Consider this first-person account:

I am a human resources manager, so I interview people every day. Sometimes the managers in my company ask me to pre-screen candidates, which I do after discussing the job at length with the manager. I usually start the candidate screening with a few personality–job fit tests; then conduct an interview, following a list of job-specific questions the manager has given me; and finally discuss the job requirements, our company, and the pay/benefits.

By that time in the process, the candidate usually has a good idea of the job and is eager to suggest a high level of pay at the top of the advertised bracket or, often, above the pay bracket. However, this isn’t always the case.

One time in particular, an excellent candidate with outstanding qualifications surprised me by saying that since she wanted flextime, she would accept a rate below the pay bracket. Confused, I asked her if she wanted a reduction in hours below full time. She said no, she expected to work full time and only wanted to come in a little late and would leave a little late to make up the time.

I guess she figured this was a concession worth slashing her salary for, but our company has flextime. In fact, she could have asked for five fewer hours per week, still been considered full time by our company policies, and negotiated for above the advertised pay grade.

I knew the manager would be highly interested in this candidate and that he could probably get her to work the longer full-time hours at a lower rate of pay. That outcome might be best for the company, or it might not. She obviously didn’t fully understand the company policies in her favour, and she was unsophisticated about her worth in the marketplace. What should I have done?

Questions 

1. If the human resources manager were to coach the applicant to request a higher salary, would the coaching work against the interests of the organization? Is it the responsibility of the human resources manager to put the organization’s financial interests first?

2. What do you see as the potential downside of the human resources manager abstaining from discussing the pay issue further with the candidate?

3. If the candidate were hired at the reduced rate she proposed, how might the situation play out over the next year when she gets to know the organization and pay standards better?