HR timeline

[sn84]

I’ve changed jobs a couple of times but this is my 1st time dealing with HR like this and wonder if someone has some insight

- Hiring manager expected the new person to join as soon as possible
- Interviewed 5 rounds within 1.5 week before hiring manager went on 2week leave
- 2week after final interview, HR called and wanted to finalise the figure, start date etc. I normally let HR start with the figure first but HR insisted on me going first this time. I shared my figure X providing my backup rationales for that ask. HR said that is far away from figure discussed with hiring manager earlier and they said they had to end the call.
- 10 days went by, HR came back proposing 85%*X through a call. I counter with 90*X via email, again outlining my 3 justification points
- HR went MIA again

My question is: if they need to onboard someone urgently, why did they take such a long time to come back with their proposed figure and keep saying “i have to go” during negotiation call.

[Sunjackal]

Because it’s above their salary range and they need executive approval? I don’t know, really.

[sundaymorningstaple]

What type of industry are we talking about?

[sn84]

Hi SMS

Banking…

[sundaymorningstaple]

Okay. Can't help there. I have little to no exposure to banking systems, either front facing or back end or IT.

But had we been talking construction, O&G, Civil infrastructure then what often happens is a job doesn't really exist (yet). Often tenderers are required to know the project mgmt teams in the tender (by name and full CVs) when being submitted for large projects. Often feelers for new positions are put out via media and this draws applicants. The sad part is often the HR, be it corporate or agency, will not reveal what the project is or when it's to start or even that it's a tender exercise because they will not get the applications desired then. Some lead candidates on and on especially when it takes a long time to finalize a tender granting by the client. I was a head-hunter in those industries for 10 years back in the 1990's so have seen it done more than once.

[sn84]

Thanks for replying SMS. It is a confirmed role in this case…
Well, I guess the waiting game continues with this employer

[sundaymorningstaple]

Hang in there. Let's face it, for the last 20 months or so, the world has been turned on it's head and we just have to make allowances for stuff that doesn't work according to Hoyle as it did in the past.

[Addadude]

It's odd to me that the 'sordid topic' of money wasn't addressed in the first interview. While it is not unusual for companies here to require the candidate to state their desired salary before the company reveals their budget (classic bargaining strategy), it seems very strange that this question was left so late in the hiring process. It could quite possibly result in both parties wasting their time because of a a budget mismatch.

[PNGMK]

My experience is that salary negotiations happen towards the end. I suspect they are seeking approval as your outside the band.

[smoulder]

Yea it sounds like a good thing. It means that the door is still open. The worst case scenario right now is probably that they are unable to get approval for whatever you have asked for and they stick to their original number which is probably the ceiling. Then it's obviously up to you if you want to take it or reject the offer.

[sn84]

It's odd to me that the 'sordid topic' of money wasn't addressed in the first interview. While it is not unusual for companies here to require the candidate to state their desired salary before the company reveals their budget (classic bargaining strategy), it seems very strange that this question was left so late in the hiring process. It could quite possibly result in both parties wasting their time because of a a budget mismatch.

This is another point that I’ve been puzzled about. HR never asked me about my current package until the last interview with HR.
Well, it is a confirmed position but it is new so I think they were also working out the target budget for the role (whereas if it is for a replacement then they can benchmark against the last person’s package). Now that I think about it, maybe SMS is right, prolly this job creation in their organisation is not concrete yet.

Funny thing is they keep saying they need someone to be onboard early and they did push me to have 5 interviews within 1.5 weeks. And now it is really slow. HR doesn’t seem to want to have a proper conversation about salary negotiation. How to talk when they end the call with “oh I have to go now”

Thats why I could only counter with a number 5% above their proposed number via an email. God knows if they had read that or not.

Not sure if you guys have any advice on next step?

[Wong_Jnr]

If all has gone slow I suspect they're playing you off another candidate to see who they can get for the cheapest. If they really wanted you all would be done and dusted within days, not weeks....

[sn84]

As expected, it was bad news. Checked in with HR yesterday, they informed they could not meet my terms (as in counter offer) but they did not reply last week when I asked. Asked if the old offer is still on the table but they said they rescinded it and they are now interviewing new people. Hm….

What a pity. It was my mistake to a certain extent but they did not make it clear that it is non negotiable and the whole process was very slow so I reckon they were on the fence about me then…

[Myasis Dragon]

As expected, it was bad news. Checked in with HR yesterday, they informed they could not meet my terms (as in counter offer) but they did not reply last week when I asked. Asked if the old offer is still on the table but they said they rescinded it and they are now interviewing new people. Hm….

What a pity. It was my mistake to a certain extent but they did not make it clear that it is non negotiable and the whole process was very slow so I reckon they were on the fence about me then…

Don't believe them for a minute. Chances are excellent that they are lying. It's equally likely that they've cancelled the position because of budgetary reasons... or they have learned that no one will work for the meager pay they are offering.

If they were really interested in you, they would have come back with something like, "We like you, we cannot pay you that much." But, they didn't, and that means that the job offer was specious, at best.

[Sunjackal]

I just went through this, although not entirely similar. I got a response back about my questions within a few hours - and they basically said we’ve made you the best offer we can and we hope that you’ll accept it.

There’s some companies that do this part of the process just to get a feeler for what they can get away with, and not necessarily committed to filling the role.

Chin up! Hope you find something soon!