Should I Negotiate A Salary Offer: Pros & Cons
Negotiating a salary offer is a regular practice in the hiring process that everyone follows. Salary is something that everyone is working for, and many would not get the option of negotiating it while they get into their first job unless they belong to some elite B-schools or the top-notch IITs. Negotiating salary is not something that is recommended. However, it depends on what exactly your negotiation is all about.
A company makes the offer with a time frame in line. When a candidate begins to manipulate that timeline, they’re showing a fundamental disregard for the offer and the people involved. The proper time to look for another job is during the process and before the offer. Offers take time:
⦁ How long do you expect them to wait?
⦁ What makes you think an offer would sit there waiting for you and not go to the next candidate waiting in line?
Do your homework on a company you are interviewing with, and don’t just rely on the salary websites and use them as your bargaining tools.
Pro – When to Negotiate Salary
Companies always look for suitable candidates, and they pay them what they are asked for if they find them deserving. This can be achieved by having a formal and polite discussion with the recruiting team in the hiring process.
Always negotiate salary before accepting an offer. Once accepted, you pretty much don’t have room to negotiate. You either come to the job at the amount you agreed to or walk from there.
If you negotiate on the terms already discussed, negotiating again after giving your consent does not give the right impression of you as a reliable candidate. But if you are going to negotiate on things that are not discussed during the call, or are not aware of during the call, then it is okay.
If the company mentioned relocation allowance but not the figure, and later you feel something better can be done, you can discuss that.
Con – Situations to Avoid Salary Negotiations
Employees mostly hesitate to negotiate about salaries, and employers always take it as an advantage at every stage.
You may assist employers in better appreciating the value you bring by taking the time to explain why you believe you need more money.
If they make an offer, and it’s lower than you want, ask, “I’m interested in the job, but can you make the offer higher?”
You will have to make your decline believable. If they perceive that you’re just haggling, but you really will take the job for whatever they offer, then they have no incentive to raise it.
If you say “goodbye, no hard feelings,” then they might realize they need to raise the offer to get you back.
Importance of Salary Negotiation
Recognize and thank them for their considerations and opportunity whenever you reach the job offer stage in the hiring process, after investing a lot of time and energy for a position, along with the employer who has committed the same amount of time and energy in that process. Make it clear what you want, why you want it, how essential it is to you, and you’d like to jump on board as soon as possible.
They may raise the offer or say, “No, sorry, that’s our final offer”. It’s up to you to show you’ve got steely nerves. Never deny the offer on a bad note with rude or abusive behaviour. If the discussion fails, politely say that “your offer does not meet my expectations or requirements, and I am unable to accept it”.
Always believe that the more you negotiate, the more your employer is likely to expect of you. If you drive a hard bargain and get them to up their initial offer, they’re going to expect you to be worth the extra money.
For better understanding, there are two stages of negotiations that happen in most cases:
Stage 1: Based on your existing CTC, a new company HR will offer a slight raise, say 10% to 25%, depending on the industry you work in. At this point, HR claims that they are the ultimate decision authority in terms of salary, and you have been placed on par with other team members, and they cannot offer more than this to maintain the team’s salary level.
Stage 2: If the employee rejects the HR offer, the recruiting manager begins negotiating. He will evaluate the hiring employee’s necessity, urgency, and quality. He can offer a slightly better salary, depending on his internal team budget allocation.
The negotiation process is always about what you want out of a company and what you can offer them with honesty and discipline.
Points to Remember
If you think that offer is still too low after a long discussion, there’s no harm in telling them what you really want.
If the employer exhibits hesitation, continue to gently argue that you are worth that much and provide additional grounds for your worth. If they are adamant about their income, inquire about higher remuneration in other ways such as equity, vacation days, work from home options for some days in a week, etc.
If you’re really worried about taking the offer, it’s probably better to tell them, “you need to look around some more, but you don’t want them to stop looking for others”.
When declining an offer, always maintain discipline and professional behaviour. After all, you never know what prospects they may have in the future for you.
While negotiating salary, one of the lessons you need to learn is where and when to share information and when you negotiate. Anyone who accepts an offer without knowing what it will pay beforehand is a simpleton.
For example, employees sometimes try to negotiate with their managers about their salaries and threaten them to leave their job if they don’t get a raise and end up risking their careers.
Verdict
Always understand why, how and when to negotiate your salary, which could lead the hiring managers to rethink it.
