Ask the Career Coach: How Can I Increase My Salary?

Question: Hi, Cheryl, I can't remember the last time we corresponded. To get you up to date, I'm now working for a division of (company name removed). I'm the supervisor of the regional marketing division. In many ways, it's a perfect fit. The problem is I just can't seem to live off the salary they pay me. I still have my biz on the side, but that doesn't pay the bills; just adds to the stress! Is there ananswer to this??

K.

Answer: There's always an answer, my dear. Since you're saying this job is a great fit for you I certainly don't think the answer is to look for another job - especially given all you've been through career-wise in the last several years. Rather, the answer lies in cutting your expenses or finding ways to boost your income. Here are several ideas:

• Compare your salary to comparable jobs throughout the area. Are you making about the same as others in similar jobs with similar backgrounds and skill levels? You will need to access online salary surveys, check with your network, and/or conduct your own salary survey to answer this question accurately.
  
• If so, review your bills carefully to see what you can cut back. You may want to consider contacting a consumer credit service for assistance in negotiating better payment terms with credit accounts. Such a service can also set you up with a realistic budget.
  
• If not, gather salary research and profile your accomplishments to date in your current position. Prepare all this data in an attractive way and present it to your supervisor with a salary increase request.
  
• Seek additional sources of income to supplement your FT salary:
  

:: Teach online through an online university or offering a class of your own.
:: Sell your own manuscripts online via a service like Lulu.com.
:: Take on a consulting project.
:: Look for freelance work.
:: Sell things to create extra cash (jewelry, furniture, art, etc.).

Suze Orman's newest book is about women and money (in fact I think that's the title) - I would strongly recommend reading something like that to make sure you are taking full advantage of the financial resources you already have.

Another thought would be to do some values/passions/gifts clarification work to see what other kind of career you can begin moving into down the line - if you think the ongoing salary issue indicates you may be in the wrong career field.

Hope these suggestions help. It was good to hear from you!

Cheryl

Ask the Career Coach: Salary Requirements

Question:

Hey Cheryl, just had a quick question I thought you could answer well. When an employer asks for a "salary requirement" of a job applicant, how should that be integrated into ones' papers they submit(i.e.resume, cover letter,...?) andh ow would one go about coming up with an accurate or fair number? Thanks!

Answer:

• First, when an employer asks for a salary requirement, you must give them one. To fail to do so is to invite rejection.
• Second, you offer this info in your cover letter, never on your resume. Add a sentence to one of your final paragraphs, something like: The most important criteria I value in a new position are (add yours; eg, advancement opportunities, scope of position, quality of match between you and the employer). Based on my (name specific skills you would bring to the table) skills, I believe I would qualify for a salary in the range of $X to $Y.
• When you list your salary range, list it in a range of $10,000 to $20,000. For example, $40,000 to $50,000. To arrive at the correct salary range to note you will have to do some research:

1. Search similar positions online in your targeted geographic area to see if you can find any job postings with salaries listed.
2. Visit salary sites (see the ones listed on my blog) and/or online salary surveys in your field to identify salary ranges in your geographic area.
3. Consult your network to see if anyone knows anyone who can offer insight on the "going rate" in your field in your targeted area.
4. Conduct your own salary survey by calling the HR departments or hiring managers of local employers in your targeted field. Tell them you are conducting research on salary ranges and ask them to indicate the ranges they use to hire in the positions you are seeking.
5. Visit the Occupational Outlook Handbook for national salary averages for the 200+ most common occupations in the U.S.
6. Once you've identified a target range you may want to add some negotiations elbow room. Let's say you discover that the average for your profession in your state/region is $45,000 to $55,000. To prevent yourself from being low-balled, try adding 10-30% onto both ends of that range. The resulting salary range will still be in the employer's ballpark, but will demonstrate clearly that you believe you are worth more.
   
   

• Of course if you do this you will need to make absolutely certain that you demonstrate your skills and experience are worth that amount, which means your behavior-based interviewing and salary negotiations skills must be fine-tuned - otherwise you will come off as arrogant.
• Since you are new to professional-level job search, Will, you might want to take a look at my online job search class, Guerrilla Job Search in 30 Days or Less. This 5-lesson virtual class offers email support and jam-packed details on how to conduct an efficient job search campaign. And it's on sale now for $39. Check it out at http://home.universalclass.com/i/crn/15480.htm .

Hope all this helps!

