Negotiating Salary During the Interview?

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ITDEFX

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Just wondering if anyone here negotiates their salary during the interview when they ask "How much do you think you will be making?" I have an interview next week for a Graphics Supervisor position. My extensive educational background in Computer graphics, my Computer graphics teaching experience and management (Retail) experience makes me qualified for the job. I finally have the minimum of 5 years that this place expects you to have. I have tried to get my foot in the door since graduating from college 7 years ago, but the only way I could even get close was teaching Computer Graphics in the educational field. The cost of living in my area is quite high so I guess I would need to make over 52k to live comfortably.

So my question is, has anyone had a potential employer made you an offer and you counter offered it because it was too low? Not everyone will give you what you want. I don't want to be offered the position and end up being paid way below what I should be paid. Now according to the pay scale, first year employees get about 50k a year before taxes...however based on my experience they might bump me up to the second or third year in the system since this is my 3rd year with the county, which will come to about 52k a year.

Also don't want to get "We will get back to you when we reached a decision" and never get a call back or a rejection letter just cause they are too cheap to pay. This county can be very cheap when it comes to paying their employees, but has no problems spending tax payers money.

thanks.
 
I was actually asked this question during the interview of the job I am currently working. I was desperate for a job at the time, so I simply stated "Open Wallet" on the application and backed that up in the interview. This is what I was taught in high school. Our high school had something called a "senior exit interview." They basically set it up as an actual high scale interview, with three professional-looking people sitting behind a desk judging you. I don't know if other high schools do this, but I'd say it might have been more of an educational tool than the actual classes I took. You were required to come in at least in dress pants, a button-up shirt, and a tie. I'm getting off-subject, though. It all depends on the company. If this particular company has a lot of employees under it, they most likely have a hierarchy already set up. IMO, there probably isn't much harm in answering the question with what you actually want to make. It might take them off-guard, but I guarantee the next question they'll ask is why they should pay you more than the starting pay for someone in that particular position. They sure as hell aren't going to go, "Oh, okay," so be prepared to backup why you should be paid such-and-such amount.

That is really all of the advice I can offer. I'd like to know how this turns out in the end, because I was always taught that unless you have a royal flush in the skills department, you can't go into an interview demanding a certain salary.
 
You can always negotiate salary. Most companies will offer you slightly less than they're willing to pay. If you really want the job, just don't request considerably more than they offer. I typically counter a couple thousand higher than they offer and then meet in the middle.
 
I have never been asked that question in that way. I was asked (usually the last question) as "What salary would you require?". The best answer that you could give is that "It's negotiable". Then follow it up with your work experience, work ethic, etc. Also let them know that it would benefit them to be hiring you. And don't be surprised if they low ball you first. Thats where the negotiable comes in. They are expecting it. The important thing is to be prepared. Know what people in your position and experience are making and use that value as a basis. Also if the salary seems low, maybe you could get and extra week vacation or relocation expenses reimbursed if required. It's all negotiable, even if they say it's not.

And if you do get the "we'll get back to you" line, it won't hurt to to follow up yourself. In my current position, I had to follow up 3 times before they brought me in for a second interview and hired me. Sometimes they do get busy, and by calling them you keep your name at or near the top of thier list.
 
Do your best not to answer the question with a number. When an employer asks that question they are looking for a couple of things. If you answer below what they typically pay, they'll hire you for the minimum they can pay you. If you answer too high, they'll toss your application unless they have no other qualified candidates. If you answer within their salary range, they'll still low-ball you with the excuse of, "well we can't afford to pay you what you want, but here's our offer." It makes negotiating a lot more difficult when you're the first to put out a number. The best thing to do is say that it's negotiable. Once you do get an offer, make a counter-offer the is a bit higher than what you're expecting to get paid.

So as an example, let's use your numbers. Let's say you're offered 48k. Respectfully decline the offer and let them know that with your background you would like 56k. The company will do one of 2 things. Either they'll meet you in the middle (~52k) or come back and say they can't afford to pay you more than their original offer. If they offer 52k, take it (very rarely should you make more than 1 counter-offer). If they don't budge, it depends on your situation. If you really want the job and don't want to be elsewhere, take the offer. If you can get the money elsewhere, make a 2nd, lower counter-offer ("I understand your situation as a company, but as an individual in [city] with my educational and work experience, I cannot accept that offer. Market research shows the average starting salary in our area is 50k and I feel that a fair offer from your company would be 51k.").

I've counter-offered my inital salray offer at 2 of the 3 jobs I've ever worked at and had both of them meet somewhere in the middle after my initial counter.
 
NEVER negotiate salary during the interview. Always deflect the question. During interviews, HR is looking for reasons not to hire you, and greed is one. Negotiate after the offer.
 
If the topic comes up during the interview, you should say something like "I would require a salary that is commensurate with my experience and qualifications." Just be sure you stress your most important attributes during the conversation.

