BLOG / TOPIC
Salary and offer negotiation
Negotiating an offer is a conversation, not a confrontation. This cluster covers what to say when you counter, how to weigh the parts of an offer beyond salary, and when walking away is the right call.
Negotiating an offer without burning the bridge
Almost every offer has room, and almost nobody loses one by asking well. Here is the sequence, the wording, and the two moves that do create risk.
When to walk away from an offer
Some offers are a bad deal at any number. Exploding deadlines, a scope that keeps moving and a manager you never met are the three worth acting on.
Negotiating when you have only one offer
Leverage is not only a rival offer. Scope, timing, the cost of reopening a search and what you gave up are all real, and all usable without bluffing.
Reading the equity part of an offer
Grants are quoted in ways that flatter them. Here are the questions that turn a share count into something you can compare against another offer.
The parts of an offer that are not salary
Bonus, equity, sign on, retirement match, insurance cost and time off move the real number a long way. Here is how to price an offer as one figure.
The counter offer, word for word
A counter is three sentences: thanks, a number, and a reason that is about the role. Here is the script, plus what to do with the silence after it.