Don’t Make This Common Salary Negotiation Mistake. It Can Easily Backfire
Arpita Jadav
Versatile HR Professional with Global Perspective | Strategic HR Management & Talent Acquisition Expertise
What common negotiation advice tends to ignore
The most-touted salary negotiation advice boils it down to a few simple steps.
Receive job offer. Negotiate. Push hard. Don’t leave any money on the table. Take what’s yours. Get what you want.
Then you start the job, and everyone lives happily ever after.
Yet this aggressive negotiation advice often glosses over a very important next step. The people you’re negotiating with are your future co-workers. Going hard at the negotiating table can start this relationship off on rocky footing. And it can have serious impacts on your job performance.
When hard negotiations backfire.
A study conducted by a professor and a postdoctoral researcher from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania suggests a different approach to negotiating. Maurice Schweitzer and Einav Hart’s research encourages a softer approach that takes into account the relationship-building aspect of the transaction. They published the results of their study in the journal SSRN.
You might ultimately get what you want salary-wise. But consider that a short-term gain. If you went head-to-head during those negotiations, your future co-workers won’t forget it. Conflict begets conflict. You’ve already set the tone for your working relationship before you’ve even started the job.
“These relationships can have long-term implications beyond the negotiation table,” Hart explained on a recent episode of the Knowledge@Wharton podcast.
Hard negotiators proved to be less productive workers.
The research also found that wage negotiations can influence performance and harm productivity.
Schweitzer and Hart examined the outcomes of two cohorts of workers. One group of workers negotiating their wages with the employer. The other group of workers received a set wage that wasn’t negotiated. Whether they negotiated or not, both groups were paid the same.
Even though they were receiving about the same wage, one group was less productive once they started the job. Negotiators did substantially less work when compared to the workers who didn’t negotiate.
Schweitzer’s and Hart’s hypothesis is that negotiators were more likely to view their employer as their competitor. They had something to “win” in the negotiation process. That process brought forth competing interests, which then continued into the workplace. Because negotiators don’t see their interests aligned with their employers’, perhaps they aren’t as motivated when it comes time to do the work.
A case for not negotiating your salary.
So should you just skip the whole rigamarole entirely? Schweitzer would like you to consider it. Of course, it all depends on the offer itself and your specific situation. The Wharton researchers aren’t saying you should never negotiate.
Above all, Schweitzer and Hart encourage you to understand the implications baked into your negotiation style.
“The key idea here is that we can’t assume that when we negotiate, the negotiation process ends with an agreement and we start fresh right after that,” Schweitzer explains. “Rather, the negotiation process is part of a broader relationship that we have.”
Remember, you’re not negotiating the price of a piece of furniture. Once all is said and done, you’ll still interact with your negotiator in a work setting. In many cases, the person on the other side of the negotiation table is your future boss. Think carefully about how you want to start that relationship.
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4yIs there any such article advising the counterparts???... Cause always the advice is for the employment seeker and not the employee seeker. Negotiations should be conducted such that both sides benefit mutually... Pulling the strings too far doesn't work but expectations need to be given consideration. Or else people will join only to find a parking space and will keep exploring new avenues outside.