Not in my jurisdiction!

Recently at work, as we get busier and busier, we are asking our team members to complete certain tasks. With a few employees, there has been some pushback, claiming that "that's not part of their job." Granted, they may not have always performed these certain tasks, but guess what - it's the fourth quarter and we are busy, so everyone needs to help out everywhere!

I think when working in a team setting, everyone needs to be willing to help out wherever and whenever needed, especially when its crunch time. I have certainly helped out my peers and taken on additional responsibilities that are not necessarily part of my everyday routines. I think being able to help out not only helps you build great relationships with your team, but also shows your supervisors that you are a team player. Unfortunatley, there are times when you are helping out others and then unable to finish your own job and check everything off the to-do list. I think as long as you are doing what is best for the total store, then you are making the right decision.

Salary Negotiation

After my last blog post, I decided to do some more research on salary negotiation. I joined Target right out of undergrad and accepted their salary offer point blank, with no negotiation. After watching several youtube videos I decided this video was most beneficial!

Here are some tips from the video:

1. Don't bring up salary too soon! Wait until they are completley interested in you and let the employer ask about salary first.

2. Don't reveal your bottom number

3. Do your homework - know what comparable region and national salaries are.

4. Do take time to think. After the employer makes an offer, repeat the number and go home to think about it.

5. Be able to explain why you are asking for more, and how you will be able to benefit their company.

Most importantly - DO negotiate! 80% of recruiters expect candidates to negotiate, but only 30% actually do, that number is even less for women. The least you can do is ask, otherwise you could be leaving money on the table.

Women and salary negotiating

After a discussion at work today, I was prompted to do a little research about negotiating salary and came across the article " Salary, Gender, and the Social Cost of Haggling" written for the Washington Post.

Overall, the article explained how women are less likely to negotiate a higher initial salary, as well as raises throughout their career. A Professor at CMU ran several experiments with volunteers and found that men were much more likely in all experiments to ask for money.

They also researched the percentage of graduate students accepting job offers and found that four times as many men as women attempted to negotiate for a higher starting salary. While the difference may only be a few thousand, over a career this small difference can result in several hundred thousand.

But why don't women just negotiate for more? Bowles, the professor at CMU, ran several experiments to find out. One of the most interesting findings is that men were less willing to work with women who attempted to negotiate salaries than with women who just accepted the offer.

As a manager, would you look at potential employees, male or female, differently if they attempted to negotiate their salary?