New Survey: What Job Seekers Really Want

Croner Consulting, a UK-based consulting firm, today released the results of a survey comparing what hiring employers think job seekers want and what job seekers actually want. Their most nteresting results:

What Surveyed Employers Think You Want:

• Strong company reputation [65.1%]
• Workplace culture/environment [54.5%]
• Staff development initiatives [52%]

What Surveyed Job Seekers Want:

• Preferred location of work [47%]
• Holiday/vacation time [43%]
• Flexible work hours [39%]
• Bonuses [39%]
• Workplace culture [38%]
• Staff development [28%]

What's missing from the top 6 list of job seeker desires? Salary and benefits.

What's interesting about the top 3 list of job seeker desires? They all relate to life/work balance.

The obvious mismatch between what job seekers are looking for and what employers think they want may help explain why so many companies still struggle with their recruiting efforts. Also interesting, though, is that employers value staff development (and perhaps find it necessary?), yet it rates lower for job seekers.

Two conclusions about this research seem plausible:

1. If you want to get an employer's attention in the hiring process, make sure you comment on their reputation and ask questions about their workplace culture and staff development focus.
2. If your desires mirror those of the job seekers surveyed by Croner, make sure you inquire about and strategically negotiate telecommuting options, holiday/vacation days, flexible work hours, and company bonus structure.

New Form of Salary Data Available

It used to be that to prepare fully for salary negotiations, every professional had to conduct their own salary survey. But since the launch of sites like Salary.com, more and more salary information is becoming available to job seekers. Well, move over Salary.com, there are new players on the field: PayScale.com and PayScroll.com.

While Salary.com secures its data via corporate HR offices, PayScale.com is sourcing their data directly from job seekers themselves who are willing to share their salary info. The good news? If you're looking for work in a fairly common and popular occupation, PayScale is likely to be a good source of vital salary info for you. If you're looking for work in a more unusual and rare occupation, it's data probably won't be extensive enough to help you.

PayScroll, on the other hand, is an emerging site (still in Alpha testing) which is testing a new way to source salary information: by scrolling through online job postings. This is a clever idea. I've long encouraged my clients to use job boards to find salary data, but there's no doubt that's a lot of work. If PayScroll is successful in delivering the goods, this idea could offer job seekers additional leverage in the salary negotiations war.

Stay tuned!

More Salary Negotiations Tips

It's not possible to say too much about salary negotiations. Given that, I thought I'd include more goodies for you on making the most of this stressful process.

• Make sure you’ve done your research on the salary you should expect for the position you’re seeking. It's a mistake of the first order to assume you know what the "going rate" is in your profession. Take advantage of the salary research and networking resources now available online to help you pin down the target salary range you want to present to prospective employers. This is research that will literally pay for itself!
• Ever heard the old adage, "He who mentions money first loses"? It certainly applies to the salary negotiations process. Don't bring up salary issues before the employer does. And delay salary negotiation for as long as possible - until you know exactly what the position entails, whether or not you want the job, and whether or not the prospective employer wants you. Bide your time and live with the uncertainty of "not knowing" by concentrating instead on marketing yourself well.
• Know your skills, strengths, and accomplishments and demonstrate the value you’ll bring to the employer by focusing on the who-what-where-when-why details of your achievement history. Show them your record of past contributions and help them understand how they have prepared you to make even greater contributions to their company. Know the challenges the company is facing and get specific about how you can help them surpass those challenges (without giving away your knowledge and experience).
• Let the employer make the first offer. If asked, say you expect a salary that is competitive with the market - or give a salary range that you find acceptable. Make sure you've researched the market and know what range is likely to be well received. Also make sure you add a 20% to 30% margin on that range to create room for negotiations.
• Don't inflate your current earnings just to get a higher salary offer. Remember that employers can use your social security number to verify your earnings - and when they hire executives, they are quite likely to do so. You can, however, share your current earnings in multiple ways - as net earnings, as gross earnings, and as gross plus benefits. Choose the earnings figure that puts your best foot forward for negotiations with each employer.
• Don't feel obligated to accept the first salary offer and definitely negotiate if the offer made is inadequate. Have a strategy in mind for how you will do so, and once again avoid mentioning specific numbers if at all possible.
• Avoid being overly aggressive in negotiating the salary you want. But do be assertive enough to negotiate what's fair (for you and the employer). In other words, seek the win/win solution that will make both sides feel good about their decision.
• Don't just focus on salary. Make sure you consider the entire compensation package. Know ahead of time what you want beyond salary and prioritize your goals so you can strategize your negotiations accordingly.
• Try to obtain other concessions (shorter review time, better title, better workspace) or benefits (bonuses, vacation time) if you aren’t successful at negotiating the salary you want. What else matters so much to you that you would willingly accept less money for it?
• Research the company before you say "yes". Know what you're getting yourself into, know the company's reputation, and know their financial status. The more you know, the more comfortable you can feel saying "yes" or "no" when the time comes.
• Always get the offer in writing. If the hiring employer won't put the offer in writing for you, then restate the offer in writing and send a letter to them documenting your discussions to date.

