When negotiating a job offer, keep in mind you were called as a candidate. You have been selected after a process that examined a field of all eligible and qualified candidates. You interviewed with recruiters, HR staff, the hiring manager, peers, other staff members and committees, and you were chosen as the one candidate to fill the position.
When the hiring manager or their surrogate extends the job offer, you have strong negotiating power. At this time, carefully consider the starting salary, starting date, benefits, pension/savings plan, virtual office, dress code, and reporting relationships.
Don’t be shy about asking questions or making a request, even if the items in question have been discussed or appeared in the job advertisement.
Personal experience
On one occasion, I received a call from an employee who was charged with making me a job offer. The person confirmed a list of items that had been discussed or appeared in the job advertisement. I asked two things; one, was there flexibility in the salary offer, and two, was there room to extend the vacation time.
The salary offer was more than I anticipated, and the vacation time was a standard for the job level. With some reluctance, but with the confidence that these two items should always be negotiated, I asked for an additional $10K and requested an additional two weeks’ vacation. (I always advise job hunters to ask for additional salary.)
The caller said this would have to be discussed with management and I would hear back from her before the close of business that day. The time was approximately noon.
I heard back from the vice president of the company within 5 minutes who said “of course” on the salary and vacation. I learned later that the company was prepared to go significantly higher on the salary.
If the job offer is made in the later part of the year, a new employee starting a position will most likely not receive a performance evaluation or consideration for a salary increase in the current year. A request for a higher starting salary makes up for a missed salary increase cycle.
Planned Day Off
Often when we consider accepting a job, interviews can take precedence over our personal schedule. Before you accept a position, consider important upcoming commitments and present any conflicting dates to the hiring manager, possibly as a postponement of the starting date, or as a given date when you will not be attending work, office or virtual.
You don’t want to bring up a forgotten vacation, family meeting, or important anniversary with your new boss once you start the new job.
On the first day I started a new entry level management position with 5 other employees, and before any serious conversation took place, one individual announced he would not be working on March 17, which was a weekday. He was adamant about not being available for work that day, St. Patrick’s Day. He said he had an agreement with the recruiter who made him the job offer.
Since 6 of us were in a training class together, he got his day off, and we took a Holiday, and the instructor took us to lunch at an Irish Pub.
The point is, keep any important dates in mind and negotiate these, if necessary, when the job offer is made.