Answering The Salary Question

“How do I answer the salary question?” From seasoned executives to professionals just beginning their climb up the career ladder, that is the number one most dreaded question and the one most frequently asked of me by my clients.

When it comes to our salaries and compensation packages, even the fiercest negotiator who is comfortable navigating through multi-million dollar deals, turns from a lion to a lamb when the transaction they’re negotiating involves their own livelihood.

What makes it such a difficult question? Well, first of all, it involves each of us personally and directly (there’s some ego attached as well). Secondly, most of us are not comfortable talking about how much we make. But thirdly and perhaps the most prevalent reason is the fear that we’ll come in too low and leave money on the table or come in too high and lose the opportunity all together.

The answer oftentimes depends on how the question is framed. If the hiring manager asks you, “What have you been making?” that’s easy, tell them. The company can always ask to see your  previous W2 forms anyway. Once you have the offer, it’s reasonable to request an increase by explaining that one of your goals with this career move is to improve on your previous compensation.

The harder question is, “What are you interested in making?” Before answering this question, you should do some research on the position, location and industry, using such tools as www.salary.com or www.glassdoor.com. In this way, you can get a general idea of what the market is paying for the type of position for which you’re applying, thus enabling you to develop a reasonable answer to the question.

There’s a saying that he who gives the first number loses. However, when you’re working with a recruiter, the salary question is what determines if you’re playing in the same ball park or in an entirely different league. When speaking with a recruiter, tell them what you’re looking for so you don’t waste each others time.

If you’re talking directly to a hiring manager (rather than a recruiter), sometimes you can put off answering the salary question by suggesting you need to know more about the position and duties before you’d be able to answer the salary question intelligently. But if that doesn’t work and you’re forced to name a figure, giving a range is also an acceptable option. Just make sure the low end of the range is a figure that’s palatable to you, because that may be the figure you see when you receive the offer from your prospective employer.

~Linda

Five Tips to Ace Your Job Interview

Baseball Hitter

Linda Lupatkin, Career Counselor, Coach and Consultant

So after making dozens of pitches you’ve made it to “the show”. Now it’s time to see if you can make it in the “Bigs”. There are five things you need to do to hit a home run on your job interview.

1. Preparation – what you have. Prior to the interview dissect the job description line by line and think about what you have done in your prior career to support the job requirements. Then develop stories to show off those accomplishments and be able to address everything the potential employer wants.

2. Preparation – where you’re lacking. Again go through the job description and ferret out what you may be lacking. Is there a key skill the employer wants that you don’t see in your resume or don’t feel you have in your background. Then develop a strategy for addressing that shortcoming. Perhaps point to something similar you’ve done or stress other times you’ve gone into a new position and quickly learned and applied a new skill.

3. Ask questions and listen. An interviewer will often tell you what it is they’re looking for or what’s most important to them in a potential candidate. A good question to ask is, “what did you find most appealing about my background”. The answer the interviewer gives you will enable you to frame your own answers as far as what your focus should be.

4. Ask about remaining concerns. Ask the interviewer if you’ve answered all their questions and if they have any concerns that would prevent you from moving forward to the next step. This is important because it gives you the opportunity to address any doubts or concerns the interviewer may have. It gives you a chance to change their opinion of you. If you don’t ask that question, you leave the interviewer with a doubt that could keep you from getting the job.

5. Finally, ask for the close. Ask the interviewer, “what are the next steps?” This gives the interviewer an opportunity to tell you the next stages in the process: will they be calling candidates in for a second interview, making an offer within the week, or when you may be hearing from them again.

When you’re playing in the majors it’s also a good idea to get some coaching. Even the best and brightest need tips and advice to ensure, when it comes to crunch time with the game on the line, they can hit it out of the park.

Linda