Evaluating & Negotiating a Job Offer

As we continue in a candidate-short market, top candidates are finding themselves more and more frequently in a negotiation or situation where they have multiple job offers to consider. When you find yourself in this exciting situation, it's easy to get distracted by dollar signs, but that's not the only, or even the most important, aspect to consider.

So, you've been through the recruitment process. You've applied, interviewed, and have just been given a job offer. Fantastic! Now what?

First thing's first - have your dream job criteria handy. You should evaluate every job offer against these criteria. If you need a hand understanding what we mean by this, check out our previous page for tips.

Secondly, try to look past the money. If money is your top priority, we suggest going to your current employer and negotiating a raise, which saves yourself and any other potential hiring manager the time and energy of going through the recruitment process.

After you have thought about your dream job criteria, and evaluated your current employment, it's time to look at your job offer.

What should you think about when evaluating a job offer?

Does it meet your expectations? You've been through the interview process; does the job offer include everything the hiring manager said it would?

What factors are important to you? Don't jump right to the salary. Although it's easy to get distracted by the money, think about your career progression opportunities with this company, team culture and activities, and other benefits like parking, mental health services, and discounts on insurance.

Are there any restrictive clauses? Make a note of any clauses that could affect your ability to do your job such as non-competes or non-solicitation clauses for sales roles.

After considering your job offer, the next stage is negotiation. Is there anything you want to negotiate on? If you are happy with the offer, and it is a fair offer, then perhaps you can skip negotiation and sign away! But if not, it's on to the negotiation stage.

What should you think about when negotiating a job offer?

Start date: Is there any flexibility? Do you want some time between jobs or are you looking to jump straight in? Sometimes a few days off to reset can be fantastic for your mental health.

Salary flexibility: Instead of a $5k increase, could you ask for an extra week of annual leave? If the offer can't budge on salary, is there an option to negotiate the bonus? Think about options that have a monetary value but are not added dollars onto your paycheck.

Confidence is key: If it really is salary you are after, consider offering to start on the offered rate and putting a three-month review in place to talk about salary. That way, you have three months to prove yourself in the role, and you are giving your hiring manager a chance to see what you can do.

Working from home/flexibility in hours: It almost comes with the territory now, but does this new role offer flexibility in your 'online' hours, or the ability to work from home if you need to?

Note: Don't make any of these negotiations a surprise to your future employer. You should always aim to be upfront with what you want from a new opportunity in the interview/conversation process before you get to job offer stage so the employer can aim to give you a fair offer.

Once you have been through the offer and negotiated any points you need or want to, then hooray, it's time to accept! Unless you find yourself in the lucky position of having multiple job offers - then, there is one more stage.

What should you think about when you have multiple job offers?

Think about career progression: If you are early in your career, it could be more beneficial to go for the role that will give you the best experience, rather than pay you the most. Don't settle for instant gratification; learn to play the long game, as it will better you in the long run.

Be upfront with employers: If you have multiple offers that you are thoroughly considering, then let the hiring managers know. You never know, this could lead to them offering something else to convince you to join them.

Ask an industry professional: Think about bouncing your ideas off someone who knows the industry you work in. They could offer insight or an unbiased opinion about each offer. Your friendly OCG Careermaker can help with this - give us a call for a confidential chat.

Remember, a multi-offer situation is the point that job hunting can become emotional. You can draw up a pros and cons list, you can weigh up everything against your dream job criteria, but at the end of the day, which company and opportunity do you have the best feeling about? That will be the company where you will be happiest.

Once you have been through these stages, then hopefully you have your answer and you are on your way to starting your new role! Congratulations - now it's time to celebrate!