When an interview asks your salary expectation — fix three numbers in advance

Fix three numbers first

The difficulty comes from trying to calculate in the room. Decide in advance and answering takes three seconds.

• The target — what you actually want
• The floor — below which there is no reason to move
• The range you quote — with the target at the bottom and room above

The third is the key. People generally begin negotiating from the lower number in a range. Say "between 45 and 50 million" and 45 becomes the starting point. If 50 is what you want, 50 has to be the bottom of the range.

When they ask your current salary

The question is almost unavoidable in an experienced-hire interview, and judgement divides here.

Trying to conceal it usually backfires. Many employers ask for withholding statements or proof of employment at the final stage, so an inflated figure causes problems later. The stronger move is to set out the composition precisely.

Splitting it out — "42 million on base pay, around 46 including performance pay" — changes the reference point the other side works from, even with the same number. Where bonuses and allowances exist, the trick is not to leave those items out.

Why "whatever your policy provides" costs you

It sounds modest, but it is an answer that hands the judgement over entirely. Pay policies are usually bands, and where within the band you land is decided by a person. Offer no reference point and the low end becomes likely.

If you genuinely lack information, turning the question round works better: "Could you tell me the band set for this position? I'll answer within it." That returns the question rather than avoiding it. How to structure answers generally is set out in common interview questions and answer structures.

The basis is your results, not the market rate

"The industry average is around this" is a weak basis; the other side has any amount of data to counter it. The strong basis is what you produced.

"At my previous employer the channel I ran grew revenue by this much over two years, and my part in it was this." Said that far, the number becomes a calculation rather than a demand. This material cannot be assembled in the interview room; it is put together when writing the career history. What goes in which document is covered in the division of labour between a career history and a cover letter.

Salary is not the only figure

The same 50 million leaves different amounts in hand depending on the terms. The items to check are fixed.

• Whether severance is bundled into the salary figure — if it is, the real salary is lower by that much
• Whether performance pay is fixed or variable, and its conditions and timing
• Days of annual leave and how far they are actually taken
• Non-taxable items such as meal, vehicle and training allowances

The first catches people most often. Bundling severance into salary is a form that is not recognised as a matter of principle, so it must be checked. How many days of leave accrue can be worked out directly from the annual leave calculation.

The real negotiation starts after the offer

What you say in the interview sets the range; the point at which it is actually adjusted comes after the offer. The company has already made its decision, so a request at that point is received far better.

Keep the phrasing short. "Thank you for the offer. I am committed to joining. Might I ask whether the base could be adjusted by two million?" Confirming your commitment first and asking for one thing works best.

The next sentence when the answer is no

A refusal easily ends the conversation. There is one more question left to ask: "If the base cannot move, is there another element that could be adjusted?"

Base pay is often tied to policy, but a signing bonus, the start date, or a commitment to review at the next appraisal may be open. The last of these means something only if a date is attached — "reviewed in six months". Verbal promises disappear when the person handling it changes.

Why you set a walk-away line

The stronger side in a negotiation is the one able to say no. Fix the floor in advance and there is nothing to agonise over below it. Leave it unfixed and the mood of the room carries you.

If you have already left your job and feel pressed, factoring in how long unemployment benefit can cover you is one approach. The conditions and duration are set out in who qualifies for unemployment benefit and for how long. Knowing how much time you have stops you rushing the negotiation.