The Compensation Question – My Two Cents

To share or not to share? That is the question.

Having been in the executive search industry for over 15 years, I have had the opportunity to interview hundreds of individuals, at various career stages and levels, from Manager to C-Suite.

During an interview, so much information comes through both verbally and visually, and then there is the visceral. Something just feels right. Or something just feels off. It’s more than just a conversation when that first connection between candidate and recruiter occurs. Both parties are assessing fit on numerous levels integral to the success of the search.

Before outreach on any executive search begins, there are countless hours of behind-the-scenes prep that take place. Information gathering, research, stakeholder consultations. One important consideration in the information we gather is around compensation. Especially in the public sector, even more so in healthcare and education, the compensation bands leave little to no room for negotiation. Therefore, it’s imperative to have a crystal-clear understanding of compensation packages as they are an important part of our candidate assessment. And an important part of your consideration.

In an increasingly competitive marketplace, we get one chance to “pitch” to a potential candidate and present our client’s opportunity and organization in the best but truthful light. And to also gather and share the appropriate information that defines if it makes sense to continue in the exploration process. When exploring an opportunity, it’s important to mention, this is truly a mutual process of exploration. We interview you as much as you interview us. We represent the client and move through that meeting highly alert to all aspects that define fit, one of which is... compensation.

Our clients retain us to bring them qualified candidates, that meet clearly defined skills and competencies that also fit within their organizational compensation range.

As part of our early due diligence, we get a sense of an individual’s current compensation and/ or compensation expectations. For me, when an individual begins to dance around the compensation question, it immediately activates my “spidey” sense. Right or wrong, it sends that visceral reaction something is off. Often this dance is usually associated with those less experienced. They are likely trying to oversell their level of experience to qualify for a role that is likely too big a leap. Whatever the reason, I leave the interview thinking to myself: “junior”.

For an executive recruiter, to assess a candidate properly and effectively, compensation expectations are important considerations. Imagine, if you will, we present an A++ candidate to our client. Our client falls in love. They end up being the preferred candidate but when it comes time to negotiate the offer, the client finds out they can’t afford them – Imagine the disappointment. It’s important to understand, that getting to the point of offer presentation represents a significant time investment for the client (which usually involves a sizeable selection committee, so multiply disappointment by the number of individuals on the selection committee), the candidate and the executive search firm.

Our job is to present only qualified candidates who have been thoroughly vetted as viable. Presenting a candidate beyond the compensation range would not bode well for our quality or ability to accurately represent you.

When an executive recruiter asks the question about compensation early in the process, it’s not a negotiation. It is simply one of the ways to ensure that we are not wasting your time, or our client’s time. We will also make sure you are aware of the compensation range of the position, to inform your interest.

This is something to keep in mind when an executive recruiter asks you, “What is your compensation?” or “What range do you need to be in for the opportunity to remain enticing?”.

Money isn’t everything, until it is. That’s my two cents.

Nancy Lismer specializes in Candidate recruitment within Health Care and the broader Public Sector. She has experience recruiting C-Suite, director, senior executive and manager level Candidates, having executed hundreds of projects based in Canada and in the US across many functions and industries. Nancy has worked in Executive Search firms, both boutique and global for over 15 years.