More commonly though I think people just aren't aware of the market situation, and comp ranges for specific jobs at specific companies.
Knowing the lay of the compensation land in your area is pretty critical to negotiating well - from both sides of the table. And this goes beyond generalities like "market salary" but to specific recent offers made for specific jobs at specific companies.
Honing the skill to determine whether or not a company is going to be able to pay you what you're worth is hinged on a few (apparently tricky) soft-skill-based assumptions:
- You can assess the company (quality, tier of engineer, etc.)
- You can assess your own market value, apparent worth accurately.
I like to give companies that I believe won't pay correctly the benefit of the doubt: I give a blowout number, xx% more than I believe I am worth. If I'm not met with resistance: I'm wrong and it hurts.
More commonly though I think people just aren't aware of the market situation, and comp ranges for specific jobs at specific companies.
Knowing the lay of the compensation land in your area is pretty critical to negotiating well - from both sides of the table. And this goes beyond generalities like "market salary" but to specific recent offers made for specific jobs at specific companies.