Every week,
Salaries are often a topic of conversation on the Ask the Coach calls, and this week was no exception. One caller in education said that he has been in education for 20 years, and salary is largely dependent on the size of the city or school district; information that can be hard to uncover. This makes salary negotiation difficult, and if you have been out of work for a while, should you accept whatever they offer?
Debbie’s response was that companies (and school districts) are, indeed, lowering their salaries, but that doesn’t mean you have to accept the first offer. You should negotiate. Recruiters or hiring managers usually ask for a salary history as a baseline. Be flexible and smart in your response, but be honest.
Another caller said he had a panel interview scheduled and was trying to determine salary. The hiring company had not disclosed a salary range, and he has not given them a salary history. He also worked for this company before. Debbie recommended being honest and giving them full disclosure as to his previous compensation, and add something like, “during my previous tenure with this company I was paid fairly, and I am confident that your will make a fair offer.” Since the scheduled interview is with a panel of peers, rather than the hiring manager, salary should not be a topic of conversation.
Adding to this conversation, another caller said he was CEO and hiring manager for his company and that if a candidate was evasive about salary they were out of the running. If a candidate isn’t willing to discuss their salary history then it raises the question, “What don’t they want me to know? What are they hiding?” The hiring manager needs a salary history to judge expectations on both sides. Granted, the salary history question can be used as an exclusionary tool, but if the recruiter or hiring manager asks for a salary history more than once or twice, they are going to move on to the next candidate.
