Talking about Salary - Emerging Nurse Leader

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, FAAN

One of my graduate students called me last week concerning the fine art of salary negotiation. She saw a salary range for a position that she was in the process of interviewing for. She knew that to make a move to a new role, she would need to ask for close to the top of the range that was being advertised. Her question was – how negotiable is salary really? In coaching many nurse leaders through the process, my experience is that salary negotiation is very negotiable especially if you are highly qualified for the position and authentically interested. It can be frustrating when candidates have no real interest in the position but continue to negotiate for salary, get what they ask for and then say no. Be authentic about your intentions in the job search.

What is important is to know the market value of the position. I sent my student the most recent survey conducted by the American Organization in 2016. nurse-leader-salary-summary She found this to be very helpful as a starting point. If you belong to a specialty association such as AORN, they may also conduct salary surveys. One of the interesting findings in the AONE Salary survey is how many leaders today participate in bonus incentives or awards – 66% so this also needs to be an important part of the negotiation process.

I suggested to my student that is she is offered the position, it would be best to give herself some time to think about it. The role she was applying for has far more responsibility than she has in her current position. It offered some very unique growth opportunities but would also be more demanding. The AONE salary survey points out that there are geographical differences in pay – an important consideration if the new role involves a move to a different region. There are several online calculators such as relocation essentials to check and see how much you would need to earn to maintain a comparable standard of living.

Don’t be afraid to ask for what you think you are worth but be very clear about your value and contributions and what you can bring to the role that will help the organization to achieve better outcomes. Sometimes you will not achieve your goals in salary negotiation and feel the offer is well below what you are worth. It can be very disempowering to start in a role and not feel good about your compensation. Employers may offer to revisit the offer in six months but HR experts advise that your best opportunity for negotiating a salary is at the time of the initial interview. You may need to say no if you find yourself in this situation. Great nurse leaders are in high demand so don’t undervalue yourself.

Whatever you do in the negotiation process, always maintain a professional demeanor. If you do receive an offer even if it is below what you expected, it means that someone is demonstrating confidence in your abilities. And if you can’t successfully negotiate a salary that is acceptable to you, always be very gracious, thank the employer for the opportunity and don’t burn your bridges.