What is the Job Worth?

One of the most important factors in a successful salary negotiation is knowing what the job is worth. This market value is completely unrelated to the salary you had in your previous post, although the employer may try to link the two together.

Information about the salary range that your new position should attract can be found from a number of sources:

• Check with any friends or colleagues in the industry to see can give you some ideas. You may even have contacts within the company who can help you.
• Salary information can also be found on the internet.
• Contact a few employment agencies, and say that you are considering recruiting for a similar position. What kind of a salary package do they think would be appropriate?

Make sure that you take into account where you will be working; for example, a Human Resource manager with more than 5 years post-qualification experience may earn between £32-45,000 in Manchester, but will be able to command a salary of £40-60,000 in London.