend travel a requirement? What’s the path for promotion within the company? These sorts of questions should all be answered before you leave to make your decision.more
Investigate the entire package: Most jobs will offer you health insurance, vacation time, sick leave and other benefits, but take a closer look at each employment package presented to you. "I guarantee, factoring in what’s important to you, one package will reign supreme," says Nethersole.more
Turn your go-getter attitude on: If there’s something you would like to see different, whether it be salary or more vacation time, ask for it. Why not? “When you have the security and freedom of multiple job offers available you may feel braver about negotiating something better,†says Nethersole.more
Don’t negotiate yourself out of a position: Of course, you need to communicate to your potential employer why it would be to their advantage to have you on-board, but don’t get ahead of yourself. If you’re offered a rate, it’s okay to approach the employer about an increase, but be sure it’s a reasonable one. Refer to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), professional/industry publications, and other resources for salary assistance.more