June 23, 2009

Closed Mouths Don't Get Fed

Okay, I am so happy to report that I will officially be re-entering the workforce next Monday, July 6.

It was a rocky road to get there.

First, the company's idea of moving quickly ended up taking about 3 weeks. And while I know there are politics involved in hiring decisions and other candidates to consider, the waiting game was really working my nerves.

Then, once they finally made the offer, I was not completely satisfied with the salary. The benefits looked great and the bonus program is awesome but for my skills and experience I believed that I deserved more.

So after a little research, a prayer, and the courage to pick up the phone, I began negotiating my salary with the hiring manager. I know the market is tight right now and many people would be happy to even get a job offer, I really felt that it was important for me to stand up for what I felt was right...partly because I wasn't taking the position just for the sake of having a paycheck and then waiting for a better paying job to come along. And then the whole - men are paid more than women for the same job - issue kept popping into my head.
When I spoke to the hiring manager, he seemed genuinely caught off guard by the fact that I wanted to have this discussion and gently reminded me that I didn't have any other offers on the table. I laid out why I felt that my skill set warranted more money and he laid out why they settled on the salary they did. There was no tension or awkward moments, it was just business.

To make a long story short, he initially said they were not in a position to make any adjustments to my salary. He then called me back 30 minutes later and started the conversation by saying, "I typically don't like to negotiate salaries." And I'm thinking yeah, okay, and...he then offered me a signing bonus to get me to the salary that I was asking for.

Now, is this ideal?

No.

But at the end of the day everything works out and it IS a tight market right now. Fortunately, he assured me that salary increases going forward would not be an issue. And please believe that if it is, I will be hopping the next flight to a better paying job.

Given the field that I am in, HR Compensation, I know my worth...down to the pennies...depending on company size, geographic location, industry, and whatever you might throw at me. And I firmly believe in fighting for that.

Overall, I'm happy with this opportunity and look forward to starting next week. I will be working as a Compensation & Benefits Analyst which is a great career opportunity because it opens up the door to work in Comp and/or Benefits in the future.

Moral of the story: Closed mouths don't get fed! If I had never asked for what I wanted, I wouldn't have gotten anything....and even though it's not exactly what I asked for, every little bit counts, plus I have the satisfaction of having stood up for myself in this dog eat dog world...enough said!

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