3 ms·

There's been a lot of talk about this lately, and I think I have another vantage point on it. All this talk about "don't reveal your current salary", "hide you

There's been a lot of talk about this lately, and I think I have another vantage point on it. All this talk about "don't reveal your current salary", "hide your current compensation" is totally relaying weakness to anyone you're negotiating with. Take control of the negotiation! Be the confident person who knows exactly what they want! (Even if you don't really know that). Right now is a great time to be negotiating for salary compared to 20 years ago - there are so many tools that give you an idea of what current pay ranges are for any job. PayScale.com for example is one tool that gives you infinite more information than people had 20 years ago. Use it! When you apply to a job, you should already know what the salary range is going to be. Negotiation is 90% preparation before the actual negotiation. This is a huge part of it. When you apply, know exactly the range they'll be offering. When they ask you "What's your current salary" you give them the absolute very top of the range you've found in your research (or even add another 10%). You aim for their reservation point and set a high anchor point from which negotiation can continue. Take control of the negotiation and own the process yourself. Remember, nearly everyone on this site is a skilled employee who is in demand right now.

CodeMage 16y ago
That won't work everywhere. There are places where it's legal -- and even considered perfectly acceptable -- to ask for proof of your salary. In such an environment, it's a lot better to clam up and say your past salary is not relevant to what the prospective employer is going to pay you.
raganwald 16y ago
I applaud the spirit of your comment, namely that the idea is to take control. My post is mostly aimed at dealing with people who want numbers as a screening question before you get down to negotiating a specific offer. If you're a top person in great demand, you ought to be able to take control of the negotiation by saying either of the following: a) My compensation for the past five years isn't the issue here, let's talk about what I can do for you, or; b) My compensation for the past five years has ranged from X to Y, but here's why I think Z is the right number for this job in this company.
kscaldef 16y ago
Outright lying during the interview process is almost certainly grounds for a no-hire or dismissal if you get the job and they find out later. It's fine to refuse to give that information. It's fine to say "This is the salary I want". It's not okay to falsely represent your salary any more than it would be okay to falsely represent your job title, your education, your certifications, etc.

CodeMage 16y ago

That won't work everywhere. There are places where it's legal -- and even considered perfectly acceptable -- to ask for proof of your salary. In such an environment, it's a lot better to clam up and say your past salary is not relevant to what the prospective employer is going to pay you.

raganwald 16y ago

I applaud the spirit of your comment, namely that the idea is to take control. My post is mostly aimed at dealing with people who want numbers as a screening question before you get down to negotiating a specific offer. If you're a top person in great demand, you ought to be able to take control of the negotiation by saying either of the following: a) My compensation for the past five years isn't the issue here, let's talk about what I can do for you, or; b) My compensation for the past five years has ranged from X to Y, but here's why I think Z is the right number for this job in this company.

kscaldef 16y ago

Outright lying during the interview process is almost certainly grounds for a no-hire or dismissal if you get the job and they find out later. It's fine to refuse to give that information. It's fine to say "This is the salary I want". It's not okay to falsely represent your salary any more than it would be okay to falsely represent your job title, your education, your certifications, etc.