Step Seven - The Job Offer
Congratulations! Now all you need to do is negotiate your salary package and manage the exit from your present job - or is there more to it than that?
Well, not really. Negotiating your salary can be difficult (unless your agency is doing it for you) but, in essence, you have applied for a job that you know was offering a certain salary or salary range. The offer is probably within your acceptable range or you wouldn't have gone for the interview. On the other hand, there's more to job-satisfaction than salary and you may be prepared to take a bit of a cut. If the Company is offering, say, a non-contributory pension, health-care, life insurance etc, these can be elements of negotiation - even holidays and working hours could be negotiated.
Once satisfied on the salary and benefits of your new job, you will need to give notice to your present employer (if you have one). There is no doubt that employers can feel the pain when a good employee gives notice and the last thing either of you wants is any ill-will between you. This current employer will be approached for references and will, in turn, not want you to say anything bad about the Company after you have left. So be gentle on him/her. Don't allow it to become 'personal' and, if you know someone who would be a good replacement, offer to make the introduction.
There is always the possibility that your present employer may make a counter-offer and this will need careful handling too. Any counter-offer would have to be very compelling to go anywhere near appeasing the new employer who, if turned down at this stage, may conclude that your motives for joining them were not as they understood them to be. Whilst being tempted by the additional income - not to mention the ego boost of having two employers 'fighting' over you - think back to all the reasons why you pursued the new job, why it seemed more interesting than your present one and what, in particular, led you accepting the new offer. Maybe the new Company has more than salary to offer.
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