How to negotiate a higher salary before starting a new job. Here are five tips.

Although many experts do not recommend that candidates try to increase the offered salary before starting a position, in practice, many do try. Companies themselves admit this, and some concede that under certain circumstances, they are willing to negotiate a higher salary right at the job interview.

Most of them have the same condition: for a comeback, they expect added value from the candidate. This can consist of extra work, an expanded work agenda, the candidate's high qualifications, extensive work experience, or clearly demonstrable achievements.

For a request for a higher salary than the company offers to be legitimate and for the candidate to have a chance of success, they should follow basic rules. Several factors influence their success. Consultant, headhunter, and HR specialist Miriam Krpelánová points them out.

1. The degree of alignment between work experience and qualifications with the job profile

If a candidate applies for a position and does not meet several of the required qualifications, it doesn't necessarily mean the company will automatically reject them. However, it significantly decreases the chance they will be able to achieve a salary higher than the guaranteed minimum for that position.

Conversely, the more his experience and qualifications match the requirements for the position and for performing the work associated with it, the more likely the company will be willing to motivate the candidate with a salary increase. In the case of highly qualified specialists, companies expect that the minimum guaranteed wage will not be enough for them.

The Indeed portal advises applicants to ask for a slightly higher amount than they want to achieve. This is because they must consider that it's easier to lower this amount during negotiations than to raise it.

2. Company Financial Results

If a company is not doing well, it will not be very willing to bring up the topic of salary. It is much better to negotiate it in a company that is doing well, growing, and increasing its revenues or profits, than in a company that is stagnating and in long-term loss or whose revenues are declining.

The options to ask for a higher salary, not only before signing a contract but also after starting, are considerably limited in companies and organizations with fixed salary scales. Efforts to secure higher pay in such cases run into limited resources.

3. Interview Preparation

Preparation and the job interview are what candidates underestimate, according to HR professionals. Many of them rely on the shortage of qualified candidates and think they have already won. Many also believe that if they have sufficient education and work achievements to their name, companies will offer them a higher salary upon hiring.

However, this is not true. A candidate who wants to get a higher salary than what the company officially communicates must demonstrate their added value. And they must be able to sell it. This starts with the resume or cover letter and continues through the interview itself. Lax arguments create a bad first impression, and it's rarely possible to fix that. The portal Indeed recommends that candidates ask a friend to practice interviewing.

4. Method of communication

The worst thing a candidate can do during an interview in an attempt to appeal for a higher salary offer is to succumb to emotions. While they may be aware of their strengths, emotionally charged pressure will do more harm than good. The same applies to trying to unilaterally dictate the terms of the future employment relationship. The path to success lies through a partnership dialogue.

If a candidate is truly high-quality, facts speak for themselves. They should objectively present their experiences, past results, projects they were responsible for, and specific problems they solved. Descriptions of how they handled specific challenges are far more telling for a potential employer than generic and meaningless phrases about loyalty.

5. Belief in the legitimacy of the claim

A candidate who does not support their pursuit of a higher salary with legitimate self-confidence will almost certainly fail. Increasing a salary offer before a candidate has even started a position is always a higher risk for a company. A lot also depends on whether the employer senses uncertainty. If a candidate is not convinced of their own qualities and contributions to the company, it will be difficult to convince the company. They must be sure that the amount they are asking for is adequate for the performance they can deliver.