Negotiating The Offer

It's finally happened they have offered you a job. BUT you shouldn't stop there. Now it is time to negotiate in order to get the best deal.

Your objectives

You should always go into negotiations with a clear idea of what you want to achieve. Here are several possible objectives:

- To get the best possible deal
- To clarify any spoken but unwritten promises that the other side may forget
- To maintain or enhance the other side's respect for you even though you are pushing
   to go beyond the original offer
- To keep the offer open until you want to accept it or reject it

Keep in mind that the same discussion may be going on with one or more of the offer candidates. And even if it is not, the window of opportunity won't remain open for ever.

Ensuring Effective Communication

Having good communication is very important. Employers might forget that members of their staff gave you extra time to consider the offer. You must bridge the gap (preferably in writing) to keep the process going.

Always bear in mind that the offer is more important to you than it is to them. It is up to you to ensure there is proper communication. You should always tell the truth about your situation and any other offers. This saves you trying to remember what you told to whom and is much more convincing.

Avoiding Backfires

Of course, lying is never a good idea and is likely to be counter productive. The ploy 'I have a better offer somewhere else, can you improve yours' is not likely to go down well.

Good communication is not just a question of timing or filling any worrisome gaps. At each stage, do think how your disclosures will be interpreted.