Filling a position within your company can be stressful and time consuming. Once you’ve weeded through endless resumes and applications, interviewed multiple applicants and have found the person you believe is the best fit, you’ll want to seal the deal and make the candidate an acceptable offer. Following are some tips about making that offer and the negotiation process that follows.
When making an offer of employment, you want one that not only benefits the company, but also satisfies the candidate’s needs. Consider the value of the person you have chosen. Determine the job’s salary range based on benchmarking similar jobs in similar industries. Then choose your offer somewhere in the middle. Avoid asking the candidate what they are currently making. There’s typically no way for you to determine what they tell you is fact, so there is no point in doing that.
Don’t start out low-balling the offer. This will undoubtedly create an awkward negotiation process from the start. Worse yet, if the candidate is truly perfect for the job and accepts the low offer, you run the risk of losing them within a short amount of time. They may realize their value is higher and they will continue to seek other opportunities.
On the flip side, when you’ve found that perfect candidate don’t jump the gun and offer them the highest wage possible during the negotiation process. Ultimately, the candidate may make a counter offer and that leaves no room for further discussion. This will make you appear inflexible and you run a bigger risk of losing the candidate if they are considering other offers.
If you’ve reached a roadblock during negotiations and still have no decision, offer other perks. A signing bonus may be the tipping point for the candidate. Additional vacation time outside of the standard company policy can also be used in negotiations (as long as it does not become a discriminatory practice in hiring). If your company allows flexible scheduling, or allows employees who have proven themselves to work from home at times, mention these earnable perks to the candidate.
While balancing your company’s interests with the value of the candidate, be open to discussing their counter offers. What may seem greedy or nitpicky to you at first blush may be valid requests based on the candidate’s personal needs and value of experience.
Consider the candidate’s rationale before making a final decision.
Lastly, if you or your managers need help as you negotiate with a new employee, or want to discuss your overall employment policies, contact the experts at BCN Services. We’re here to help!
Frank Lewandowski, Partnership Manager