1. Navigating Negotiations
Kim E. Barrett, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine and Dean of Graduate Studies
University of California, San Diego
Experimental Biology, April 2008

3. Job negotiations – the finish line!
The opportunity to negotiate the terms of a new position signals the culmination of the arduous job search process
Typically begins around the time of a second visit
An iterative process
May involve many s, phone calls, drafts and then a final letter

4. What can be negotiated? Salary Lab space Start-up package
Size, location, renovations
Start-up package
Equipment, supplies, support for personnel, salary support
Job description
Assistance with moving and spouse/partner relocation
Just about anything that will help you do your job

5. How to approach the negotiation
Distinguish three types of request
Essential
Desirable
Dispensible
Seek a win/win outcome
The institution should want you to succeed – they will be making a major investment in you
Negotiate in good faith
Understand institutional hurdles
Respond to questions promptly

6. Tips for success Knowledge is power
Approach each meeting/call with no more than three agenda items
Brief your counterpart ahead of time – no blindsiding
Identify the “super-objective” as a starting point
Use as a bridge to your objectives
Get everything in writing
If your counterpart is slow/unwilling in providing written summaries, do the job for them
Remember the importance of body language and other non-verbal cues

7. Knowledge is power
Explore on-line resources to benchmark salary and other aspects of the offer
Ask colleagues or recently hired peers to share details of offers in their departments
Road test your “wish list” with a senior mentor
Rehearsal is key

8. Multiple offers You may have several simultaneous offers to weigh
Perhaps including an internal/retention offer
Be careful to consider the whole package – not just monetary items
Trust your gut
How will I feel in this place over the next months and years?
Will I find colleagues I like/trust/can connect with socially or scientifically?
Remember personal/family considerations
Don’t get pressured to rush your decision

9. Being an internal candidate
Estimate your bargaining position
How valuable have you made yourself?
What would it take to replace you?
Accept that you will likely not get an offer that matches one from outside
What considerations might make it worth staying?
Consider negotiating for a transition/contingent plan
If I get a grant, what then?
Test the market

10. Gender-based pitfalls in negotiations
Women, in particular, have historically been disadvantaged in negotiating for starting faculty positions
“Women don’t ask”
Modest decrements in starting salaries equal major inequities over the course of a career
Women also typically undersell their accomplishments
Salary expectations 3-32% lower than those of men seeking the same job
Women are often reluctant to reveal personal or other circumstances that may be deal-breakers if they emerge at the last minute

11. Gender-based pitfalls in negotiating
Men chose “winning a ballgame” or “participating in a wrestling match” as metaphors for negotiations
Women chose “a trip to the dentist”
“Women don’t ask” – Babcock and Laschever

12. Conclusions
High stakes negotiations, such as for your first position, can be exhilarating and terrifying in equal measure
Careful preparation will help you get what you want and need
Remember the “super-objective”
Use friends, mentors and senior colleagues to road-test your wish list
Always remember that money isn’t everything
Good luck!

13. References Women Don't Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide
Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever
2003: Princeton Univ. Press