Negotiation AdviceI have some questions regarding a possible job offer. I will be going on a third interview with a company in South Carolina soon. It also seems, based on questions/comments that have been asked via phone interviews and emails, that an offer will be made during this last interview. I am currently employed in another state with a job that I am happy doing. At the time I applied for this job, it was uncertain if my current employer was going to be able to offer me a promotion (a policy was put in place after my hiring about only accepting degrees that were regionally accredited and not nationally, since my degree is ACIS accredited and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and my employer only recognized SACS accredited degrees but that policy has now been revised and no longer exists due to pressure from employee associations (which I personally am not a member of)). Recently, I have been told by my current employer that I will be promoted. Here are my questions: 1) If salary negotiations take place with the new company, and they verify before my promotion salary is in place (it will be in place at the end of May once all the paperwork goes through), will they think I am trying to be greedy since my last salary is $10k less then what I will be making after the promotion? (I' m only asking what my salary will be after my promotion.) 2) If the salary negotiations go well and I accept the offer, would it be a faux pas on my part to ask not to start until the month of July of this year? (Since this would be roughly 2 months after the possible offer was accepted and to give me time to not only find and secure housing in that state (since I live out of state now) but also do any knowledge transfer needed for the people on my development team) 3) Last question, in the event that my current employer decides to counter offer with higher pay and promotion opportunities after I have accepted the offer with the out of state company, should I take it since it is usually customary to stick with the first offer you accept? So sorry, for my lengthy entry and perhaps my questions and situation is not too confusing. I look forward to all of your advice. Thank you for your help! 1) If an offer is made and it' s not at least 10% to 15% more than you will be making after your promotion, I think you have to politely ask if their initial offer is negotiable and see what happens. But before you do that, I think you have to make it honestly clear what' s going to happen with your present employer - explain that you' re up for a promotion that will put you in X position with Y responsibilities and that your salary at that point will be Z. I think you have to be extremely straightforward about the upcoming promotion to make sure that any negotiations that should take place are fairly done. 2) I think you should ask the new employer when they would like you to start, explaining that you' d be very grateful for as much time as they can give you in order to sell your house, move, and find a new one. Asking to start on your timetable - in July - is asking too much, in my opinion. Lots of people take jobs that require this sort of move and they manage to get it done within the employer' s timeframe, not their own. It may not be easy, but once you' ve accepted the job, I think propriety requires you to ask for time, not tell them when you would prefer to start. 3) Once you make the commitment to leave and take the job in another state, I personally think you should honor that commitment and take the new job. Anyway, you will have let your present employer know that you' re looking and they just might be looking on their own for someone to fill your spot since they will know by then that having you around isn' t a sure thing. If you commit to the new job, honor that commitment. Thank you for your advice, especially the answer to question #2 since this was a major concern for me. Also, thank you for your prompt response. | |
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