Getting Past A Salary Gap
We asked some questions of HR executive Jill Geimer. Jill is the Vice President of Career Development Services and Human Resources for Flashpoint Academy, has an MA in Community Counseling, an MS in Industrial Relations and a passion for helping people achieve their fullest.
Q. I’ve been turned away by recruiters because the job pays much less than what I used to earn. How can I convince a recruiter to give me a chance anyway, particularly when there’s so many well-qualified candidates on the market in that salary range?
A. First, understand the recruiter’s role. A recruiter earns a living when he or she successfully places a candidate, so their goal is to present the strongest, most qualified candidate available. If you really want the job or you really need the job…
and you are willing to accept a salary reduction then try to minimize the salary issue altogether. Think of it this way, if your old Aunt Millie left you $10M, money would have a completely different “value” for you. If you decided to keep working, you might be looking for a job that gave you the opportunity to grow, learn or expand your network; you’d want a job that made you skip out of bed each morning!
The trick is to adopt that very same attitude now. It goes without saying you should never lie, but you can certainly embrace that mindset during your conversations with the recruiter.
You might tell the recruiter, “I know this is a sizable salary reduction, but I am fortunate in my life that money is not my number one priority. Rather, the right job and company fit are my primary motivators and this really feels like the perfect fit for me. I know you’re looking for the best candidate so I think it would be worth your time to give me an interview. What do you think?”
This accomplishes two things. First, it removes salary from being an eliminator and second, it gets the recruiter to partner with you.
HR and Recruiters – Hot Tip
Human resources executives that have long, on-going working relationships with recruiters put great faith into their opinions. Rather than try to go around a recruiter, try to make friends instead.
