Salary Swing Dance

 

So, California passes a law stating as an employer you can’t ask salary history which is supposed to protect the future employees from losing money and unfair discriminating practices. From my understanding the company can ask salary expectations. Most people believe that it’s against the law for me to ask salary expectations.   I’m a recruiter working with multiple companies and a variety of salary ranges. I’m also not the employer.  The CA rule has been making difficult for recruiting due to this misunderstanding. 

It’s like this weird salary dance between candidates and me.  I’m the in between – the person negotiating to make both parties happy, the company and the candidate with the offer. Usually, I’ll get a range but occasionally the person won’t give me one which makes it awkward to work with them because every time I present a job it’s another guessing game and we're dancing around the salary. It's exhausting. 

Hey candidates, take advantage of a recruiter looking to negotiate a great salary for you – give them your expectations for salary! Keep it easy! They will get you more money.  It’s all in the same realm of questions we ask about, commuting, remote work, healthcare, vacation, salary etc. For a recruiter is just another item on our check list to make sure you take the offer – if you get an offer.

What to Wear?

The questions we get a lot is: what do I wear to my interview?  Companies run the gambit from super casual, shorts and t-shirts (surf companies) to formality in full blown suits, ties and spit polished shoes (investment firms/private equity) to jeans and hardhats on construction sites. It can be confusing and hugely annoying to try to figure it out but, it’s all about knowing your audience. Here are a few tips on how to find out what to wear - 

• Check their website to get a feel for their formality or lack of formality.
• If you are working with a recruiter, ask them for clarification. We always ask our clients what their dress code is.
• Check their Facebook and LinkedIn pages to see what people are wearing.
• If it’s an athletic/sportswear company, professional casual is usually best. If you’re going to a bank, CPA firm, or investment firm get the suit, polish your shoes, and get a haircut. 
• If you are still not sure what to wear do a “drive by” in the morning, at lunch, or after work to check out what the people are wearing as they go to and from work.
• If you are still not sure, the best bet is a suit. If you are too formal, it’s easy to take the jacket off and tone it down a bit. 

Why You Didn't Get The Job.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) had an article in it about “Didn’t get the job? You’ll  never know why”.  It was an article telling you that you’ll never know what you did wrong because no one wants to be sued for telling the truth. I’m going to tell you why you didn't get the job.

1. You didn't prepare well.

2. You never sold them on why you should work there. Which means you didn't prepare well.

3. You didn't know your resume and your background well. 
(Yes, you need to remember the years you worked there. Saying, “It was long ago, I don’t remember” is a lazy response when you’re interviewing. You didn't prepare well.)

4. You did something like wear too much cologne/perfume, looked ill kept, had bad breath, wore the wrong thing or forgot your resume. Check the company's website for their corporate culture (how to dress) to learn how to fit in. Bring a resume.  Again - you didn't prepare well.

• Got the hint? Prepare well. Know the company and know yourself! Sometimes the chemistry is just off - it happens -  but if you found a great job at a great company that's a good fit and you blew the interview, it's because you didn't prepare well.

To learn how to prepare well check out this video from Dave.