Compensation: If You Don’t Ask, You Don’t Get

CompensationIt’s that time of the year again, when thoughts are turning to Black Friday, the beginning of the mad holiday shopping rush. Children everywhere are putting together their wish lists, but the questions is, have you put together yours?

Several of my clients are in the midst of negotiating compensation packages, what a nice present to enter the holiday season. But just as a child puts together a wish list for his or her holiday gifts, so too should you have a wish list for your own gift that keeps on giving . . .  your compensation package.

1. Putting together the list

When thinking about what you’d like to ask for in the negotiation (or what you’d like to counter with) make a list of what it would take for you to accept the position in the prospective company. Remember to include base salary, bonus, singing bonus, benefits (all too important these days), stock options and vacation time.

2. Do your research

It’s much easier to negotiate if you’ve researched the market and found out what companies are paying for professionals and executives in similar positions. That gives you a more compelling and dispassionate argument for getting what you feel you deserve. Fair market value makes business sense. Remember, if a company appreciates and wants to hire and keep your talent and expertise, they will be willing to pay for it.

3. The compensation package is just that, a total package

The compensation package goes far beyond just base salary. When negotiating, remember to look at the total package. That gives you more flexibility in the negotiation. Not only that, each of us has different wants, needs and motivations. For some, a generous salary base is most desirable, while for others it’s the challenge of a start-up with huge potential upside based on having a piece of the company pie.

4. Get the offer in writing

It’s always important to get the offer in writing, but even more so when you’re negotiating an executive compensation package. There are a lot of elements that go into these packages and you certainly don’t want anything falling through the cracks.

5. The negotiation should be a win-win

The person you’re negotiating with is someone that you’ll be working with in the future, therefore you don’t want the transaction to be contentious. That means you should ask for what you want rather than make demands. Making demands and becoming emotional could lead to an offer being withdrawn.

The compensation package is the gift that keeps on giving. Going in the door is the time to get your best package and always remember . . . if you don’t ask, you don’t get.

~Linda

3 Common Job Interviewing Mistakes

Interview TipsYou’ve done it! You’ve sent your well-written, tailored cover letter and resume into a job posting or perhaps you’ve networked with a friend or former colleague and you’ve managed to land that coveted interview. Now what?

I’ve worked with hundreds of people and most of them tell me that they’re great at interviewing, they just need to get in front of the hiring manager and they’ll land the job. It’s only a handful that will admit they need help with the interview process.

In my experience, the majority of people could use some help with their interviewing skills. After all, it’s not something that we do everyday (and if you are doing it every day and not getting the job, then we need to talk).

When interviewing, there are minor mistakes that probably won’t cost you the job, but there are major ones that will prevent you from landing the position or being called back for a second interview. The following are three of the most common interviewing mistakes:

1. Assuming it’s all about you.

The interview is not about your own wants and needs. The focus of the interview should be on the needs of the organization with whom you’re interviewing. Your aim in the interview process is to find out the company’s goals and objectives and then tell the interviewer the ways in which you can help them achieve those goals. It’s a good idea to have stories about your past accomplishments that you can relate to the interviewer, this will demonstrate your past successes and how they can apply to your future performance with that company.

2. Not asking questions.

Not asking questions is the number two biggest interviewing mistake. By inquiring about the goals and objectives of the company, as they relate to the position for which you’re applying, you can better assess what the company’s needs are and focus your answers on those skill sets.

Not only will asking questions better enable you to answer questions, having intelligent questions about the company and position will show your high level of interest in the organization. It will demonstrate your eagerness to work with them by showing that you’ve put time and energy into researching and learning about the company.

3. Not listening.

Asking questions is great, but then you must listen to the answers and react to them. Yes, it could mean changing your game plan and shifting your focus, but that’s the point. Listening is as important a skill as speaking in an interview. Oftentimes the person conducting the interview will give you clues as to how to best present yourself. The interview should be a conversation, an exchange of ideas.

A good thing to remember when you’re interviewing is that the company wants to hire you. They’re almost as interested in ending their search for a candidate as you are in finding a job. In advance of an interview, be sure to research the company, look your best and avoid making the three top interviewing mistakes.

~Linda

Compensation In The Great Recession

Moolah

An important question my clients are currently asking me involves compensation. They want to know if they have to accept a lower salary now because of the current economic downturn.

Companies are still looking for talent and according to the HR professionals I speak to, they’re willing to pay for it. As much as you don’t enjoy looking for a job, companies don’t like conducting searches for good employees. It’s time and resources away from the lifeblood of an organization, revenue generation.

Companies want talented professionals and they realize if they don’t pay the fair market value for that talent, those people will not remain with them long. As soon as the market improves or the professional gets a better offer, the company will be back at square one: conducting another search, doing more interviews and taking more time to get the new hire up to speed.

I have clients currently negotiating and accepting positions at the same or greater compensation than they were previously making. However, as is often the case, there is a caveat; they are in a position to take the time necessary to find the right position at their current level or a step up.

The professionals that are accepting less pay are accepting lesser positions. For example, a company is not going to pay a Vice President’s or Director’s salary to someone entering the company as a Manager.

Unfortunately life sometimes gets in the way, there are mortgages to be paid and families to support. Some people don’t have the luxury of taking the time necessary to find the right position. Those people are the so-called underemployed.

The bottom line, if you’re a talented professional companies are willing to pay for that talent, in good times and bad.

~Linda