How to Negotiate Salary for Your Next Career Move
Negotiating a salary can be a difficult conversation, as it is about balancing what you think you’re worth versus what your employer believes they’ll be able to afford. If it’s done right it can result in a positive experience for both sides that results in a better salary for the employee and a greater engagement of the employee in their job. Here’s how you can negotiate your salary with confidence.
Important Takeaways
- Before you negotiate your salary study market rates and industry standards to ensure your salary offer is fair.
- Find out information by connecting with colleagues through websites like LinkedIn Salary and Glassdoor, as well as reaching out to professional networks.
- Create talking points ahead of the time, including education and certificates and years of relevant knowledge, accomplishments and achievements with a unique set of skills and abilities, industry expertise, and training potential.
- During negotiations, be assertive and confident, yet flexible and open. Highlight tangible results that you’ve achieved in your previous positions.
- Maintain a positive mood throughout the conversation and engage in active listening.
Do your research
Before entering into any salary negotiation, you need to conduct thorough research on market rates and industry standards to ensure that your salary suggestion is realistic. Factors that might impact this could include your experience level, company size and the location of the company. (?). One great way to gather data is to connect with colleagues or other professionals who are in the same field of work.
Research Online
Utilizing internet-based resources like [LinkedIn SalaryWith the help of some online resources like [LinkedIn Salary (https: //www. linkedin. www.linkedin.com/salary) and [Glassdoorglassdoor (https http://www. glassdoor. com/Salaries/index. Htm) you can obtain a an additional perspective on the range of benchmarking salaries businesses are providing for same job. It will provide you with an idea of current market prices and also other facets of the job.
Your Network is Important
Get insight from talking to friends who have held similar positions or reaching out via the professional networks and brainstorming with professionals in professional organizations.
Create talking points
Time spent preparing for any negotiation is always time well spent. You’ll be much more confident when giving your argument if you have a clearly defined set of talk points that you have outlined before the deadline.
Here are a few ideas of things you may want to consider during your salary negotiation:
- Education & certification
- Years of relevant experience
- Performances and results
- Unique set of skills and attributes (e.g., bilingualism)
- Know-how in the field
- Potential for training
A notepad or notebook can aid in conversations, so that one doesn’t forget any important information.
Be confident & concise
In a salary negotiation, it’s important to be confident and clear. Talk clearly about your work experience accomplishments, your job goals and achievements. It’s essential to maintain an optimistic tone throughout the discussion so that the employer feels like you’re not coming across as unfriendly.
Show tangible results
Simply stating that one is driven, hardworking, and focused may not be enough to generate an strong appeal. Make sure to provide precise statistics on how previous roles made significant difference to companies or how valuable are specific qualities that can benefit an organization.
Stay flexible
If the employer isn’t able to your requested salary or compensation package outright, remaining flexible and open-minded will allow for discussions. It is possible to inquire about alternatives to incentives, such as performance-based bonus structures, instead of the Base salary(? ).
You must remain professional throughout the negotiation - regardless of how successfully or poorly it’s going Being too aggressive or making unreasonable demands will likely cause a negative result for all parties who is involved.
Practice active listening
Listening is equally as important as speaking during these kinds of conversations. Be attentive to the your counterpart during negotiations. Listen to requests carefully and clarifying questions if needed, but maintaining the what you originally requested. In the end, both parties must arrive at acceptable outcomes.
Use the lessons you’ve learned from these discussions and apply it to future negotiations you’ll likely take part in. Following the tips above goes in the right direction to increase your chances of reaching positive, mutually beneficial results.
| Your network is important | Speak to friends who’ve held similar roles or connect with professionally-oriented networks in addition to brainstorming members within professional organizations. |
| Prepare talking points | Qualifications and training, Years of relevant work experience, results and accomplishments, Unique skill set and qualities (e.g. bi-lingualism) Knowledge of the industry, Potential for training |
| Be confident & concise | Speak clearly about your experiences accomplishments, job goals and achievements. Use tangible results to highlight your achievements. |
| Remain flexible | You can inquire about alternative incentives such as incentive structures based on performance rather than Base salary (?). You must remain professional during the negotiation process. |
| Practice active listening | Listening is just as important in these types of conversations. Learn from these conversations and incorporate them into future discussions you’ll likely be involved in. |
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Frequently asked questions
What is salary negotiation?
Salary negotiation is the process of negotiating and deciding on the compensation package for a position. When you negotiate this, you can discuss not only the base salary, but also other benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plans as well as other benefits.
Why is it important to negotiate salary?
Negotiating your salary will give you a more secure financial future as well as indicate that you are aware of your worth. It will also allow you to avoid leaving money on the table.
What is the best time to negotiate my salary?
It is ideal to begin negotiations after you have received an offer, so that everyone is conscious of what’s being discussed. This way, the discussions are focused on negotiating optimal terms and avoid surprises.
What if I am happy with the package I was offered without negotiation?
If you get an offer and you are satisfied with the offer, then there’s no need to negotiate. But it’s important to have transparent communication about what your employer’s expectations in the form of the performance-based bonus or career-training reimbursements.
Can I negotiate salary when changing career paths entirely?
Negotiating salary when you change career paths could require additional training because your previous work experiences might not translate or relate to the new duties. Study what similar positions in similar fields pay, to develop a thorough knowledge of the realistic expectations you can set for yourself, in light of your specific circumstances.
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