Lastly, here are a couple of resources to take a look at:

• Writing a Counter Proposal Letter
• Susan Ireland's Negotiation Guide

Evaluating Job Opportunities

Once job offers begin to roll in, you'll need help trying to decide which position is the right next step for you. After all, this is an important decision, and you don't want to accept an offer, start back to work, and find out later that you made a terrible mistake. So what can you do?

Ask yourself these questions as you evaluate whether an employer or position is a good match for you:

• Does the organization’s business or activity match your own interests and beliefs?
• How will the size of the organization affect you?
• Do you want to work for a relatively new organization or one that is well established?
• Does it make a difference to you or your future if the company is private or public?
• Is the organization in an industry with favorable long-term prospects?
• Will you be satisfied with the nature of this position for the foreseeable future?
• Does the position offer you the level of challenge, variety, and authority you were seeking?
• Are career advancement and professional development opportunities available?
• How do you feel about the company's location and your commute route?
• Does the work match your interests and make good use of your skills?
• Are you comfortable with the hours?
• Will the salary and benefits offered meet you and your family's needs for the foreseeable future?

Although there is much, much more to the process of evaluating a job offer, these important questions will help you leverage the offer into a brighter future for you and your loved ones.

5 Steps to Effective Salary Negotiations

The ready availability of online salary information alters the dynamics of salary negotiations completely. You no longer have to guess about whether your preferred salary range is on target or not. Rather, you can verify this with just a bit of research.

So, if that's true, how does this change the salary negotiations process from that of the "old days"?

Well, take a gander at the series of five negotiations steps highlighted in this excellent article from Salary.com, and you can learn that for yourself. In short, Salary.com suggests that salary negotiations in the new millenium involves:

1. Agreeing on a benchmark job, then ...


2. Agreeing on your proficiency and performance level, so that you can ...


3. Agree on the market value of the job, which will help you ...


4. Agree on where your salary should fall, which, in turn, will help you...


5. Agree on what performance is necessary for future salary increases.

Another great resource from Salary.com, is this look at "perks for the rest of us". That is, if you're seeking an executive-level position, perks means one thing, yet to those who are seeking non-executive level positions, perks mean something else all together. Check out what level and range of perks you might want to negotiate in your next job.

Pinpointing Your Salary Range

One of the most important aspects of the salary negotiations process is verifying your desired salary range as near or in the range the prospective employer is likely to hire you for. A wish and a prayer won't get you there - it's absolutely vital that you do some salary research to make sure the range you're shooting for is realistic in the labor market of your targeted geographic area.

Before you do that salary research, however, take a look at this excellent (and short) article on the 30 mistakes you absolutely must avoid during your negotiations process:

• 30 Salary Negotiations Mistakes to Avoid

When you're ready to start researching the right salary range for you, visit this page of salary survey resources on the web:

• General and industry-specific salary surveys

Intro to Salary Negotiations

Next to resume design, the hardest part of the job search process is probably salary negotiations. Most of us hate it, and few, indeed, excel at it. Yet, the fact is that your single biggest chance to increase your income occurs when you change jobs.

Let's take a look at some negotiations basics. First and foremost, what can you negotiate?

• Salary (starting salary; salary progressions; raises; promotions; bonuses; overtime/comp time)
• Benefits (health, dental, vision, life, travel, short-term/long-term disability, and accidental death insurance; pension plans; profit-sharing plans; stock options; Employee Assistance Program)
• Work hours (number of hours worked weekly)
• Work schedule (when you work the hours you've pledged to work)
• Working conditions (dress; smoking/non-smoking; access to music; ability to decorate work space; special accomodations for disabilities/health conditions)
• Vacation (weeks of vacation; holidays; personal days; sick/family leave)
• Job description (tasks you want included; tasks you want excluded)
• Support personnel (access to secretarial/administrative support)
• Job title (scope of; wording)
• Reporting level (the higher level of position you report to, the more your own title is worth in your future salary negotiations)
• Perks (office space; parking space; paid parking; company car; expense account; travel expenses; company credit card; health club membership; on-site daycare; subsidized child care)
• Equipment (laptop, desktop pc, any specialized tools needed for your work)
• Professional development (courses/training; tuition reimbursement for a college degree or professional certificate; licensure; coaching; professional memberships; access to online learning tools; conferences)
• Separation benefits (outplacement support; severance; 401K buyout)

This is by no means a comprehensive list, but it should broaden your idea of what "salary" negotiations is all about.

Some salary/negotiations-related sites you will want to take a look at

• SalaryNegotiations.com
• Payscale.com
• Salary.com
• SalaryExpert.com