Salary negotiation is probably one of the most overlooked parts of the recruitment process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet, it can make all the difference when it comes to securing the right candidate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Many candidates reach this stage with a simple assumption: \u201cI\u2019ve been selected. The company wants me, so now is the time to ask for more.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s precisely where things can start to go wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Salary negotiation is about far more than simply naming a figure. The first step is to understand how the company\u2019s compensation structure works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In most organisations, salaries are not set at random. They are generally guided by a number of well-defined factors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Understanding these mechanisms is essential to knowing where you genuinely have room to negotiate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But understanding the system is only part of the picture. Timing matters as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Negotiating too aggressively early in the process may be counterproductive. At that point, you have not yet demonstrated your value to the company. Once the company has identified you as its preferred candidate and an offer is on the table, however, you are in a different negotiating position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But having leverage does not mean every request will be accepted. This is where there is another factor that is often underestimated, namely the emotional side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Changing companies is a major step. Ego, excitement and sometimes frustration can all come into play. You compare your current salary with the offer on the table. You think about \u201cwhat you are worth\u201d. You wonder whether you could have negotiated more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is all perfectly human. But a successful negotiation requires you to take step back from those emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this type of discussion, it can also help to rely on a third party who knows both the market and the company. An Executive Search consultant generally knows market compensation levels, but also their client, the culture, the constraints, and how decisions are made. This outside perspective can sometimes simply help put the discussion back into context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I recently faced a similar situation as part of a search for a pharmaceutical company in Switzerland. The candidate had performed exceptionally well throughout the recruitment process: a very strong track record, an excellent fit for the role and very good exchanges with the teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The company was genuinely enthusiastic about bringing him on board. The offer was made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that was when the negotiating began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The candidate, probably poorly advised and certainly not sufficiently prepared, pushed hard on several elements of the compensation package. Some of his requests were entirely reasonable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The issue was not necessarily what he was asking for. It was how and when he asked for it, and above all, his lack of understanding of what the company was in a position to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The discussion became strained. Gradually, emotions began to cloud his judgement. And ultimately, the company withdrew the offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not because they had changed their mind about the candidate. Not because they failed to recognise his value. But because the way the negotiation had been handled raised doubts about his ability to build a relationship based on trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is arguably one of the costliest mistakes a candidate can make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A salary negotiation is not about proving that you can obtain the absolute maximum. The goal is to reach an agreement that works for you and that the company is willing to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Salary negotiation is ultimately both an art and a science. It is about understanding the other side, choosing the right moment and knowing how far to push. But it also requires a clear grasp of the market, the numbers and the factors that underlie the offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, as is often the case, the person who asks for the most does not necessarily achieve the best outcome. Success comes to those who prepare well and know where to draw the line.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Salary negotiation is probably one of the most overlooked parts of the recruitment process. And yet, it can make all the difference when it comes to securing the right candidate. Many candidates reach this stage with a simple assumption: \u201cI\u2019ve been selected. The company wants me, so now is the time to ask for more.\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":54280,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[173,207,48],"class_list":["post-54282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news_fr-en","tag-2026-en","tag-emmanuel-medvedowsky-2-en","tag-newsletter-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n