Top Accountant Salary Negotiating Strategies in 2019 – Part One

The best candidate for your accounting firm has completed the interview process and you’re ready to tender you offer and bring them on board, easy as that. The fact is that is not as easy as that because top candidates require more today in the way of salary and benefits than ever before. Going from interview to offer to acceptance takes tact, smart negotiating skills and above all a solid package backed up with real benefits and more than fair compensation package.

High skill level accountants and internal auditors are highly sought after in the employment market in 2019. CPA’s are sought after more than all other accountants because they come to the table with a complete set of practical skill sets including technical, reporting and real-world implementation and ongoing applications. Because of a strong need for qualified accountants today and due to the fact, there is an ongoing small talent pool in 2019 there is a high demand for top notch applicants which in turn has created a situation where high caliber talent is now fine with demanding higher salaries during the job offer phase.

Studies show that workers in 2019 are negotiating for better pay during the job offer phase of employment 56% of the time, an increase of 16 points over 2018. Companies today are getting the message about salary negotiation with more than 60% of hiring managers willing to negotiate starting salary and more than 55% of hiring managers willing to negotiated benefits and job perks. High skill level accountant prospects these days have the upper hand in salary and benefits negotiating because of shortages and high demand for them. To compete in the employment marketplace for the top candidates bear the following salary negotiating strategies in 2019:

1. Start Negotiations with Solid Salary Offer Immediately

There are employers with
hiring managers the begin salary negotiations with the lowest offer possible
that favors the employer. Using this tactic is counterproductive because candidates
with a professional accounting career will view this as sign that the company is
thinking and acting short term, instead of doing what it needs to do to make its
best effort salary wise from the beginning by offering what the candidate is worthKnow that your best
candidates are going to be seen the same way both other companies. Most likely
the candidate will be looking at several other offers. The last thing you want
to do is lowball your salary offer and lose out on hiring a high-quality
employee. 60% of high caliber applicants see multiple offers at the same time.
Begin your salary talks with a very solid offer or chances are the candidate you
want will accept a job elsewhere.

2. Stick with Industry
Target Salary Levels

Learn what the salaries are that are being offered to prospective applicants by your competitors and other companies. Go to resources like the Robert Half Salary Guide. It reports public accounting positions pay and recent industry developments with respect to employment perks and benefits.  Develop a salary plan for each position for you business in your competitive market place and then apply the plan to the offer you tender to new candidates that’s strong, more than reasonable and that makes sense financially for company. Be sure, if you can, to build in a pad to the offer to go up on your salary offer if it turns out negotiations come into play when making your offer.

Final Points About Accountant Salary Negotiations

Negotiating salary methods can and do vary for each job applicant and each job. Knowing all the facts regarding what professionals require in 2019 and what they are being offered by company’s and competitors is so important so you that you have the needed data to be able to make a solid employment offer that has a good chance of being accepted. The last thing you want is to do your company’s payroll processing and come up short because you didn’t hire enough to land your top prospect.  Be sure begin with a rock-solid job offer with a strong salary with the require perks and be being willing to negotiate if required.  Accountants today are completely open normally and set to talk terms, so to be successful make use of the strategies described here so your company prevails and makes the right hires.