St.Louis Business Journal
10 Tips on Conducting a Job Negotiation

By Anna Navarro

November 1998  

Author's note: Client stories in this column are based on actual situations fictionalized to protect privacy and told with permission.

There is that moment during a job interview when you're pretty sure they’re interested in you and are about to start working out the details of how to get you to agree to work with them. Instead of jumping for joy, be prepared to jump into negotiating what you'd like in the job.

You'll want to be the one who takes the initiative and begins the process.

Ideally, you want to start proposing terms just before they do. If you go first, you get to define the parameters under discussion. However, if you let them start, and their parameters are different from yours then the onus is on you to refine the discussion. So whoever starts has the upper hand.

Here are 10 tips on how to conduct a negotiation:

1. Tell them why they and their organization are wonderful and why you are excited about working for them.

2. Start the negotiation. Go high - go for your ideal, but make sure you are within reasonable norms for salary, vacation or whatever you are negotiating.

3. After you state what you want, look them straight in the eye and then be absolutely quiet. Look as though you deserve what you asked for. Observe their reaction.

4. If they look pleased or remain calm, you're probably in the ballpark. Sit tight and wait for them to speak. Get what you want on this item and then proceed to the next one.

5. If, on the other hand, they turn pale or express shock, then tell them why you think you deserve what you requested. Then be still, listen, and wait for them to react.

As they respond to your rationale, you will want to really listen and then probe for what's behind their objection. This is your opportunity to look for a win-win solution, to find out whether there's some way you can incorporate their objection and still meet your needs.

(A good example is the candidate who wanted four weeks of vacation. The prospective employer strongly objected. When the candidate probed, he discovered it was based on the difficulty of operating for such a large chunk of time without him. This was not a problem for the candidate; however, because he really had a preference for taking his vacation in short chunks. So by suggesting that he might be able to take his vacation time in two-day hunks attached to weekends, he was able to meet his needs and satisfy the employer's objections.)

6. If you're unable to discover the basis of their objections and arrive at a win-win situation, then ask them what's the best they could do. (Because your opening bid was on the high side of reasonable, they are likely to go as high as possible to avoid appearing chintzy.)

7. Wait for them to respond. Then reply, "Could you possibly swing..." and name a compromise between their offer and your original request.

(In being assertive about what you want, never say, “I need this or I won't take the job unless you're really willing to end discussions and give up the job offer.)

8. When you feel you've done the best you can on your most important item, move to the next and begin the process again.

9. If, in the course of the negotiation, you really get to a point when you are confused about whether this offer makes sense, you always can ask for some time to think about it.

However, this never should be done in a bluff, in an effort to get them to raise their offer. It should be done only if you are genuinely confused about whether the offer is a good one because sometimes people grow cool during the wait.

In any case, try to make the "timeout" as short as possible. You should get back to them within 24 hours if possible, and try not to extend the period beyond 48 hours.

10. If you decide to take the job, although you haven't gotten what you really wanted, you can negotiate for the opportunity to raise the issue again in six months or a year, and have your request granted if your performance is as good as you know it will be.

Send a courteous, enthusiastic letter that summarizes your excitement about the job and your understanding of the agreement. The letter should be friendly and non-threatening in tone, but the facts are important to have in writing because memories fade and supervisors can change.

Anna Navarro is the founder of Work Transitions, a nationwide career consulting firm that trains independent career strategists and consults with individual clients.

This column was originally published by the St. Louis Business Journal. The actual title of the column and date in which it appeared in the Business Journal may be slightly different from what appears on WorkTransitions.com.