How should I proceed with salary negotiation in this situation?

I interviewed for a Research Associate position at the a survey research facility on Friday and they offered me the position on Monday. I pretty sure I was their top candidate. The interview went very well (the whole process lasted about 5 hours). The presentation I gave was well received (it based on survey research results from a project I worked on several years ago). Most of what they do at the is descriptive in nature, so I think the results I presented, which included inferential statistical analysis (e.g. logistic regression), demonstrated that I could do what they were needing and more.





Now, here are the issues. On March 15th (after I saw the job posting but before I applied), I called the Director and asked him what the salary range was for the position. He said in the high 30's to low 40's. I interpret that as about 38-42K. Now, when I got the job offer on April 16th, he offered me just under 35k. When I got my first salaried position, back in 1998, I needed a job pretty badly and did not negotiate salary (the position actually required a graduate degree, but they gave me a shot and I did well). I'm a bit older and smarter now so I told the Director that I would like to meet with him and ask him some more questions. I was actually disappointed that they were low-balling the offer and got off the phone with a bad taste in my mouth. I was actually hoping that I would qualify for the upper end of the range (i.e. about 42K) since I was very well qualified for the position and seemed to be their top applicant.





At first I think I took the lower offer personally and felt a bit defensive. I gave the issue some thought, did some research and talked to one other person that I trust. My conclusion was that getting a lower offer is pretty much standard and that I should definitely negotiate the salary. I would like to start at 42K, but I am open to starting at 40K and having an incentive in my contract for a 5% increase if I do well the first 90 or 180 days. What figure should I start with when I negotiate to get to my goal? I don't want them to rescind the offer, but I want to get paid what I'm worth too. I've done my homework. I've looked up the salaries for survey researchers nationally and in Illinois and have a number of other points to strengthen my case for a higher salary when I meet with the Director.





What further complicates matters is that the Director is retiring on June 30th and a newly hired Associate Director (she starts May 1st) will probably be the interim Director until they bring someone else in. I really like the current Director's description of his management style, his demeanor, and his flexibility.





What are your thoughts about all this? I would appreciate any input you can give me. Take care.

How should I proceed with salary negotiation in this situation?
You're going to have to put this job on the line if you want more money. You have to be willing to walk away from it and continue your search. If you are not willing to take the risk, take the low ball number. If you are willing to take the risk, tell them that you were told that the job would pay between 35K and 45K and that you are worth at least 40K. To offer you the low ball number is to say that you barely qualify for the job. You are better than that, and you know it. It's all up to you. good luck

Sweating Disorders