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Episode 8 of “The JoyPowered™ Workspace Podcast,” combines our popular “Starting a Job Search” and “Successful Salary Negotiation” episodes and is eligible for one SHRM credit. JoDee and Susan discuss the six steps of a successful job search, keeping your employees from wanting to leave, negotiating salary from either side of the table, and understanding your market value.

According to Gallup, Americans are optimistic about their ability to find a good job, due to the strong economy and open positions at their companies. This means candidates are more plentiful, but your employees may be looking for other jobs, so it’s important to have stay interviews, offer competitive salaries and benefits, and generally look out for your team. We often don’t think about talking to our current employees about what they like, how they’re using their strengths, and what plans and goals they have, but it can help increase their enthusiasm, and it’s great for telling candidates why it’s great to work for you.

There are six major steps to look for a job:

1. Get your resume ready
2. Write and practice your elevator pitch
3. Apply to jobs and use your network
4. Prepare for an interview
5. Close the deal
6. Negotiate the offer

Before you accept a position, you should be thinking about negotiating salary. Do your research to find out the market value for the position; companies are often hesitant to share their salary range because they want the best value they can get. You can ask people who work for the company, or you can do research online.

When you’ve done your research, follow these steps for negotiating:

1. Track your accomplishments
2. Think about your target salary
3. Practice
4. Figure out the timing and prepare your boss

In this episode’s listener mail, Peg asks if it looks bad to other employers that you’re job hunting while still employed, Frank wonders how to answer when recruiters want to know your salary expectations, and Laura wants to know if you should email, call, or meet in person to negotiate salary.

Mentioned in This Episode:

• Purple Ink, the HR consulting firm JoDee owns
• Susan Tinder White Consulting, the HR consulting firm Susan owns
• JoyPowered, JoDee’s book
• “Majority in US Now Optimistic About Job Market”, which includes Gallup statistics regarding Americans’ optimism about the availability of good jobs
• StrengthsFinder, an assessment JoDee and Susan promote
• LinkedIn, one of the top two places JoDee and Susan suggest for applying to jobs
• Indeed, one of the top two places JoDee and Susan suggest for applying to jobs
• Dice, a great place to look for jobs in IT
• The Ladders, a great place to look for executive positions
• WorkHere, a location-based job search app in Central Indiana
• The November 2016 issue of SHRM’s HR Magazine, which says that salaries have decreased 3.1% on average since 2008
• Payscale, a website with self-reported information about salary ranges
• Glassdoor, a website with self-reported information about salary ranges
• Salary.com, a website with self-reported information about salary ranges
• The Department of Labor’s Occupational Information Network, which explains the knowledge, skills, and abilities you need, along with average salaries for positions nationally and by state