Negotiating a job offer with a candidate can be a tough situation.

Our team at Rayner Personnel are on hand to help aid the negotiations on your behalf. But, if you wish to guide the negotiations on your own, we have put together some of our top tips to help. 

Firstly, remember you are not in a bidding war with the candidate, the aim is to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.

Start by setting a limit on the salary you’re prepared to offer your candidate after checking the correct market rate and be creative with the extras you can offer your preferred candidate which might help to tip the balance in your favour, such as a company car.

Genuinely be prepared to negotiate, so keep added extras up your sleeve, such as extra annual leave, to sway the candidate is necessary. Think about any corporate benefits such as a bonus scheme if they are on offer, making sure the candidate knows exactly how much they are worth.

Look to the future and flag up future pay reviews based on the candidate’s performance.

If the candidate comes back to you asking for an improved offer, get them to be specific about what they are looking for to accept the role, after you have listened to their pitch make it clear if their requests are more than you can accommodate or within reach.

If despite your best efforts to keep the negotiations on track, your offer is rejected and there is an impasse, don’t be afraid to halt the negotiations and look for other options.