|
 Indian
executives, even successful ones, are not at their best when it
comes to negotiating employment contracts, compensation, incentives,
etc. They are overwhelmed by an employer’s perceived power
during job-offer negotiations, feels Vikram Bhardwaj
Hired as a COO in a Swedish cellphone handset
provider’s Indian operations, Ravi Murthy wasn’t happy.
After all, having his past successes (read: almost a call a week
from several headhunters), technical credentials (read: IIT, IIM)
and great references, he should have been able to walk through the
employment terms negotiations. However, six months down the line,
he is thinking of quitting. Reason: the offer was not that exciting
to start with, added to that the incentive plan is hazy.
Ravi had been aggressively approached, sailed
through the headhunter’s initial screening, he had done his
homework on the company and was just the right guy, “tailor-made”
for the job. He seemed to have all the leverage he needed. So what
happened?
When negotiating business matters involving others,
Ravi is highly skilled and he can negotiate to an embarrassing extent.
In his interview, on being quizzed on his negotiation expertise,
he narrated a long story of how when he was part of India’s
fastest growing CDMA service provider, he started the discussion
with Qualcomm on license fee as “it is not us who have to pay
you a dollar for every subscription, how about you having to pay
us a royalty for popularising CDMA!”
However, when it comes to negotiations involving
his role, compensation and performance ince-ntive, he believes that
he didn’t effectively present his case. This cost him financially
and reduced his clout in his new role. It didn’t pinch him
much till the time someone whom he hired as a subordinate made him
realise what he had foregone.
Certainly, his new package isn’t insulting,
and certainly for him, a few more lakhs doesn’t mean hitting
a jackpot. But this matter isn’t trivial or without repercussions.
Perhaps he started showing resentment or hid his perceived loss
of standing by being too aggressive. He may have displayed less
self-control and self-confidence or felt more passive or conflict-averse
than usual and hence resigned. None of this bodes well for his stature.
In India, people contemplating marriage spend
more time and effort thinking about the wedding than about married
life. They don’t realise that the wedding is only a threshold
event. Similarly, many job seekers see the interview and selection
process as an end unto itself. They don’t want to evaluate
what contribution, what value addition the job brings to the company
and correspondingly peg a price as to the true value for the work.
When immersed in the hiring process, many candidates get caught
up. Rather than seeing it as the foundation for long-term relationships
or a way to gauge the working environment, they try to “win”
the interview and get the offer.
In the heat of the moment, even the most sophisticated
executives lapse into a reactive, shortsighted mindset and communicate
from their heart, since they “need the job”. Rather than
being an exchange of relevant information or an exercise in rapport-building,
the interview process be-comes a form of ritual completion, spel-ling
a one-sided affair from the employer’s point of view.
Confusion is compounded as HR in this country
is notorious for unstr-uctured hirings.
So what’s the way out? For starters don’t
let your eagerness to look good or please screeners hamper your
resolve to learn all you can about your role, the company, the importance
of the former in the latter, the future plan, et al. Ask relevant
questions on the same.
You should know how performance would be gauged,
yours and that of others. Ravi isn’t sure about his standing
because he allowed the hiring process to be superficial. They postured.
He postured. Now no one knows where the other stands.
A surprising number of executives leave attractive
jobs after short, unsuccessful tenures. They often say they realised
during the interview itself that there could be a problem, but they
didn’t want to make waves. They hoped for the best...and…got
the worst.
Particularly at the C level, a quick choice can
be catastrophic. If there is ambiguity in the thoughts causing concerns
in your mind, in the discussions, it’s better to air them during
the selection process itself. If they are deal-killers, so be it.
Ravi and his new employer didn’t intend
for his interviews and negotiations to be winner-take-all battles.
What battles? There are no battles; his interviewers weren’t
trying to bargain for advantage nor were the hirers trying to drive
home a point. In employment negotiations, both with words and demeanour,
a candidate for a leadership position should seem as powerful and
decisive as possible—despite wanting the job badly. Meek guys
may try to appear tough; conservatives may try to look entrepreneurial.
Ravi got caught here.
Knowing that he can be aloof and opinionated,
he tried to seem personable and collaborative. He may have succeeded
too well—coming across as more accommodating than he really
is. He made himself likable and showed he could address the organisation’s
needs. But in so doing, he didn’t get his needs and priorities
articulated which costed him dearly.
Ravi’s authority was diminished in a few
steps during the negotiations. When he agreed on a point, the employer
liked it, so he deferred more. Pretty soon, he felt the leverage
and momentum shift, and he couldn’t reassert himself without
appearing aggressive. He lost power for negotiating his employment
terms and compensation.
In the interview process, potential employers
invariably have the upper hand. They set the pace and appear to
define the rules of engagement. If the interviewee tries to over-control
the process, the interviewer can reassert power by showing him the
door. Therefore, skillful candidates shift everyone’s perspective
from the immediate negotiations to the long-term “benefits
of the bargain”—how the company stands to gain by the
selection and why. They keep reminding the employer of the marriage,
which has to last not just the wedding.
The author is a senior consultant with StantonChase
International, a global executive search firm
|
