SALARY DESIRED?
Isn’t it almost amusing that most of our application forms ask Current Salary ______ and Salary Desired ______? In all reality, if I were to answer that question, I’d put $1.2 million and I ‘d want to work part-time.
When we ask Salary Desired, we could be setting our candidates up for unrealistic expectations. It is so important during interviews that salary is handled properly. I always cringe when an employer says “money is no issue!”. I’ve learned over the past thirty years that money is always an issue. I also know that salary is one of MANY reasons a candidate will change jobs, often it is not the top reason or even in the top three reasons.
You need to determine what exact offer this person will accept without any hesitations. It is also important that you question the Current Salary response on your application forms. So many candidates add in bonuses or what they perceive as the value of their benefits into the figure they write down. You need to know the exact number of their base salary. It is also interesting how candidates will write down their base salary if they just received a raise, when in reality they may have only been earning that amount for a few months.
It is also a good practice to ask for a copy of last year’s W-2. It is amazing the stories that follow this one request. Candidates escalate salary to negotiate a higher offer. Receiving a fair increase is acceptable, trying to negotiate a dramatic salary increase at your expense is NOT!
Barb Bruno
