Seven steps for women to successfully negotiate their salary - Women's Agenda

Seven steps for women to successfully negotiate their salary

A negotiation is a courtship, a dance where you take a few steps forward and a few steps back or sideways. But ultimately, one person leads and one person follows.

Studies show women are great at negotiating for others. But the same does not always hold true when it comes to negotiating for themselves. 

A study by the American Psychological Association in 2012, linked this back to women’s natural inclination to be advocates for others, rather than looking after themselves as well as they might support those within their teams. 

I’m sure none of this surprises you. Thankfully, just like a dance, you can learn the steps and practice to become a better negotiator.

Negotiating isn’t just about money

Think about the total package and benefits on offer – this does not just mean cash components. Salary packages can include car parks, professional development opportunities, gym memberships and extra annual leave.

I have worked with candidates who indicated they wanted to take on further education to strengthen their knowledge in a relatively new area to their industry.Through successfully negotiating, they included professional development agreements into their salary package, which was a win-win for the company and the candidate. The company was getting a staff member who was willing to learn more and share their new learnings with the team. This wouldn’t have happened if she hadn’t come up with her own proposal during the process.

Determine what your perimeters are for negotiation

Determine what you are willing to accept, what figure you will be happy with and what is important to you and your future goals.

A good negotiator will have clear figures in their head of what they are willing to accept, how low they will go, the ultimate figure they would be happy with and always a backup plan of what else they can suggest if they don’t achieve a figure they are happy with.

Research and research

Research the company, their history and future plans. Read their annual reports and media releases.

If reports show a strong growth plan, put forward an option of a salary package that grows with the company based on KPIs. It’s the same when locking yourself into a home loan, you do your research about interest rates and what is the best option for you.

Why don’t we do something for our career, which is longer than a 30 year home loan?

Make sure you know your market value. Start with salary guides, surveys, and speak to your industry body and your recruiter. Your recruiter will have a guide of what is realistic within the market.

By doing your research you will be able to justify your proposal.

Chose the right time to raise the subject

Make sure you pick the right time to discuss salary. Too often I see people bring salary up too early or too late. There is a fine line regarding when it should be mentioned.

There are so many things you want to establish with your potential new employer, such as your fit for the role, qualifications and culture fit, before mentioning salary expectations.

Be aware of the power of relationships and language

In Hannah Riley Bowles’ article, ‘Why Women Don’t Negotiate Their Job Offers’ she uses Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg as an example for successful negotiating. Sandberg suggests a ‘Think personally, act communally’ strategy. The ‘I-we’ strategy involves asking for what you want, while signalling to your negotiating counterpart that you are also taking their perspective. So, how does it work?

“Sheryl, in her negotiations with Facebook, told them ‘of course you realise that you’re hiring me to run your deal team so you want me to be a good negotiator,” Bowles said.

“Second, you want to signal to your negotiating counterpart that you care about organisational relationships,” she said.

“After pointing out that they should want her to be a good negotiator, Sandberg recounts saying, “This is the only time you and I will ever be on opposite sides of the table.” In other words, “I am clear that we’re on the same team here.”

Don’t discount small talk when negotiating.  Like a dance, you court your partner. When tangoing you don’t just jump straight into the dip, you work up to it.

Ask questions and listen

Successful negotiators ask thought-out questions designed to better understand the other side’s interests.

“Don’t just ask what they want; ask why they want it, for what purpose,” Jeff Weiss (a consultant in corporate negotiations and relationship management) advises.

“Moving from ‘the what’ to the ‘why’ gives you more grist for the collaborative mill. Rhetorical questions are also no-no. 

“Asking questions like ‘don’t you think this is fair?’ simply “paints others into a corner,” Weiss said.

Always have a Plan B up your sleeve

If during the negotiation process an employer mentions that they are unable to afford the salary you want, see if they are open to including performance based incentives.

You could suggest building in bonuses based around measurable results.

It’s critical to get the negotiation right as you need to feel as though the employer understands your potential value, while not tarnishing the potential employment relationship before it even starts.

Applying these tips will ensure you and your employer are dancing to the same song.

What steps have you found to be successful in negotiating your salary? I would love to hear.

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