Salara Negotiation ConfusionHi - Need your advice on this one. Thank you in advance. I had a great first interview during which the Sales Director informed that the Base Salary range was between $53k-94k. Great news. Go to next step. Next step is to go through a structured interview - called a sales assessment. She informed the purpose of this was to qualify my skills as then based on the results - we can start negotiations. Few days go by and get the call to schedule the assessment with HR. Called the Sales Director and informed her that this was scheduled. She asked me the killer question - what are your minimum salary requirements? I did not want to answer and even asked if we could wait until the assessment was complete to start negotiations. She insisted again and so I tried to stall again...insisted again and I said my minimum requirement was $80K - middle of the road. Her immediate response - "that figure might be diffult to achieve" - I dont know if she is testing my negotiation skills but I sensed her change of demeanor.... My current base is $45 - with commission over $110K - The expected commission on this opportunity at 100% quota is $50K and other additional bonuses. How do I handle this? Confused... PEA
Well, first of all, $80k is not the middle of the range you were given.... And most employers will not, if they don't have to, hire in near the top of the range. Do you think, and are you assuming, that you will achieve your 100% of quota? If so, what I would do if I were in your shoes, would be to figure out what you would need in a base salary plus that expected commission so that the two combined work out to 10 to 15 percent higher (our salary & negotiation expert's figures on what one should get to change jobs) than your current combined salary. So, according to this rule, you should be looking for a base + commission that would total between $121k and $127k--for convenience's sake, maybe your range would be $120k to $130k. If you assume that you will achieve the $50k in commissions, your minimum would therefore be $71k, not $80k--if you think a 10% increase is worth switching jobs for. If you aren't sure about making the $50k commission, or want more than that 10%, maybe you pad that minimum , and use $75k as your lowest required base. See what I am getting at? If you don't achieve your quota, is there a sliding commission scale? What can you expect to average in terms of quota vs. actual? There are so many factors involved here. If you havent' already scared them off, call the woman you were dealing with, and give her a range with which you would be comfortable. Don't go below what is your minimum, but sounds like you need to be under $80k if you want the job. Good luck!
Since you already mentioned $80K, I think you have to wait and see what sort of offer is actually made. Continuing on with Anne Marie's reply, I think you should be looking at a base in the $70K to $80K range to justify switching jobs, using the standard rule that it's not worth switching jobs for less than a 10% to 15% increase in salary, but since you're working on base plus commission, I think you should be anticipating an offer in the low $70K range, given the fact that the apparent top dollar you can earn is $50K in commissions, but there's nothing you can do at the moment. Wait for them to make and offer first. If it's less than $70K, just politely ask it that initial offer is negotiable and see what they say. If it isn't, you may want to pass and stay where you are. If it is, then you can counter with an anticipated salary range and say that you were anticipating an offer in the $70K to $80K range and see what sort of response you receive. Zat help? Paul W. Barada The Negotiation Expert I don't undersatnd why you don't want to answer. After all, she didn't ask for your salary history, or your current earnings. When you start to talk seriously about new jobs, you MUST know what you're hoping to achieve. If $80K may be difficult to achieve, that's fine. You can discuss total compensation later. If she had said $80K is impossible, you'd have had to decide whether to continue with the negotiation. At this point you should let her know you still want to talk, if in fact you do.
If they told you the range was $53k-94k, they probably don't understand why you didn't go for at least $94K. Why leave all that cash on the table? What kind of salesman are you, anyway?
I may be new to this whole thing and all but I never laughed so hard, I was thinking the same thing. | |
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