Negotiating your salary

A number of factors should be considered when it comes to approaching a salary negotiation.

Understanding the company's current situation and your value will ensure a successful negotiation. The key to negotiating your salary is gathering as much information as possible before the negotiation begins.

In this article, we provide some useful tips and advice on the steps you can take when it comes to negotiating your salary.

How is the company doing?

It is important to understand how the company you are interviewing with is performing. Have they posted record profits for the previous year, or is their financial performance below their targets? Have they made many redundancies in the past 12 months? All of these factors will have an effect on whether the organisation is going to pay above/below or on the market rate for a role.

How much do employees carrying out similar roles receive?

Find out how much employees carrying out similar roles are paid. The key is to demonstrate your views with good examples of similar jobs both inside and outside the firm. Benchmark your salary against the
Robert Walters Salary Survey in your sector.

General market conditions in your sector

Is there a shortage of candidates with your skill set in the industry you work in? Have general salaries been rising or falling within the sector? Are there a high number of roles appropriate to your skill set available in the sector? It is important you know the answers to all of these questions so that you understand what level of salary you are able to request and what is realistic.

Determine whether there are any salary trade-offs

Calculate your salary with a view to the entire package, including benefits, and not just the base salary.

Doing so, try not to be lured into a false sense of satisfaction by the top-line salary figure. Make sure you do your salary sums because you may have increased costs in your new job. For example, you may need to travel further to reach your new office or workplace and you might lose out on other benefits too. Of course, the reverse can be true. Your new salary may not be as high as you'd like but there could be other advantages; a company car, free health insurance, gym membership or other perks. Never forget, however, that this is the wage you're going to be living on. So the greater actual salary you earn the greater your financial security.

Have a look at our vacancies or get in touch with our consultants if you have further questions.