Got offer negotiated no call back!!!!
I flew out of state for interview. Got job offer next day. I asked for weekend to consider it. I called back Monday and negotiated salary & vacation time. I went less than $10 hr above what they were offering, which is still low in my market. I totally expect to meet in the middle somewhere. The person I dealt with had very positive feedback. They said they would call me and I haven't heard back. I would love to have this job. What is the normal time for call back? Can I drop an email stating I'd like to be available for their phone call and when should I expect it? I'm stressing......
Somebody please suggest to me what could be going on or what I can do on my end. Sorry! It's not that we don't care, it's just that we don't have an answer that will make you feel better. As for what's going on, you had an offer on the table. When you called back Monday, you wanted to renegotiate salary. Every time you add a step to the process, you give the other party one more opportunity to either stall or change their mind. What can you do? Not much at this point. If it drags out a few more days call and ask where you stand. Explain that since this is an offer, you need to make the necessary arrangemets to implement things if it's a go. Let' s see... It was this Monday you called back and negotiated with them? And it' s only Tuesday? Or was it last Monday you talked to them? This is Tuesday; if it was yesterday, give them till at least tomorrow afternoon. Sheesh, you asked for a weekend to think it over; aren' t you going to extend the same courtesy? If, OTH, it was last Monday, you should get on the phone, NOT e-mail them, ASAP and find out what' s happened. And, remember, just because they were willing to negotiate and hear you out, it doesn' t mean they have to, or will, agree to the terms. If you would have settled for somewhere in the middle between what they originally offered and what you counter-offered, then that' s where you should have negotiated to. This is not like buying a house, as some people have put it. A seller usually cannot afford to reject a counter offer outright; there are usually not as many buyers for one house as there are candidates for one position! But an employer typically can afford to "pass" on one person and go on to the next. Once a job offer has been made and it is lower than what you want, you should counter back with what you will realistically take! Don' t counter high, thinking they will come back with a number that' s acceptable to you. That' s not "how it works" all the time; many companies do not have time to play this game. If you talk to them and they seem reluctant to talk to you, or they are still trying to "decide" whether or not to meet your terms, if I were you, I' d tell them straight away that you think a more reasonable salary point would be Y (the middle between X & Z, X being their initial offer and Z being your counter offer). You may have priced yourself out of the market with an inflated counter. Did you ASK if the offer even was negotiable first or did you just start throwing numbers out there? Either way, they may be considering it or they may be looking at other options. There is always a risk when you try to negotiate. The choices are:
1. They meet your new request (yippee) 2. They meet in the middle (still good) 3. They hold firm and say take it or leave it 4. They move on to someone else (bummer) Which option you get depends on your approach and their willingness and ability to negotiate. You don' t know the answer to their willingness and ability so it is always somewhat of a gamble. At this point, if it has been a full week, call them tomorrow and ask the status. If it hasn' t been a week, give it a week and call next week if you haven' t heard. Tess makes a great point--did you ASK if the offer was negotiable, or did you just assume it was and start "negotiating" unilaterally? I assumed you had asked to negotiate and they said, "Sure, we'll listen to what you have to say," but perhaps you didn't ask first? People should never assume that a company has offered less than it is willing to pay and that one "must" negotiate an offer in order to make the company ante up... Sometimes offers are made at higher than what the company had originally budgeted--imagine that! Yup, it actually does happen.... So don't assume anything! When I called back yesterday (Monday), I told them I was excited to be working with them and asked if they were open to a discussion of a few points on their offer letter. Their reply was ' absolutely' . When I presented that I had done research on the positions salary in this area of the country, my experience & my abilities was about $5-$7 higher than they were paying, they paused and said they have gone $3 higher, but they would have to talk to the accounting dept to see if they could go any further. Maybe I' m just impatient.......well that' s probably it. Actually I' m fine with the $3 increase. But is there a way to approach them about that?
I did ask if they were open to discussion. After the 'absolutely' response, I chose the two most important things to me and proceeded to talk about them. There was a slight pause after I said the dollar amount, they did mention that what she quoted in the offer letter was their top amount, but have been known to increase it by $3 to bring someone on board. After I went over my points, they asked if there was anything else and I let her know that was all. Where does it look like I stand now?
Also they really didn't give me an in between number..... They just said they would have to check with accounting. I guess I'm not reading this situation very well. I don't want to be pessimistic if I don't need to be. Sounds like you didn't blow it; wait a couple of days before calling back, unless you are really nervous about it--then call them back tomorrow and say you have thought it over and you can accept the $3 higher. Seems to me they must like you and really want you--in your position, I would not want to jeopardize that relationship, and I would take it at that! But, of course, I'm not you! However, I sincerely hope your research didn't consist of salary.com and a couple other salary sites. They are usually high, by as much as 10 to 20%. If you used these figures as the basis for your $5 to $7 counter offer, then I think that their willingness to go $3 higher would put you right in the ballpark. If this is the case, I'd call them back first t hing tomorrow morning and take the $3 additional. If, OTH, your research has consisted of interviewing for other similar positions and being offered, or discussing, salaries in the range you countered at, and/or you know people in that industry with that same job, or you have read enough job postings with salaries specified, that you KNOW beyond a doubt that market value for your job is $5 to $7 higher, then maybe you can wait it out. | |
|
Career Tips
|