Associate MayJune 2015

www.fbinaa.org

www.fbinaa.org

M AY 2 0 1 5 J U N

M AY 2 0 1 5 J U N

Negotiations: The Key to Positioning Your Salary + Benefits in Your Post-Law Enforcement Career”

Alan A. Malinchak

For those who have been following this FBINAA Career Transition Series of articles to prepare you for your next career – we are now at the stage where you have identified a position, targeted a company, networked with past and current professionals, completed the application, prepared for the interview, suffered through the long wait of others being inter- viewed and just received the call – they want to hire you!

B reathe that sigh of relief, you’ve made it and are eager to begin working in your new career. However, since your interview and prior to learning you have been selected, did you engage in a conversation with your prospective employer regarding salary, bonus structure, va- cation/sick days, 401K, executive compensation, and a myriad of other benefits that are available? If you have, we trust you had sufficient advice re- garding what was and wasn’t negotiable and you are confident their offer letter will include all the agreed upon compensation – good for you! Sometimes, a prospective employer will send an “offer letter of employment” to review, sign and begin your next career – it’s in their best interest. You’re excited, anxious and so ready, but not so fast – are you prepared to negotiate before you sign that letter. If you sign and send that offer letter without considering items that are open for discussion/negotiation with your new employer – realize you may be leaving sev- eral compensation benefits on the table – regret- tably, benefits that are no longer available once you have signed and on-boarded.

If you haven’t entered into a compensation negotiation prior to their offer letter of employ- ment, NOW and prior to signing the offer letter, is the time to pick up the phone and ask for an opportunity to discuss salary and compensation packages related to the position. Consider the receipt of their offer letter of employment as the first, not final offer. There are a multitude of items which can be negotiated; below are examples of what can and should be discussed. Know that your future employer will almost always try to bring you in at a low base salary – to help them meet their financial num- bers, improve their margin, and save money to increase net operating profit – and the base salary is only the beginning of the items to negotiate in a collaborative not confrontational setting. As a former law enforcement professional you know the value of a positive demeanor when talking with others – that experience will pay off nicely as you enter into conversational negotia- tions with your future employer. Remember they

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