You can hash out the figures and details during a follow-up call, or when you're offered the position. Another important thing to consider is how good the benefits are. Salary is not always the most important item when considering a new job.
 
I pulled a pretty stupid move getting my current job that panned out really well, mainly because the HR people are nice. I got a phone call from the head HR person saying they'd seen my resume on monster.com and would I be interested in taking a look at the position. Early on she non chalantly asked me what I was looking for pay wise at my next position and I just blurted out the highest number I though was reasonable. She says "That sounds about right", and just went on from there. I almost doubled my previous salary by doing that but don't think I'll take that approach with my next job.
 
I take into consideration the full range of benefits and fringe benefits. Sure, earning 52k might allow you to live nicely, but what if you were paid 48k with flexibility in attendance (telecommuting certain days?).

Otherwise, I ask them what a position similar to this would pay with this company (similar to what mtxbass said).
 
I was pretty stupid with my current job. Most ads for the position didn't list salaries, but I found an old one that gave a range. On the application, I was required to give a salary preference and I placed myself at about 75% on the range. I certainly would have liked (and felt I deserved) more, but I also didn't want to place myself at the time given my experience level.

When I got my offer, it was exactly what I had put on the application. So I really couldn't negotiate because they essentially met my demands.
 
I like the "It's negotiable" answer. If they press, you can say you would be flexible depending on the benefits the company had and the position offered. You want to balance out letting them know you're not a cheap hire but that you're willing to not work for only top-dollar at the same time.
 
Look the guy straight in the eye, let out a soft chuckle and say "If you have to ask, you can't afford me." They'll respect your confidence.
 
Use a decision making model.

If you won't take the job for less than 52K then you need to be upfront. You wouldn't want to be offered the job then not be able to take it because they don't offer enough.

If you want to work for the company more than "having" the amount of money then you may want to say a lower number.

Since you claim that you have the minimum amount of experience and this is a place you really want to work for. You can always go lower and ask for an increase after proving yourself as a good employee. Companies hate to train new employees and are likely to meet your demands after a couple years (and at that point you will have a better idea of what they are willing to pay).

My best advise for you is to go find a local career counselor, pay for a session, and get advise from people who really know what they are talking about instead of hearing these case studies on CAG.
 
[quote name='BadAdviceGuy']Look the guy straight in the eye, let out a soft chuckle and say "If you have to ask, you can't afford me." They'll respect your confidence.[/quote]

Winner.:D

Or, you could just pull a Dr. Evil: "1 billion dollars!" Be sure to do the pinky thing, too.
 
When negotiating salary, you need to do your research and find out what the going salary is for someone comparable to you in you field and not be shy about asking for more if what they offer you is too low as long as you have something to back that up. When negotiating salary in my current job, I was able to negotiate an additional 10% more since I was able to back up my higher salary demand with an understanding of what my "market" value was. Aim high but not unreasonably high. If they really want you, they'll be willing to negotiate with you. Another way is to negotiate achievable milestones into your contract that will bump your salary up if you meet them. Often companies that balk at paying a higher base salary will go along with this as long as it's something tangible (i.e. you bring in a certain amount of revenue or certain number of customers or whatver else would be applicable in your field)
 
[quote name='umcthomas']Use a decision making model.

If you won't take the job for less than 52K then you need to be upfront. You wouldn't want to be offered the job then not be able to take it because they don't offer enough.

If you want to work for the company more than "having" the amount of money then you may want to say a lower number.

Since you claim that you have the minimum amount of experience and this is a place you really want to work for. You can always go lower and ask for an increase after proving yourself as a good employee. Companies hate to train new employees and are likely to meet your demands after a couple years (and at that point you will have a better idea of what they are willing to pay).

My best advise for you is to go find a local career counselor, pay for a session, and get advise from people who really know what they are talking about instead of hearing these case studies on CAG.[/quote]


But if you say "I won't work for less than $52k," you're not going to be working for any more, either. You're giving up tremendous negotiation ground.
 
Two things: don't let pay be an issue during the interview, and tell them you are open to negotiation (or some variant thereof - do not give a number). If they want you, they'll make you an offer, and do NOT be afraid to come back with a higher salary figure! This is huge. I just got done negotiating salary for my post-grad job, and I went in with the mentality that I would not take their first offer, no matter how good it sounded (and their first offer was quite tasty...). I listened to the offer, told them I needed to consider my options for a few days, came back with a range $8-12,000 higher (this was an error; I should have just stuck to the $12,000 add-on), and a concern about having to worry about year-end bonuses making up too much of my income. They tried to knock me down - "we have excellent benefits", "did you consider the potential of your bonus", etc. - but I just held out and asked her to see what she could do. A week later, they not only added the $8,000, but they guaranteed my annual bonus, with the additional option for a higher amount based on performance. Basically it went from being a 0-30% amount to being 20-30% figure.

Don't flop on the first offer. Trust me. Don't be a prick, but be aware of your value and get what you want out of this thing.
 
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