If hiring managers or anyone within your organization other than a recruiter is negotiating salary or making offers, please stop and read why this is not your best strategy. On the surface, it seems harmless to have a hiring manager present an offer to a candidate. They call the candidate excitedly thinking they are making a good offer so they expect the candidate will be excited to accept, and everything will be great.
Unfortunately, this is rarely what occurs when an offer is presented. Even when all hiring logistics are confirmed during a pre-screen, there may need to be negotiation.
Why should a recruiter handle salary negotiations?
Every negotiation is adversarial. A negotiation is a conversation with the goal of resolving a conflict. Which means if your hiring manager, a human resources representative, or an executive is presenting an offer that the candidate has any issue with, they are the one responsible for the conflict.
How can a relationship be set up for success if it starts with a conflict?
Either the prospective hire is telling their potential supervisor they are wrong, or vice versa, which is obviously counterproductive. Using a third person, like a recruiter, allows anything negative to be directed at them. If there is a concession to be made on the side of the company, a good recruiter will be able to communicate that the hiring manager made it happen thus setting them up to be an advocate and champion for the new employee.
Have your hiring managers been trained to negotiate hiring packages?
Most managers don’t normally have to do this; where as a recruiter does it every day. Negotiation is a core function of a recruiter’s job. Are all your hiring manager’s being consistent on how they negotiate, or does it vary by manager? If it does vary, then you may be adding bias into the hiring process. An inequitable hiring process can open the door to allegations of discrimination or even more severe action.
An experienced recruiter knows the hiring laws, understands the organization, and is a salesperson with a specific ability to negotiate and communicate in a way that engages candidates while working within organizational parameters. Additionally, as they are managing the process, they know when and how to discuss any potential barriers to accepting a position so that when the offer is made it is accepted.
Benjamin Freedman is the CEO of Weiser Innovations. Weiser is an innovative talent acquisition firm with deep roots in the nonprofit sector and partners with 501(c) Services to provide talent acquisition assistance to its 3,000 nonprofit clients. Contact us today for talent acquisition assistance.
