This question originally appeared on Quora: What is the best strategy when a recruiter asks you your current salary before making an offer?
Answer by Sarah Smith, VP-Recruiting/HR, on Quora
Always tell the truth... but then add your total compensation expectations.
If you are joining an excellent company, they will offer you compensation that is in line with the impact they expect you to have regardless of what you've earned elsewhere. If you have a great recruiter, they will work to advocate for you in getting the right package that optimizes for your preferences but also meets the principles and constraints of the company's compensation system.
You may assume that a recruiter is just looking to match the minimum needed to get you in the door. While that might happen at sub-par companies, that should not happen at companies with fair, principled compensation. Under a principled compensation system, the recruiter is often just trying to make sure that the offer is going to be in the "ballpark" of your expectations before investing more time in the offer approval process. Great recruiters should be asking you about compensation very early in the process so if they are asking right before the offer, that is pretty late in the game.
- My current salary is $80K, but I took a lower salary because the company was at an early stage and so I sacrificed for a fair bit of equity. Overall, my hope is that in my next position, I'd be earning $100K with another $20K in bonus/equity value.
- My current salary is $80K, but honestly I didn't know much about the market and the demand for
skills when I started at xyz company. Based on what I've researched, I believe $120K in total compensation is appropriate and I'm very open to $100K of that in salary with the remaining in equity.
I've been both the candidate and the recruiter and have found again and again that transparency and a "work together" approach leads to better outcomes. Don't forget you'll also likely see the person at work day to day so building trust early and having a positive negotiation experience should also pay off long after you've received your first paycheck.