In the competitive field of data center operations, effectively negotiating your salary can have a huge financial payoff over the course of your career. A recent podcast from Data Center News featured valuable insights from veteran recruiter Dave Alpert on how to skillfully navigate this high-stakes process. Here are some of the top takeaways.
The Value of a Few Minutes Spent Negotiating
“If you spend 10 minutes negotiating salary and you get “only” an extra $5,000…your effective salary for that hour was $30,000 an hour in the first year alone.”
Gathering Data Points to Support Your Ask
Alpert advises coming prepared with hard data to justify asking for more:
“A lot of times that comes from a previous employer or from a current place in employment. Right? So you’re currently working on a submarine and you’re making a certain amount of money and you have certain benefits that this company that you’re applying to doesn’t offer. Those are data points that will enable you to justify that ask.”
Avoiding a Straight Rejection
According to Alpert, it’s crucial to leave the door open rather than rejecting an initial offer outright:
“As soon as you say no, they have the opportunity to withdraw the offer from you.”
On whether to disclose your expected salary, Alpert says it depends on if you think you may be overqualified:
“If you’re feeling like you’re overqualified for a role but you’re really enthusiastic about the opportunity and you’re willing to take some concessions, you may not want to include your salary because that may scare them away.”
Understanding Company Constraints and Motivations
“Very legible, well-organized resumes are the ones that I gravitate towards.”
While companies are open to negotiation if justified, they try to maintain internal equity as Alpert explains:
“It’s not because we don’t have the money in the bank to do that. It’s because we value internal equity so much that we don’t want someone coming in way higher than their peers based on the fact that they’re just a slam dunk negotiator.”
With the data center talent shortage, professionals in this field have rare leverage according to Dalton:
“We in the data center industry, we nucs in the data center industry are very fortunate right now and that the growth in employment is parabolic, right It is going up faster and faster every single year.”
The consensus from the experienced recruiter? If negotiated respectfully and backed by data points, salary negotiations can significantly boost your lifetime earnings in this hot job market. For more detailed strategies, check out the full podcast.