Negotiating salary as a new staff

What you don’t know about me is that I resigned from my first job.

This was one of the worst decisions of my life. And I want to warn you: never resign from your job before you find a new one. When you do so, your transfer price goes to zero. I mean 0. This means, that you lose all your previous career salary increases. Many companies want to match your current pay. Never your previous pay. Many companies ask for your most recent pay slip.

The thing is, many company HR and executives have been taught wrong things. They have been taught that a staff is as good as what the competitor is paying them currently. When you fail to show your most recent payslip HR people tend to think that you are on the street and therefore desperate. This means, you can accept any salary. I mean, any salary. Now that is bad as it reduces your bargaining power.

Getting a new job is not a cup of tea for most folks. Whether you are fresh from University or a seasoned executive considering moving to new place of work, the process of finding a job may seem dauting. You need to keep having your CV in the right faces so that you receive so many calls before you decide to move. Whoever makes the first call is on the giving end of the salary bargain. Have your CV with serious recruiters and head hunters so that they call interesting you to move to a new company. There you will be in things.

Moving Jobs Salary negotiation

Ask yourself; “is this your first job or you have been in employment?” if you have been working already, then negotiate salary based on your transfer price. You can’t allow to go into a new job to earn less salary than what you have been earning. Unless there are very many other reasons like training, exposure and networking. Even if that is the case, I always advise people to first have their current salary matched. Remember, what is on your payroll is what will go to your bank account. Once you have money on your bank account, you can always travel or go enrol on a new course that is critical for your on-job performance. Ignore that fake advise that “money is not important”.  Nothing moves without money. So, be clear that you cannot move to a new job UNLESS to matches at minimum your current pay and benefits or gives you far more leave days and working flexibilities such that you are less stressed and have more time for family.

Your transfer price should be the amount of money over and above what you are currently earning. This should be the basis for negotiation of salary.

Your very first job salary negotiation basis

If this is the first job of your working, you are looking at the minimum to meet your cost of living and live a better life. You must compute an estimate of the salary to enable you meet your current cost of living like house rent, family costs like food, transport, clothes, etc. Make sure you ascertain the kind of amount of money you need to survive? Based on that, you can think of much you need.

Most of the time, the first answer people give when asked how much would like to be paid is based on your company structure. I don’t believe in things like ‘pay me based on the company structure’. The company can pay any amount of money if you are able to demonstrate your worth. It is about how much you bring on the table. It is not about company structures. The company wants people who are going to redefine rules. You can’t say that you will help redefine the rules, yet you want to remain within the structure.

So, you say “I will be paid based on what I deliver on the table.” In the probation period, you can pay me as per your structure. After that period, I will have demonstrated by ability to put money on the table. Am going to transform your business if you allow me the freedom to innovate and think. Every employee will want an answer like that. They need people who bring in new knowledge.

Every CEO or employer is not happy with their current team.

Even the best team the Spanish football league or England buys new players at the start of the season; even when their current squad warn the premier league. Why? No team manager is comfortable with the status quo. They are always looking and scanning the market to make sure they are and remain ahead of the pack.

The worst answer in salary negotiations

So, how much would you want to be paid? “pay any amount you deem fit or as per your salary pay structure”. Really? A person who went to school and obtained a degree, studied cost accounting. Here you are cannot price yourself to the prospective employer.

That kind of answer shows to the employer’s representatives that you are valueless and not a serious person. It is that bad.

I have been on so many interview panels. Someone has applied for the Manager position and you reply ‘any amount!’ This is a red flag you can’t deliver.

You must show that you have been through various management positions. “I have been earning this amount with these benefits. Maybe top up by half then I can join as the one of your Managers.”

People will say that you are growing in career. Don’t be light. Much as people say money isn’t a motivation, the bottom line is growing your family worth. Wealth has to grow. You can’t tell me that you are only growing in experience. What is the result of good experience? It is money. Even if you are going to create an impact in community, money has a big role to play. If you don’t have it, it becomes very difficult to mobilise. Everybody who has succeeded in any career, have money as part of something that gives them motivation.

Make them want you to join them at any cost

Asking to be paid the salary you are worth is very important. Don’t focus on discussing about money you want to be paid.

Focus on explaining the benefits you will bring on the table if hired. Explain fully how the company benefits when you come on board. Talk about increasing sales so that management is not worried about revenue. Let people begin wondering what they will miss. If you are good at MS Excel, tell them how in the first three month of your joining they will save a lot of money they would otherwise have spent bringing in a trainer in MS Excel as you are a master in Microsoft office applications. Tell them that you will conduct training to all staff below your level so that the company makes the most use of the resources already present and save over Ugx. 10m; they would otherwise lose in time wastage due to lack of knowledge on how to use the tools. If you say that and have the skills to do so, they will give you all the money you need and more.

Once salary has been discussed, then negotiate the benefits you want. Focus on asking about training, travel and exposure the job offers. You want a job which gives ongoing training. For example, you need to know whether your job is middle or top management level and if you can one on one with the CEO, interact with Board members.

There are certain things you can never learn unless you are involved.

You can never know what takes place in a Board meeting unless you are in the boardroom. In the boardroom, it’s all about eating. By the time critical discussions for the business are being tabled, people are sleepy. You can never understand unless you sit in the board. Focus on the benefits you get from the job.

Above all, explain fully and error on demonstrating your value to the company. Let the panel members say “we must have that folk. We don’t have time to waste in training these others.”

Then wait for the next call to offer you the job. Success.