In Need of Salary Negotiation Advice

Hey all,

I have been with my current job for about 7 months, I started to realize about a month back that the job just isn't cutting it for me. It is a completely relaxed atmosphere and I could get away with murder and still have job safety but it deals with too much proprietary technology and isn't focused enough on the networking aspect (my title is Network Engineer). I started throwing my resume out there and got a few bites. One that I am particularly interested in is for a very large network equipment company (Cisco, Juniper, Brocade) providing technical support.

So far I have simply received an email from a technical recruiter with the company asking a list of questions, the list ending of course with "How much do you make now and what are your expectations?" So my question here is two fold I suppose:

For starters I am in the Minneapolis, MN area. After doing research I am finding quite a bit of conflicting information as far as salary goes, glassdoor has this specific position for this company listed at $95,000 to $115,000 but also has a separate listing at $60,000 for the same position. I checked Payscale.com and it has me at around $60,000 as far as experience and certs go, however, I am making $56k now and want to expand on that by as much as possible. I am thinking of asking for $80,000, does this seem accurate for a Technical Support Engineer for a company such as this? Mind you this would be technical support on an enterprise level, not desktop or user support.
What would be the best way to tactfully avoid the current salary question in my response to his email? I was thinking of something along the lines of "I would be happy to discuss my current salary in an interview but am looking for something in the range of $80,000" does that come off as acceptable?

I want to avoid shooting myself in the foot here but also want to make sure that I get the most out of this opportunity, any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

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Comments

EnderWiggin

I just wouldn't even acknowledge the "what do you make now" part. Just say that you're looking for eighty, if that's what you want.

$bvb379

EnderWiggin wrote: »

I just wouldn't even acknowledge the "what do you make now" part. Just say that you're looking for eighty, if that's what you want.

True that.

ITSpectre

"Technical Recruiter"

How to deal with a recruiter is simple... Since you have done your research you know the median salary for that position. Start high and negotiate

DoubleNNs

Lately I've become good at this question. Don't be evasive, and be very confident (might take practice).

When people ask me what I make, by default answer is to I simply tell them "My target for my next position is $XX." I don't answer the intended question.

If they try to pry I have a few points I usually launch into:
* It doesn't matter -- My target for my next position is "$XX." And to be honest, that is a step up from what I'm making now.
# If this is someone who actually has a say in how much your salary will be, can elaborate by enumerating the larger skill set that the position requires but how you're able to rise to the occasion because of all the different ways you've improved yourself since you've landed your current role. Or how the cost of living is higher. Or what have you.
* I'm mostly concerned with making sure my next role is the best fit possible. The money isn't something I'm focusing on right now -- but the skills I have are very valuable (elaborate on what skills and/or why they're valuable) and I'm sure that if this role is a good fit technologically and sees me using all the skills I've painstakingly built up, the compensation based off of that will be high enough.

There are a few disadvantages -- if the range for the position was higher, you shot yourself in the foot by throwing out a number first. Alternatively, if you don't throw out a number, but frame the answer similarly, moving forward could be a waste of everyone's time.

fmitawaps

I was just in an interview where they asked me what I made in my last job. I LIED and said $26 an hour. My last job was at $22 an hour. They have no way to prove me wrong, I want them to assume I made that higher rate to base their offer off of. So I have a built in pay raise coming.

pinkydapimp

I never answer those questions. Simply put, until i go through the entire interview process and see the entire offer and benefits, i have no idea what i would accept for the role. Maybe its outstanding benefits, bonus and worklife balance, company car, etc at the perfect company and i would accept 120k for role. However, maybe i find out they want me to work 12 hour days and benefits suck, for that role i might need 150k to consider it. I simple dont have enough information.

Therefore, i always tell them that my compensation is negotiable and that whats most important to me is finding the right role with the right company. Once i find that, im sure we can come to an agreement on fair compensation. That is usually sufficient. I typically also flip it there and ask them for the range.

But yea, if you through out a range or number understand thats the highest you will get. Dont make that decision so early in the process.