During job interviews, when asked "What is your expected salary?"

[travis82]

During job interviews, when asked "What is your expected salary", what is the best answer that you can give?


Because whenever I got asked that question, I just said," I don't really have an expected salary", "negotiable" , "depends on the range that you're comfortable with" or I just quote a very low figure and I still don't get hired.

I don't understand why.


I thought if I quote a very low figure, they will hire me. Because there are other candidates vying for the same job as well and they may ask for a higher pay.


So logically, the employer will hire the guy who ask for a lower salary. This is what I thought.


But so far, this has not been working out for me.

 

[luckynumbah7]

What jobs are you interviewing for? Your answer for a generic min wage job will be different than for, say, contractional work.

*Salary is also 'code' for 'how long are you looking to stay and are you expecting/hopeful of advancement opportunities. The answers you've given don't take that into account. And I thought my interview skills needed polishing.

Billing yourself as the lowest is rarely a good idea in anything, for future reference. It both cheapens your skillset and specific knowledge while also suggesting to the person you want to hire you that you're so incompetent at your job that you can't even get the billing correct. The only people who hire those are the ones who don't intend for jobs to actually be done, they just need paperwork saying suchn'so was completed, they couldn't care less if it burned down.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Often, the one who names the first number loses. That is a classic maxim when discussing salary.

After saying you are looking for a "competitive salary," you can reply something like, "can you discuss the range of salaries this position pays in your company?" That's pretty open-ended. If the start higher than you were expecting, you can key into it and take your chances as to where you cite within the range. If it's too low, state something that leaves the conversation open, such as "I had figured it will require on the high end of that range here in Hooterville due to the higher cost of living here." That leaves it negotiable but doesn't roll over before you even get to see an offer.

Of course, if there are other reasons than salary driving your choice, you may choose to tip your hand and admit you're weighing your choice more on the company's reputation, etc.

 

[opinterph]

So logically, the employer will hire the guy who ask for a lower salary. This is what I thought.

I was once asked in an employment interview to state my expected wage and I provided a lowball answer.

The interviewer looked at me like I was an alien from outer space and stated, “We don’t pay ANYONE that kind of wage.”[SUP]*[/SUP]

I just said," I don't really have an expected salary"

Oh yes. You do. You need to make enough money to pay your living expenses, pay for transportation to and from the job site, and have some left over to have a little fun.

Happy employees are productive employees. The recruitment and hiring process itself is rather tedious and expensive for employers. It is not unreasonable for the employer to inquire as to what compensation will make you happy – and therefore, productive. The employer doesn’t want to hire you and then train you, only to have you suddenly resign to accept another position with a different firm that pays more.

Every job position has a set of Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) associated with the successful execution of that job~ and those KSAs, taken with local or regional standards can quite easily be used to establish a fair and competitive wage. Smaller and less sophisticated employers often “wing it,” while most firms know quite well what is fair in the given market. In the US, you can use online resources to help develop a reasonable estimate of the wage you can expect according to the position(s) you may be interested in pursuing. If nothing else, you know how much you need to be happy. (If not “happy,” then at least “content.”)

what is the best answer that you can give?

“I expect to be paid at a rate that is fair to compensate me for the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities I bring to the table [or some variation of that lingo] AND I promise to combine my qualifications for this job with a sincere effort that I think you will find exceeds your performance expectations for this job [or some variation of that lingo]. I’m thinking somewhere in the range of $(high) to $(medium), but I’m willing to consider any reasonable offer.”

Hint: The promise to perform is often more valuable than credentials.

(Of course, sincerity helps too.)​

[SUP]*[/SUP]I was hired for the position at a wage significantly higher than the amount I requested during the interview.

 

[The Fly]

"You can't pay me what I'm worth, I don't work that cheap"...Bill Kirchen.

 

[star-warrior]

This is a spit or swallow question isn't it?

 

[travis82]

Thank you for all the replies and advices.

So what is the best answer that I can give?


I also don't want to quote a very high figure and have the employers think that I am too greedy.

 

[Yooper]

In a recent interview, I was asked the same question.

I answered, 'Well, obviously, about One Million Dollars a year.'

There were some laughs, then I asked what the salary range for the job was.

I was then told the range was between $10 and $11/hr.

I said the $11 would work, but would require some budget cuts.

I was offered a little more than that.

I have accepted the job.

It is a pay cut from my current job but there are far more benefits at my new job than others.

 

[JohnnyAnger]

I got fucked by this the other day I am now starting to believe. A recruitment agent called me last Thursday to offer me an interview with a company, and asked me my salary expectations without telling me the hours or details of the role and I gave a fairly low answer.

