So when Gogna received a job offer after completing his MBA and the HR asked him what salary he expected, he did not give a straightforward answer.
Gogna said that ISB taught its students how to negotiate, and one of their most important lessons was to never anchor first.
Instead, the ISB graduate turned the question around and asked the HR to provide a salary range. “They taught us negotiation at Indian School of Business and the one key learning was to never anchor first. So when HR asked what my expectations were, I said I was flexible and asked for their range instead. She pushed but I kept deflecting until she gave me a number,” he wrote. The HR ultimately came back with an offer for ₹ 17 lakh. Gogna did not accept the offer right away. He was aware that armed with an MBA degree from ISB, he could be earning more. Even though he had no other job offers lined up, he decided to negotiate. The HR came back one day later with a revised offer — this time giving Gogna a salary of ₹ 19 lakh per annum. The ISB graduate was still not happy. However, he was in half a mind to accept the offer as he had an education loan to pay off. Even then, he negotiated more. “This was my only offer at that point and I had an education loan. Every instinct was telling me to take it before she changed her mind. What I told myself was that if I had cleared this process, I could clear another one,” he said. “So I asked whether she could add equity or a joining bonus, and mentioned I was relocating for the role. The HR did not get back to him for a full day, heightening his anxiety. However, one day later, the HR came back with an offer that included a joining bonus and a relocation allowance. This brought his total compensation to ₹ 23 lakh. “If you are doing offer negotiation:
- Do not anchor first, make them give you the range.
- If the base will not move, go after the components around it. Equity, joining bonus, sign-on.
- Relocation is a separate line item and most people never ask for it,” he said.
“There is almost always room. And if you accept a lowball, you will find out eventually, and then you are unhappy and the company has someone who is not that motivated. Nobody wins that one,” Gogna advised his readers. He ended his post with three pieces of advice.
