This blog, the second of a two part series, focuses on candidate salary requirements and how job seekers should handle salary issues before and after an employer makes an offer.

Last week we blogged about candidate salary requirements, and things employers need to consider before extending an offer. We gave an example of a highly qualified candidate who provided her salary requirements to the recruiter before the interview process began.  The IT recruiter submitted the candidate and her salary requirements to the client.

The rest of the scenario goes like this:

However, when the company extended an offer, the salary is less than what she requires.  She declines the offer and accepts another one that is within her salary range.

But what if changed the scenario to the following:

However, when the company extended an offer that met the candidate’s original salary requirements, she realizes that she forgot to account for some of her living expenses. The candidate decides she wants more money, and refuses the client’s offer.

Job seekers – don’t get yourself into this situation. Not only is it unprofessional, but it can damage your reputation within the technology community.  Before you agree to interview with a company, here are five things you need to seriously consider as it relates to salary.

1. Make sure you not only have your “ideal number,” but also have a “bottom line” amount.  This is important because in most cases a particular job will have different compensation ranges depending on the size of the company, how your skill set matches the job description/requirements, and your actual work experience. Unless you match the employer’s requirements perfectly, and you’re the only qualified candidate or the employer’s number one choice for the job, getting an offer that meets your “ideal” salary is probably unrealistic – even in this competitive market. 
2. Research the salaries and hourly rates of the job you are interested in.  What is the average pay range in the market/industry? Understanding what the typical going rate is will at least give you a good idea of how realistic your numbers are.
3. Don’t be in denial.  If you come across that “perfect” job, but the recruiter tells you that the employer can only pay $75,000 and you want $85,000 – you need to seriously think if the job really is the “perfect” one.  What you want doesn’t mean you’ll get it – especially if the employer has specified what their absolute amount is.  And don’t fool yourself into thinking that a $10,000 pay cut is acceptable unless there is some substantial trade off that can justify less pay (i.e. stock options, saving money on gas by telecommting, 401K match, etc.) .
4. Include benefits into the equation.  Be sure to take into consideration your existing benefits package versus the potential employer’s package.  How much comes out of your pay check each month?  A lot of times questions regarding benefits don’t come up till AFTER the offer.  For example, if you are paying insurance for your entire family, the cost differences can be huge depending on the company’s benefits package. This amount can more than make up for any salary difference. If you’re at a large company now and thinking about a position with a small company, benefits may not be as attractive and you’ll be paying more out of pocket.  So…do your home work before, and at least be ready to ask the questions. 
5. Be prepared for a counter offer from your current employer.  If you’re top talent, the company you’re at will most likely want to keep you.  And if they know you’re leaving, they’ll try to keep you by making an offer you can’t refuse.  But remember that in most cases, counter offers don’t work out.  Employees who accept counter offers at their existing employers end up leaving within a year (if that long).  Bottom line…if you start your search and begin interviewing, be ready to leave.  Know what it’s going to take for you to accept an offer with a new employer and stick to your guns.  Otherwise, you may end up in a tug of war between your current company and the new company. And if that happens, you may very well end up being the loser.

A recent blog by Tony Kontzer really got our attention here at Agile. And although the women who work at Agile were not pleased about the news, none of them seemed surprised.  It’s hard to believe that in this day and age, women still make less than men. Even in the technology industry, women are not paid the same as their male counterparts.

The U.S. Department of Labor published a report earlier this month about women and work. It shows that women in IT are paid 81.8 percent of what men earn in the same jobs. Another source cites a more positive number – women in certain tech jobs (i.e. computer programmers) make 93% of what men in the same position earn. For example, if a man makes $90,000 a year as a computer programmer, a woman in the same role will most likely only make $83,700. That’s $6,300 left on the table that the woman will probably never touch. Times that over the course of 5, 10 years and that adds up to a lot of cash!

So what’s going on here? Hi-tech companies have the reputation of being more gender blind and more progressive than other established industries. Then why does a wage gap still exist for women who are just as educated and just as talented as men doing the same jobs? Though it may be easy to point a finger and blame gender bias for the disparity, researchers agree that gender bias is not entirely responsible for the gap. Many experts and authorities suggest that at least some of the gap may exist because women are not as aggressive in negotiating (salaries).

Consider these stats:

• Women, on average, ask for 30 percent less money than males.
• Men are four times more likely to negotiate a first salary than women.
• Men are eight times more likely than women to negotiate their starting salary and benefits.
• Women ask for raises or promotions 85 percent less often than their male counterparts.
• 20 percent of women (22 million people) say they never negotiate at all, even though they recognize negotiation as appropriate and even necessary.
• 2.5 times more women than men said they feel “a great deal of apprehension” about negotiation.
• When asked to pick metaphors for negotiations, men picked “winning a ball game match,” while women picked “going to the dentist.”

Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO provides a fascinating discussion on why there are too few women leaders. During her presentation, she states that “Women systematically underestimate their own abilities. Women do not negotiate for themselves in the workforce. No one gets to the corner office by sitting on the side and not at the table…no one gets the promotion if they don’t think they deserve their success or they don’t even understand their success.” We encourage you to watch the entire 15-minute video and learn what else Sheryl has to say.

We decided to take a little poll of our own and asked our technical recruiters, based on their experience, whether women candidates negotiate salary and benefits as much (or aggressively) as men.  The response was split: half the recruiters said women do not negotiate like men and half said they do negotiate as much as men.

Bottom line: if you’re a female IT professional, Agile recommends that you know what you want (salary/compensation) before you begin your job search, develop negotiation skills by taking a workshop or reading up on the topic, and then be prepared to negotiate — no matter how uncomfortable it may be — once a job offer is extended.  For tech employers, offer a competitive package to ALL of your candidates, regardless of gender, to ensure your company is always positioned to attract and hire the best IT talent.

So what do you think about the wage gap between men and women in IT? What has your experience been as a job seeker, hiring manager or recruiter?