Come the interview the following day, the company asked me what I told him; I told them the truth, but also added I had no information on the position at that point and was sent the details a few hours later (it was only in the interview I was finally told the hours I would be working). Still fast forward to Monday and they offered me the job, smack bang in the middle of my low salary expectations.

I can't help but think had the recruitment agent sent me the details first, I would have pumped the pay up a few thousand...

 

[Telstra]

You should not answer that question.
Just say "you guys are the boss and know what the market values are, but for me i don't know"

 

[lambdaboy]

The best answer is to know what the job shoudl pay and say in that range. When I came out of teh army before going to colleger I got a clerical job at the bank I am now a Vice President at I said what evr you think is fair. They gacve me the job told me the salary and said you should have asked for more you would have got it lol. Igot much more now but worked hard for it grin. It is seriously hard to say if you go to high they won't even consider you.

 

[JohnnyAnger]

You should not answer that question.
Just say "you guys are the boss and know what the market values are, but for me i don't know"

And that is how you fail to get a job. I bet you are fantastic in interviews telly....

 

[peeonme]

As NotHardUp1 suggested when asked this to reply with asking what the range of pay for the position is in the company would be a good way to go.
It's been my experience that employers take a delight in picking up a worker at $2-3.00 per hour under what they pay other employees for the same work.
Most companies have a rule against discussing pay or revealing what you receive with other workers. I keep hearing "equal pay for equal work", just pass a law that requires employers to post on a board what each position pays. Quit fucking people.

 

[dpnice]

Are people seriously saying that they go to an interview not knowing what salary is going to be offered?

Most adverts for jobs that I have seen include the salary range.

 

[travis82]

Thanks for all the replies.

From what I have gathered, avoid naming numbers first.

"I'm looking at a competitive salary."

"Can you discuss the range of salaries this position pays in your company?"


“I expect to be paid at a rate that is fair to compensate me for the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities I bring to the table [or some variation of that lingo] AND I promise to combine my qualifications for this job with a sincere effort that I think you will find exceeds your performance expectations for this job [or some variation of that lingo]. I’m thinking somewhere in the range of $(high) to $(medium), but I’m willing to consider any reasonable offer.”

Hint: The promise to perform is often more valuable than credentials.


(Of course, sincerity helps too.)



I asked what the salary range for the job was.


The best answer is to know what the job should pay and say in that range.


I said whatever you think is fair.


Reply with asking what the range of pay for the position is in the company would be a good way to go.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Are people seriously saying that they go to an interview not knowing what salary is going to be offered?

Most adverts for jobs that I have seen include the salary range.

I have been constantly employed since I was 16, almost 40 years. Rarely have the jobs I have held in the past 20 posted the salary. It's a dodgy practice most employers follow who use online ads through Indeed, Monster, etc.

And most companies I have worked for do not post in print material. I've worked mostly as a project accountant or a program manager in aerospace and defense.

 

[travis82]

Thanks for the help and advices. I really appreciate it.


But what happens when you apply for a job online, you sent your resume through email to the hiring person.


But the job advertisement requests that you state your expected salary when you send your resume,cover letter through email to the hiring person.( person in charge)


So how should I state my expected salary ....in my resume/ cover letter?



I haven't reach the interview stage yet, it's just applying for a job online first.

 

[NotHardUp1]

The software used to apply online varies. Some require a response in the salary field or it won't proceed. If that is the case, do online research and find out what the index says is the range for your work in that area.

The companies often ask for a resume to be uploaded, then just as often ask you to fill out the same information in their application online. Go figure.

Salaries are not discussed in cover letters -- they are introductory only and to demonstrate literacy.

Many companies today have abandoned all forms of courtesy, and you may get nothing back other than the automated software response. Even after interviews, some companies kick everyone to the curb and don't even bother with follow-up letters or calls.

 

[travis82]

Okay, so my cover letter should not contain my expected salary?




Yes. Most companies that I have went for job interviews.....they said "We will let you know if you get selected for the job or not"

But in the end, I hear nothing from them. They don't even bother to send me an email telling me if I got selected or not.



If I'm not applying through online softwares, ............I just send my resume and cover letter to the email of the person in charge.


So when I upload my resume to the email that I wish to send to the person in charge, how should I include my salary expectation in that resume?

Just do an online search and put in a range in that resume?? Or how.....???

 

[peeonme]

Are people seriously saying that they go to an interview not knowing what salary is going to be offered?

Most adverts for jobs that I have seen include the salary range.

The place I retired from last year will run an ad offering $18-$21. per hour depending upon experience, then some poor guy comes in for an interview and never has enough experience to qualify for the pay mentioned in the ad.

It's a common practice, I didn't play their little game.