Negotiation Tip #7

Always get the offer in writing. Because of the large number of mergers, acquisitions, and downsizings, it’s important to get terms of employment in writing. Find out if the company routinely provides new hires with employment contracts. If this is not offered, use a confirmation letter to spell out the terms you have agreed to accept. During the negotiation process, use a follow up memo after each discussion. This gives you more control over the final agreement.

These seven tips remind candidates that the negotiation process reinforces individual empowerment and group cooperation. By viewing the negotiation as a step towards consensus building and understanding the psychology behind the exchange, candidates can improve their bargaining power significantly and begin new employment relationships on a positive note.

That's it for this series. Good luck in your future negotiations!

Negotiation Tip #6

Generally it is reasonable to request up to one week to make your decision regarding a position. As a matter of fact you should never accept a position on the spot. You want the employer to view you as a prudent decision maker and you want them to understand that you don’t rush into big decisions. Express your excitement regarding the offer, but allow yourself some time to think about the level of responsibility within the position and the associated compensation. Another reason for not accepting the offer on the spot is to make sure you have time to review the offer and determine what points you may want to negotiate.

I will post my last tip in this series tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Negotiation Tip #5

Negotiation starts the moment you submit your resume and continues during the interview process. Don’t sell yourself at one level and then expect an offer for a higher level. During the interview process you start building the relationship with the employer and showcasing your value as a candidate. Once you’ve built maximum value throughout the interview process, you will have the leverage to negotiate the best compensation package possible. I have two more tips to share. Check back tomorrow for the next tip.

Mastering the Phone Interview

Over on the Brazen Careerist blog, Penelope Trunk has an informative post about the top five interview blunders. One of her blunders is not being prepared for a phone interview. Here are ten additional tips for mastering the phone interview.

Schedule the meeting during a time when you won’t be distracted.

A phone interview should be scheduled like any other interview. At the designated appointment time, make sure the dog is in the backyard and someone else is watching the kids. If a recruiter or hiring manager calls you without advance notice and wants to interview you on the spot, use caution. If the interview “conditions” are not optimal at the time of the call, it is best to tell the interviewer that you are very interested in the position, but need to schedule another time to have a conversation. That time can be as soon as ten minutes later, just make sure that you can take the call without being distracted.

Conduct interviews from a landline.

Cell phones are a boon to modern communication, but the quality is still not the same as that from a land line. You don’t want to frustrate the recruiter or the hiring manager with a bad connection. Plan your interview from a reliable phone line.

Create an office space.

Dedicate an area as your office. This could be as simple as a card table with a phone and your documents. Conduct your interviews from your “office”. Being seated at a desk or table allows you to create an environment similar to an in-person interview.

Put a mirror in front of you.

This helps you focus and it anchors your conversation to the visual representation of a person. Monitoring your facial expressions helps you see if you are communicating your enthusiasm to the recruiter.

Have a glass of water nearby.

If your throat is dry or you get a tickle you can take care of it before it turns into a cough and disrupts the flow of the interview.

Have your notes in front of you.

A phone interview is like an open book test. You can have your company research and answers to potential interview questions right in front of you. Try putting key information on colored index cards and organize by category.

Vary Your Voice.

Since the other person can’t see you, it is critical that you vary the tone and cadence of your voice to communicate interest and develop rapport.

Use pauses effectively.

Pauses in an interview situation are always difficult and they can be especially awkward during a phone interview. Rather than wondering what the person on the other end is doing or if they are still there, use the silence to ask a question. For example, if the interviewer has just asked you about your strengths and your response is met with silence, make that an opportunity to ask a question like “What are the key strengths of your ideal candidate?” This takes care of the silence and allows you to learn more about the position.

Don’t multi-task.

We have grown so accustomed to multi-tasking, however it can be counterproductive during a phone interview. Don’t check your email or stick a casserole in the oven while you are engaged in a phone interview. Act the same way you would for an in-office interview and maintain your focus.

Practice.

Record some of your answers to prospective interview questions. Play them back and critique. Are you easy to understand? Is your presentation riddled with long pauses and “ums?” Do you communicate interest and enthusiasm? If necessary, rework your answers and your presentation.

What Recruiters Want

At the Kennedy Recruiting Conference in Orlando, FL earlier this week, I sat in on a Q&A session with four recruiters representing both contingency and retained search firms. All agreed that the most desirable candidates:

1. have a polished elevator pitch and an enthusiastic delivery.
2. discuss what they have done, (accomplishments) not what they do (tasks).
3. use a reverse-chronological format for their resume

They went on to say that the best interviewees:

1. are completely honest.
2. ask questions throughout the interview to create a dialogue.
3. limit their responses to one or two minutes.
4. never bring up salary in an interview with a hiring manager.
5. let the hiring manager know they are interested in the position.
   

Resume Renovations

As you've probably surmised by now, I look at a lot of resumes. While many resumes adequately explain a job seeker's job responsibilities, few elaborate on the accomplishments within those responsibilities. And let's face it. Many people perform similar jobs with similar competencies. What makes each person unique is the success he or she brought to those positions, not the day to day tasks that hundreds of others may be trained to do. Consider these typical resume statements from job seekers who probably have a great deal to offer employers, but are not getting that message across in their documents.

Answered questions that pertained to each customer's needs.

Undoubtedly customer service is critical for many positions. But this statement tells the reader little other than that a function of the job was answering questions. Hiring managers want to know what was the volume of the inquiries, how long did it take to resolve customer issues and how did that timeframe compare to the company's standards. Are there any powerful examples of how an irate client was satisfied, and were any processes put in place to address redundant questions so time could be freed up to work on more complex issues?

Develop and execute promotional opportunities.

Great! Tell me more! What types of campaigns and what were the results? Did the promotions drive revenues, capture a new niche, or take market share away from a competitor? What was going on in the company before these promotions were developed and what is happening now as a result of them?

Prepared weekly reporting on equipment performance.

Why were the reports prepared and who received them? Was the report used by senior management for forecasting or decisions on vendor contracts? Was any money or time saved as a result of these reports and if so, how much?

Develop business plans and strategies to build rapport and solicit new business accounts.

Sounds important. What were the results? Was new business secured, and if so, what was the percent increase in accounts from last year until now and what were the revenues associated with that new business? Were creative strategies or guerrilla marketing techniques leveraged to obtain the business?

Break away from the day to day of your work experience and strive to showcase the unique, memorable, creative, and "above and beyond" moments. You will quickly rise to the top of the resume pile and secure more interviews faster.

Five Reasons to Send Thank You Letters After an Interview

Thank you letters are an excellent self-marketing tool and a critical component of your job search strategy. The time spent crafting a targeted thank you letter after an interview will be well spent and can contribute to a more credible and efficient search. Here's why.

A thank you letter creates an opportunity to reconnect with employers.

Chances are you are one of many candidates being interviewed for an open position. Writing a follow up letter allows you to build a relationship with the interviewer and develop rapport. By expressing your gratitude for the interview and recapping the highlights of the meeting, you revisit the reasons you believe there is an appropriate fit between you and the organization.

Following up keeps your candidacy “top of mind”.

Often candidates make the mistake of putting too much control in the interviewer’s hands. They believe that if they are the best candidate, the interviewer will remember them and keep them in the loop regarding the selection process. But this is often not the case. It’s critical that candidates remind prospective employers of their interest in a position and the thank you letter is the perfect vehicle for communicating this.

Written correspondence allows you to sell your strengths again.

While part of the reason for the thank you letter is to express gratitude for the meeting, the document serves a much more strategic purpose. It provides an opportunity for the candidate to repackage their skills and accomplishments into another format and market their value added to the employer.

The document enables you to address points you neglected to discuss during the interview.

Many candidates report that after they leave the interview they think of all the other things they could have said during the meeting. Rather than labeling this a liability, turn it into an asset by discussing these points in the thank you letter and remind the reader of your ability to produce similar results for their organization.

A letter helps develop rapport and increases employer’s comfort level with your candidacy.

A good strategy is to recap a part of the conversation where you and the interviewer shared similar views on a job-related topic. The thank you letter can also be a forum for demonstrating your consultative problem solving skills. By addressing current issues the employer is facing and proposing solutions, you are contributing to the company’s success even before you are on board.

Thank you letters continue to be an important component of a successful job search campaign. But the focus has shifted from a simple courtesy and show of appreciation to a targeted self-marketing tool. By creating letters that validate your candidacy, build rapport, and remind the reader of your value added, you can significantly influence potential employers and increase your chances for subsequent interviews.